Tag: Germany

Big Issues with Small Talk Across Cultures: Germany vs. Japan Watercooler Rules

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Image credit: John Brooks

Sarah, a marketing executive from Berlin, is attending a business conference in Tokyo. 

As she enters the crowded conference hall, she spots Hiroshi, a senior executive from a leading Japanese corporation, standing alone by the refreshment table. 

Eager to make a good impression, Sarah approaches Hiroshi with a warm smile and a casual greeting.

“Guten Tag, Hiroshi! Wie geht es Ihnen?” Sarah asks (“Hello, Hiroshi! How are you doing?”), extending her hand for a shake.

Hiroshi, taken aback by Sarah’s directness and informal demeanor, hesitates before responding with a polite nod. 

“Es geht mir gut, danke,” he replies (“I’m fine, thanks”), his tone reserved and formal.

Sarah is completely bewildered by his demeanor. But unbeknownst to her, her attempt at small talk has inadvertently breached cultural norms. 

In Japanese business culture, casual inquiries about personal well-being are uncommon, especially when first meeting someone in a professional setting. 

Instead, initial interactions typically focus on exchanging business cards and discussing neutral topics related to the conference agenda.

As Sarah and Hiroshi navigate this cultural disconnect, they highlight the topic of a German study centered around chatbots. 

Chatbot Study

Researchers sought to explore how cultural differences influence small talk by using chatbots programmed to engage in culture-specific casual dialogue. 

They focused on comparing the small talk practices of Japanese and German participants, two cultures known for their distinct communication styles.

To conduct the study, researchers set up simulated conversations between pairs of German and Japanese individuals using these chatbots. 

They carefully observed and analyzed the interactions between the participants to identify cultural differences in small talk behavior. 

Based on their observations, they programmed the chatbots to reflect these cultural nuances in their dialogue.

After programming the virtual agents, the researchers asked German participants to observe pairs of German and Japanese virtual agents engaging in small talk and rate which conversations they found more appropriate or interesting. 

This allowed the researchers to gauge the participants’ perceptions of small talk behaviors across cultures.

The Results

The results of the study revealed several interesting findings. 

German observers tended to interpret the Japanese participants’ small talk style, which focused on commenting on the immediate environment and avoiding personal discussions, as “distant” and “superficial.” 

In contrast, they perceived the more familiar German tendency to discuss personal topics as indicative of greater interest in their conversation partner.

Additionally, the study highlighted cultural variations in the perceived value of small talk. 

While some cultures, like the Germans, may place importance on engaging in personal discussions as a way to express interest and build rapport, others, such as the Japanese, may prioritize maintaining a polite and respectful distance, particularly in initial interactions.

Overall, the study demonstrated how cultural misunderstandings and assumptions can arise in seemingly innocuous social situations like small talk. 

By using chatbots to simulate cross-cultural interactions, the researchers were able to shed light on the stark differences in communication styles and the importance of cultural sensitivity in social interactions.

High Context vs. Low Context: Navigating Cultural Communication

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Communication is not just about the words we say; it’s about the nuance. 

The concepts of high context and low context communication play a crucial role in understanding how different cultures convey meaning and messages. 

These contrasting communication styles can sometimes result in conflict across cultures, so let’s dissect their cultural implications.

High Context Communication

High context communication refers to cultures where much of the meaning is conveyed through nonverbal cues, implicit messages, and contextual factors. 

In high context cultures – like Japan, China, Korea, and many Middle Eastern and Latin American countries – relationships are paramount, and communication is often indirect and nuanced.

In these cultures, individuals rely on shared cultural knowledge, social hierarchies, and implicit understandings to interpret communication accurately. 

For instance, a simple gesture, facial expression, or silence can convey volumes of meaning that may be missed by those unfamiliar with the cultural context.

Low Context Communication

Conversely, low context communication involves conveying meaning primarily through explicit verbal messages. 

In low context cultures, such as those found in the United States, Canada, Germany, and Scandinavia, communication tends to be direct, explicit, and to the point. 

Individuals prioritize clarity, transparency, and precision in their communication style.

Rather than relying heavily on nonverbal cues or contextual factors, much of the information is contained in the words themselves. 

As a result, misunderstandings are less common, but there may be less emphasis on building relationships or preserving harmony through communication.

Cultural Implications

The differences between high context and low context communication have significant implications for intercultural interactions and relationships. 

