U.S. and Japan

1. U.S. and Japan History/Psych Collaborative 4th Quarter Project

2. Cultural Differences Between the U.S. and Japan • Japan • Collectivistic culture • Strong ties to family and group/country • Respect family (especially elders) • Group decisions (consensus) valued • Behavior is governed by social norms • Team accomplishments valued • United States • Individualistic culture • Flexible ties to family and group • Respect immediate family • Individual decisions valued • Behavior ruled by self-interest • Individual accomplishments valued

3. Cultural Differences (Continued) • Here are several noticeable cultural differences between the US and Japan: • The traffic lights in Japan are horizontal instead of vertical • In Japan, citizens do not make appointments to see the doctor/dentist but, they are made on a first come first serve basis. • In schools, the academic year begins in April, during the spring, instead of the fall in the US. • In restaurants, it is not Japanese custom to leave a tip or pay at the table.

4. Collectivism(Brian So) • Collectivism is the theory that people think of society as a group. In Japan, a person is part of a group before he is an individual. People take great pride in their culture, their art, and their nation as a whole. Adherence to tradition is a great part of their society. Collectivism is both beneficial and detrimental- while some people may see that the old ways are often right, they often do nothing to fix the errors that are introduced by tradition. For example, a child who does not behave will often be scolded, and then, people will assume that the parent has not taught the child well. The child is considered a unit of the family as a whole. In Japan, an insult from one individual can be considered an insult from the group the person belonged to as a whole. A good example would be this - when a person committed a crime deserving of capital punishment, such as treason, all his family would be executed with him. When one person was dishonored, the whole family would be held in dishonor. People in Japan have been creating such calligraphy for centuries: they are good at perfecting what is handed down to them.

5. Individualism(Brian So) • Individualism is the idea that people are individuals before becoming part of any group. Individualism promotes independence and creativity. While collectivism encourages the use of tradition and old methods oftentimes, a culture that is highly individualistic has many more creative people. Also, people are thought of as single people before they are thought of as family. For example, a family is not ostracized simply because of one black sheep. People tend to be more free-thinking than those in a collectivist environment. A good example is the way the United States has a large number of inventors- people are encouraged not to follow set patterns of thinking. American individualism encourages the creation of “stuff” that does not fit the social norms, like this awesome tank-like motorcycle. n-n

6. Historical Differences • By: Carey Price Differences in Fighting • American soldiers fight to defend their country and Fight hoping they can accomplish the job and come home Back to their families • The Japanese culture for fighting is to fight for one’s honor Of their family and country. The soldiers go into wars prepared To die. The men and women are happy to sacrifice themselves. • Pearl Habor was an example of when this type of fighting took place. • The Japanese air force flew themselves into U.S. Navy Ships, Killing hundreds of American soldiers. • http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=american+soldier&form=QBIR#focalef7c22e3bd1894bc47f33ef6e752f960&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wecarepackageproject.com%2FSoldierFlag.jpg • http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=pearl+harbor+japanese+fighters&form=QBID • http://library.thinkquest.org/26638/war/japan-strategies.html

7. Historical Differences (Continued) • By: Carey Price Work Ethics • The U.S. citizens work for vacation and a luxurious life style. • The Japanese people work themselves to death for perfection. Their economy puts pressure on families to work long hours in order to keep up with payments. • Typically, the Japanese worker stays at the office for longer hours and has lower wages than the American worker. • Furthermore ,Japanese products are better made than American products. • http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/1/0/2/8/6/p102860_index.html • http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=american+business+men&form=QBIR#focal=267391bae7f2c74bf9dbc10dcd677272&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.haloimages.com%2Fimgs%2FMK00161_FPO_PREV.jpg • http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=japanese+workers&form=QBIR#focal=158c539b72878c4404e2831582c893f3&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.bbc.co.uk%2Folmedia%2F1480000%2Fimages%2F_1483839_japan_workers_bbc_300.jpg

8. Social Conversation • Americans love to talk. We talk constantly to fill in awkward silences that can happen in a conversation. Japanese people are quite different. They believe actions speak louder than words and prefer the silence in a conversation to random babble. • Japanese people also like to “beat around the bush” and talk indirectly so that the listener can come to their own conclusion. Americans just want to get the point.

9. Matt P. Slide

10. Citations • Slide 2: • Gaumer, C., Shah, A. (2004, January). Television Advertising and Child Consumer: Different Strategies for U.S. and Japanese Marketers. The Coastal Business Journal. Volume 3, Number 1. Retrieved May 27, 2008, from http://www.coastal.edu/business/cbj/pdfs/articles/spring2004/gaumershah.pdf • Slide 3: • Cultural Differences in Life Between Japan and the US. Ball State University. Retrieved May 27, 2008, from http://www.bsu.edu/web/clubjapan/learning/culture_files/frame.htm • Slide 8: • Pic.- (2007, November 1). Quality Assurance Management & Technologies Conference. Retrieved May 27, 2008, from http://www.bbjtest.com/qamt/people_talking.jpg • Info.- (2004-2007). American-Japanese Communications 101. Retrieved May 27, 2008, from WIN Advisory Group, Inc.: http://www.winadvisorygroup.com/AmericanJapaneseComms101.html