Transcript communication rules

Discourse between Japanese and
American speakers:
How cross-cultural communication patterns
contribute to misunderstandings
BY JULIE PETERS
GROUP B
Basic Background Information
 Haru Yamada, author
 Was student of Deborah Tannen
 Deborah Tannen wrote foreword on her book
 Book: Different Games, Different Rules: Why Americans and
Japanese Misunderstand Each Other
 Interest began from her own personal experiences
 Left Japan at age 3 to come to U.S. and was on 3-year rotation
due to father’s work.
Two Games with Different Goals and Communication Rules
 Explicit Communication (American)
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A way to show self-reliance
Thomas Mann quote: “Speech is civilization itself. The word, even the most
contradictory, preserves contact—it is silence which isolates.”
“The squeaky wheel gets the grease.”
The Magnificent Seven
 Implicit Communication (Japanese)
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A way to accommodate others
Proverb: “Kuchi wa wazawai no moto.” which is “The mouth is the source of calamity.”
or rewritten by cartoonist Gomi Taro, “Oshaberi wa kuchi no onara.” which is
“Talkativeness is a mouth’s fart.”
“Tori mo nakaneba utaremaji” which is “If the bird had not sung, it would not have
been shot.”
The Seven Samarai
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 14-18 and 139
Two Games with Different (Relationship) Rules
 Independence is stronger than dependence (American)
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The Ant and the Grasshopper
Parent saying something like, “Don’t throw that. If you want to buy something, you put it on the conveyer belt.”
(independence)
Paid work is valued because it signifies independence, therefore the working man is the role model.
Self-help book: “Warning: Beware of the person who sends the message implicit or explicit, “I want someone to take
care of me.” Chances are he or she lacks inner intimacy and feelings of stability and self-love.”
 Interdependence is sweeter than individuality (Japanese)
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Amae
The Ant and the Cicada
Parent saying something like, “What will she think if you make a face at her?” (others’ point of view)
Uchi versus soto, group membership is important.
Nurturing is highly valued, therefore the mother is the role model. Even though she is unpaid, she has her bun or
role, esp. as financial planner for family.
“Deru Kugi wa utareru” which means “Nails that stick out get hammored back in.”
Classic Zen quote: “A foolish person regards himself as another, a wise man regards others as himself.”
Classic Confucian teaching: “If one wants to establish oneself, one has to establish others. If one wants to reach
perfection for oneself, one has to reach perfection for others.”
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 3-5, 11, 12
Summary of Communication Games
American
Japanese
Goal
Explicit Communication
Implicit Communication
Communication
Field
American English
Japanese
Communication
Rule
Spoken is Better than
Implied
Implied is Better than Spoken
Relationship
Rule
Independence is Stronger
than Dependence
Interdependence is Sweeter
(amae) than Individuality
Power Axis
Spoken Independence
Unspoken Interdependence
Double Bind Axis Relationship
Communication
Amended Goal
Others-Centered
Interdependence in TalkDistancing (e.g. minimizes “I”)
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 20
Equal Opportunity
Independence in Talk
(e.g. “I”)
Direction Pronouns
“Another related piece of equipment in Japanese that blurs the distinction
among individuals is the use of what I call “direction pronouns” in the
place of personal pronouns. Direction pronouns are the terms of
direction, kochira, sochira, and achira, which literally mean “this way,”
“that way,” “and a still further “that way,” that are used as pronouns:
Kochira (this way) stands for “I” and “we,” sochira (that way) for “you,”
and achira (that way) for “he,” “she,” or “they.”
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 26
Summary of Communication Equipment
American Communication
Japanese Communication
Sentence Order
(S) + (V) + (O)
(S) + (O) + (V)
Obligatory Parts
(S) + (V) + (O)
If verb is transitive (takes object)
(S) + (V) If verb is intransitive
(V) only
Standard Pronoun Usage
Usage Required
Deletion of Second Person Pronoun “You” Only
in Command Form
Usage Optional
Frequent Deletion
Alternative Pronouns
None
Numerous (e.g. Direction Pronouns)
Time in Tenses
Past, Present, Future
Past and Ongoing Present
Position of Negation
Frontloaded Before Verb
Backloaded After Verb
Number of Grammatical
Negations
One
Zero Grammatical Limit
Comprehensibility Limit Only
Key Verb Distinction
Between Individuals as in Conjunction
Between Members of a Group as in Hierarchical
Verb Forms
Emphasis
Stress
Word Position (at the Beginning of the Sentence)
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 34
Speaker Talk vs. Listener Talk
“Being able to guess at what others are going to say is central to the Japanese
expectation of unspoken interdependence: Like a person who is only a bun, or
part of a larger group, a sentence in Japanese is only a part of the larger
interaction, and consequently often gets completed across communicators
rather than by a single individual on her own.”
 Sasshi – “a strategy where players try to understand as much as
possible from the little that is said.”
 Example: Chie and Fiona talking; Chie finishes her sentences; Fiona
keeps speeding up.
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 37 and 40
Speaker Talk vs. Listener Talk continued…
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Call Me Dave
Japanese accent is Debu –word “synonymous with fatso in English”
Calls him Mr. Williams instead.
Dave is confused, reminds him first that they are on first name basis,
then asks if he should call him Mr. Kawashima.
Kawashima insists that Dave not call him Mr. Kawashima… “No, No,
no. You call me ‘Ryu.’ I call you ‘Mr. Williams.’” (levels of respect)
Dave’s assistant refers to him as MISTER Kawashima
Naming practices – American: “at the appropriate time, choose a name,
and say it.” Japanese: “grow into” names, starting with last name + san
(soto or outside relationship) and later dropping san. First name is
reserved for uchi or inside group relationship. Appropriate name would
have been Williams then.
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 41
Speaker Talk vs. Listener Talk continued…
 Relationship names depend on who is talking (listener-driven)
 A dozen different ways of saying no without saying no
 Politeness - “their need for interdependence creates dozens of standard
expressions in thanking, apologizing and inviting others to go first,
which when translated literally, sound comically polite” (e.g. doozo
doozo – after you, after you).
 Greeting of action versus greetings of care
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America is “What’s up?” and “How are you?”
Direct quote on page 50: “taihen gobusata shite orimasu” (roughly, “please excuse me for
not calling sooner”) and “itsumo osewa sama de gozaimasu” (roughly, “thanks for always
taking care of me”), “doozo yoroshiku onegai itashimasu” (roughly, “please look after me,”
used similarly as the English “nice to meet you”), and responses like “okagesama de,”
(roughly, “because of you, I’m feeling well”) all show that for the Japanese, well-being is
defined in terms of interdependent care.” (Yamada, 2008, p. 50).
Yamada, H. (1997) p. 43-50
Business Communication
 Limited my topic to exclude this specific area
 Note: difference between cubicles in America and bull pen in Japan.
 Note: meetings and agendas in America to come to consensus;
Japanese reach consensus through uchiawase (informal) meetings.
 Note: division of work in America, shared work in Japan
 Note: Japan group identity seen in introductions: “said first is the
company name as the largest organizer, followed by the family name,
and finally and optionally, the bun or fractional part, the first name.
Two Key Points to Remember
Japanese and American speakers are essentially operating as
participants in…
 Two games with different goals and communication rules
 Two games with different relationship rules
References
Yamada, Haru. (1997). Different Games, Different Rules. New York: Oxford University Press.