For example, in high context cultures like Japan, a simple “yes” may not always mean agreement; it could indicate politeness or acknowledgment without necessarily committing to a course of action.

Similarly, in low context cultures like the United States, individuals may perceive indirect communication as vague or ambiguous, leading to frustration or misinterpretation. 

For instance, in negotiations, a straightforward approach may be expected, whereas in high context cultures, a more subtle negotiation style may be preferred.

Meet in the Middle

As with most cross-cultural relationships, approaching these differences with understanding is paramount.

Understanding the nuances of high context and low context communication is essential for effective cross-cultural communication and collaboration. 

By recognizing and respecting cultural differences in communication styles, individuals can navigate intercultural interactions with sensitivity and empathy, fostering mutual understanding and building stronger relationships across cultural divides. 

As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, the ability to bridge cultural gaps through effective communication becomes ever more vital for success in our globalized society.

Giving Thanks to Cultural Diversity: Thanksgivings Around the World

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Many across the world are familiar with American Thanksgiving, thanks largely in part to the media and commercialism.

But it may surprise Americans to know that not only does Canadian Thanksgiving predate American Thanksgiving by 40 years, but many other cultures around the world celebrate their own Thanksgivings in appreciation of different historical events in their countries.

Here are three Thanksgivings from around the world.

Canada

As mentioned, Canada’s inaugural Thanksgiving celebration predates that of America by over four decades.

Martin Frobisher, the English navigator, led an expedition in 1578 that conducted a gratitude ceremony in present-day Nunavut, expressing thanks for delivering their fleet to safety. 

This event is recognized as the first Thanksgiving celebration in North America, even though the indigenous peoples of Canada, known as First Nations, and Native Americans had been observing harvest festivals long before the arrival of Europeans. 

During the Revolutionary War, Loyalists who migrated to Canada brought with them American traditions, including the one of turkey.

Establishing a national Thanksgiving Day in 1879, Canada now celebrates Thanksgiving on the second Monday in October. 

Like their southern neighbor, Canadian Thanksgiving traditions involve football and consuming a large spread with family.

Japan

Japan‘s version of Thanksgiving, known as Kinro Kansha no Hi (Labor Thanksgiving Day), has its origins in the ancient Niinamesai rice harvest festival, dating back to the seventh century A.D. 

The festival is celebrated on November 23, and as a “Labor Thanksgiving Day,” it’s viewed as a tribute to the rights of Japanese workers.

Unlike the American holiday, this one is centered around the values of community involvement and hard work. 

Labor organizations hold events, and children often make thank-you cards for essential workers, like garbage collectors, firefighters, and policemen.

Germany

Erntedankfest – or the “harvest festival of thanks” – is the German counterpart to Thanksgiving.

This religious observance commonly occurs on the first Sunday in October.

It is celebrated differently in rural areas versus urban ones. 

Small towns tend to embrace the literal essence of the harvest festival, while city churches in Germany express gratitude for the prosperity experienced by their congregations throughout the year.

Typically, Erntedankfest involves a church procession, carrying an Erntekrone – or a “harvest crown” of grains, fruit, and flowers. 

The celebration involves indulging in hearty dishes like der Kapaun (castrated roosters) and die Masthühnchen (fattened-up chickens). 

This blend of religious and cultural traditions reflects a unique German approach to giving thanks during the harvest season.

As you can see, Thanksgiving may be celebrated around the world for different reasons and events, but it seems to me that humans are universal in wanting to share in gratitude.

Is It Worth the Risk?: Different Cultural Takes on Risk Perception

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Are some cultures greater risk-takers than others?

This study dove in to find out.

Analyzing the data of respondents from Germany, Poland, the US, and China, the study measured respondents’ risk preference for pricing financial options.

These are their findings.

Hypothesis

Studies have shown a correlation between a culture’s position on the individualism-collectivism scale and its risk preference.

Called the Cushion Hypothesis (Weber & Hsee, 1998), the theory suggests that those from collectivist cultures are more likely to take financial risks.

Why?

Due to the perceived support from their collectivist culture and, thus, the reduced negative consequences such a risk might have on the individual.

While this study did arrive at the same conclusion – that the collectivist society of China was less risk-averse than its American counterpart – it did identify a more specific reason for it.

Risk-Averse

The majority of respondents in all four cultures were identified as risk-averse (i.e. they were willing to pay more for options they saw as “less risky”).

When you look at a risk-return conceptualization, it is natural that most people, no matter what culture, would perceive risk this way.

When risk preference was evaluated in the traditional expected-utility framework, Chinese respondents were considerably less risk-averse in pricing than Americans.

But what this study found was that the difference in risk preference may not be due to a cultural attitude toward perceived risk; instead, it appears largely due to the perception of the financial options’ risk itself.

Chinese participants simply did not find the options as risky as their counterparts.

Conclusion

The study states:

“Chinese respondents were closest to risk neutrality in their pricing of the financial options and judged the risk of these options to be the lowest, but were not significantly less perceived-risk averse.

“American and Germans offered the lowest prices and also perceived the risk of the options to be highest, but were not significantly more perceived-risk averse.”

One might practically apply this knowledge to commerce and negotiation when working across these particular cultures, affording both negotiators joint gains.

The study concludes that while cultures do vary on a collectivism-individualism continuum which undoubtedly impacts perceived risk, other cultural factors in risky decision-making – locus of control, differences in achievement motivation, etc. – may also come into play in risk preference.

Further studies into the subject might provide more insight.

“Are You Angry?” How One Can Identify Norm Violations Through Emotional Expression

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A group is completing a task.

Each participant takes a turn doing the task. Most do it the same way, but then one does it completely differently.

When this individual steps out of place, the others look at him angrily.

If you observed this, what would you deduce?

What would you think if the others didn’t look angry but appeared sad instead?

This is the scenario put forth by the study we’ll be discussing in this post.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve talked about societal emotional environments and cultural emotional arousal levels.

As a foreigner in a new country, how do you adapt your behavior so that you don’t have a monkey moment in another culture?

Often, you can read into others’ emotional expressions which may indicate to you whether you’ve upset a social norm.

The Study

This study takes a look at observations of norm violations using four countries – Germany, Greece, Israel, and the US – each of which has different rules and norms for negative emotions.

Each group observed the two interactions described above.

In general, the anger shown suggested to the observers that if you want to be part of a group, you should complete the task the same way as the others (see, norms).

However, when the observers saw sad reactions instead, they weren’t universally sure how the participant should have behaved in this social context.

Anger vs. Sadness

Anger is generally a strong signal about societal norms and behaviors.

Anger suggests a behavior that’s both undesirable and incongruent to the emoter’s norms.

Sadness, however, though it may indicate unpleasantness or goal obstruction, does not necessarily emphasize a norm violation.

Performance of All Groups

For all four groups, anger was more indicative of a norm violation than expressions of sadness or neutrality.

Greek participants were better at perceiving sadness as a sign of a norm violation, while German participants were most prone to perceive anger.

American participants were most likely to consider the expressers indifferent.

Israeli participants differentiated best amongst the three expressions…although that may be because the study was Israeli-created (and so, the expressions were too).

The study also found that participants were more likely to recognize the norm and see the violation if anger was the expression shown.

This suggests that different cultures are more perceptively sensitive to different emotions and that anger is more pointed in making one note a norm violation.

History is in the Eye of the Beholder: Why There Is No “One Truth” When It Comes to Culture

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“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” – or so the saying goes.

And so is history.

History may be “written by the victors,” but in most cases, the “victors” don’t permanently wipe out all other perspectives (thankfully).

Opposing views of history co-exist and, if you’re doing business in a new culture – or living in it – an awareness of that culture’s perspective of history, particularly its own, will help you succeed…and avoid some serious cultural faux pas.

How?

UPS in Germany

Consider this: when UPS tried to introduce new business in West Germany in 1976, the company didn’t consider the historical roots of brown uniforms there.

UPS’s recognizable “brown shirts” were reminiscent of Hitler Youth uniforms to locals.

Tensions arose due to this serious oversight, and UPS was forced to introduce green employee uniforms instead. 

But cultural insensitivity was their first impression.

This could have all been avoided with a little bit of historical knowledge and common sense.

Moreover, another important thing to remember about history is that, when it comes to cultural understanding, it’s open to interpretation.

Interpreting History

Although there may be one truth, no one will ever know it.

Historical events can be perceived differently by opposing cultures and are subject to interpretation.

Knowing that, when introduced to your host culture, look at their history not only through the lens of your own culture, but through their own.

If you look at another’s history only through the framework of your culture’s historical perspective of it, that singular interpretation of the facts likely won’t provide the same view.

In the sense that you’re trying to understand the perspective of another culture, that interpretation is pretty useless to you.

While we hope for objectivity in history-telling, the reality is that subjectivity colors history writing a great deal.

Historians often write within the biased framework of their culture’s own national and political interests.

Cultural bias is difficult to recognize, particularly coming from academics or historians, whom we’d like to believe are “above” bias.

But nationalist tradition often enters into historical interpretation, and cultural preconceptions and stereotypes are extremely resistant to facts.

Only when faced with foreign opposition of said facts may any sort of bias be detected.

We’ll illustrate this contrast of opposing historical views next week.

3 Vital Reasons to Learn a Language

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“Hola!”

“Bonjour!”

“Ni hao!”

“Zdravstvuyte!”

While there are many reasons to learn another language, the below BIG THREE are vital.

1) Understanding Each Other

Communication – a vehicle to understanding – is of course one of the main reasons to learn a language.

English is the official business language of many international companies. Most managers, even of foreign companies, speak fluent English.

In this regard, successful management may not be entirely dependent on learning another language if you look at it purely from a communication perspective.

However, if you’re meant to feel at home in a foreign culture, better understanding will only be had once you know the native language.

2) Learning the Culture

As we talked about in last week’s post, language and culture are intertwined. 

Learning the language will teach you how the culture‘s people think – including your colleagues. 

One personal example of this: 

My father wrote the dictionaries for the tribe of the Mossi, whose language spellings weren’t standardized in the ’70s.

In writing these dictionaries, he learned not only about the language, but about the values of the culture, due to the importance of certain words and phrases.

Greetings, for instance, were many and varied.

When meeting a group of people in a field, you’d extend a different greeting than that of a group congregating under a tree.

Not only does the location impact the greeting, the response is also standardized.

Asking after one’s health is important, as are formalized responses to these greetings.

Even the Mossi are aware about how difficult these greeting customs are to master.

They have a saying, “Saan puusem yaa a ziibo,” which means, “The greetings are a heavy burden for foreigners.”

My father became fluent in the Mossi language and began to understand conversations and idioms.

“When the crocodile is sick, then the buffalo can drink,” for instance, is an optimistic statement meaning there is always an upside in life.

When you learn the language, you learn the culture.

It’s as simple and complex as that.

3) Demonstrating Respect

As my father did with the Mossi, learning another culture’s language demonstrates your respect for the people.

When a Walmart CEO announced that English would be the official company language in Germany, his actions weren’t taken well.

In fact, this – at least in part – led to the conglomerate withdrawing from the German market and to a billion plus-dollar loss.

Instead, handle language as the British CEO of Korean automaker, Daewoo, did. 

When it became apparent that General Motors, the U.S. company that bought out the failing motor company, Daewoo, was viewed as an outsider in Korea, Daewoo’s British CEO, Nick Reilly, took this to heart.

What did Reilly, known for his policy of “putting people as No. 1,” do?

Unsurprisingly, he put people first by way of appearing on a Korean television commercial.

When the people saw Reilly himself speaking the language to show his – and, more importantly, the brand’s – respect and commitment to Korea, they were colored impressed.

The result: the commercial resonated with Koreans, and the Daewoo company – although reorganized and rebranded in many places – saw a dramatic recovery.

Insightful Cross-Cultural Analogies: How Hofstede’s Power Distance & Uncertainty Avoidance Aid Understanding

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Power distance. Uncertainty avoidance.

We’ve discussed these two dimensions at length in previous posts.

Not only are they stand-alone aspects that aid cross-cultural understanding, but social psychologist, Geert Hofstede, has applied these two dimensions to create cultural analogies that help simplify foreign workplace environments.

Power Distance and Uncertainty Avoidance Review

These two dimensions relate to workplace behaviors.

Power distance is the degree to which cultures accept and expect the unequal distribution of power amongst members of organizations and institutions.

For instance, those employees in cultures of high power distance will not directly confront a superior; those employees and superiors in cultures of low power distance rely on communication and the consultation of each other, which de-emphasizes the hierarchical nature of status.

Uncertainty avoidance is the measure of acceptance and expectation for unpredictability and chaos in society.

Those cultures with high levels of uncertainty avoidance have a low tolerance for unpredictability and ambiguity, resulting in rule-oriented, law-abiding societies.

Those cultures with low levels of uncertainty avoidance have a high tolerance for the same, resulting in societies willing to take more risks, tolerate a wider variety of opinions, and not follow rules so strictly.

The Analogies

Arranging these two dimensions on the axes of a matrix, Hofstede produced a set of helpful analogies to better understand the work cultures of the United Kingdom, China, Germany, and France.

monkey_charts_CMYK-14

With its low uncertainty avoidance and low power distance, a typical English company is like a village market, in that it combines risk-taking with flat hierarchies, resulting in the classic entrepreneurial spirit.

Germany also shares the flat workplace hierarchies (low power distance) with the British; however, German culture has a high uncertainty avoidance, making typical German companies efficient and inflexible, more like a “well-oiled machine” or a clock. Rules are strictly followed, with decentralized decision-making and each equally important wheel working together.

The typical French company is described as a “royal court” or “pyramid of people.” The culture is one of high power distance, where everyone knows their place and decision-making is centralized. They also share high uncertainty avoidance with the Germans, meaning rules are strictly followed, resulting in a complex network of relationships across the levels of hierarchy. Power and authority are highly valued.

The best analogy for a Chinese company is that of a family with a head patriarch. Like France, China values high power distance and, like England, low uncertainty avoidance. This means that, despite having a typical hierarchical society that values company loyalty, risks and rule-bending are embraced, which has helped to position China as an economic superpower.

Although I can’t stress enough that analogies are never perfect and nothing is one-size-fits-all, they do allow managers to form mental models, aiding understanding in the workplace environments of foreign countries.

10 Cultural Universals: Politics

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Politics in Culture

Democracy, communism, socialism, totalitarianism.

The politics of a nation shape its values and are shaped by them.

The cycle is continuous and feeds itself: culture feeds politics, and politics feed culture. This cycle is only disrupted by some huge collapsing event.

What do I mean by “collapsing event”?

I’ll give you an example.

Germany & WWII

One obvious example of this is WWII.

When Hitler and the Nazis gained control, so did their political values: anti-semitism, the concept of an Aryan “master race,” and the formation of a “New Order.”

“There are only two possibilities in Germany; do not imagine that the people will forever go with the middle party, the party of compromises; one day it will turn to those who have most consistently foretold the coming ruin and have sought to dissociate themselves from it…there are only two possibilities: either victory of the Aryan, or annihilation of the Aryan and the victory of the Jew.”

– Adolf Hitler, Munich (April 12, 1922)

This was the first of the collapsing events: the Nazi takeover.

In 1945, another collapsing event would occur: their defeat.

And 44 years later, in 1989, would occur another collapsing event in Germany – this one almost a literal one – the fall of the Berlin wall, which separated East Germany from West Germany.

It was this collapsing event that eventually led to the Germany we know today: a federal parliamentary republic, an influential leader in Europe and the world, and the fourth largest economy.

This example demonstrates that politics can momentarily distort a culture’s values, can lead to evil acts. But, ultimately, if the majority’s values are good and strong, politics cannot destroy the true nature of a culture.

As long as that majority does not remain silent.

Collapsing Event

You can probably determine from the above example what a collapsing event is.

It’s a moment in history that almost entirely collapses the status quo, keeps the good or the bad (depending upon the values of the dominant group), attempts to eliminate the “other,” and starts building the status quo again from the ground, up, under newly installed values.

This is politics in culture.

Oftentimes, a collapsing event occurs through war and violence. In fact, one might look at politics as a war for cultural values.

Political Movements

A few more examples of collapsing events across history:

  • American Civil War – Abraham Lincoln led the North in defeating the confederates to preserve the union and abolish slavery.
  • Cultural Revolution – Chairman Mao Zedong’s attempt to preserve Communist ideology by destroying some of China’s capitalist past and tradition and silencing (and often publicly humiliating) community intellectuals and thought leaders.
  • Execution of the Romanov Family – The Bolsheviks murdered the family members of the last living tsar dynasty to end imperialism in Russia.

The list is endless, and the bodycount is often devastating. These events create a turning point in history, where the established values are disrupted or altered, altogether.

And as we all know, values are the fundamental roots of culture. They define us.

Next week, we’ll talk about how politics, values, and culture collide in North Korea.