www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqZcEwHBAk8

How many ways can you apologize in Japan? What is appropriate for various situations? Find out more about the delicate matter by watching this video!

1 hour to shower, 7 hours to sleep and 1 hour to rest is the guest philosophy at 9 Hours in Kyoto. Although sleeping and rest seem redundant, there must be a lounge area in which you can de-pod and sit upright. Watch the movie below for a flavor of the hotel.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRT4dU6r-KQ

The interesting question the owner raises is if their concept would work in London or New York. What do you think?

Of course, there are capsule hotels in both of these cities, but how can the idea be more robustly attuned to the tastes and values of hotel-stayers outside Japan? This boils down to an analysis of the gaps between Japanese and Western values.

What would you add or take away from 9 Hours to make the experience more pleasant?

9 Hours does make an effort to provide all the materials one needs to cleanse, shower and rest (toothbrush, pajamas, towels, toiletries, etc.). I think this adds to the credibility of the concept for most cosmopolitan cities.

The elimination of all unnecessary space is probably the most challenging aspect of pod hotels for non-Japanese guests. Of course, this relates to the ratio of physical space to population density, which has played a profound role in shaping Japanese culture. I’m sure that Japanese who visit a typical hotel in the US are bewildered by the “capricious” use of space and furniture.

The sleeping pod is another sacrifice a Western audience may feel is bizarre, especially when hotels often provide single guests with queen and king size mattresses. However, I’d bet most would be surprised by the pod experience and would think about it’s value in a new way after having tried it out. The hotel may be put into a silo, e.g. for quick business trips / stopovers only. It could be a reliable alternative to hostels, too.

Would you try a pod hotel? As a leisure and/or budget traveler? As a business traveler?

Sean

RW3 CultureWizard

According to Japanese cultural norms, individuals are loyal to the will and desire of the group or the whole. Members of a family make sacrifices for the well-being of the family unit, employees work hard to ensure group harmony is maintained and dissenters are quickly weeded out, as the Japanese proverb aptly puts it: “the nail that sticks out gets hammered down”. Does this strong orientation to the group inform to any degree the trend we see with Japanese leaders?

REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoo

The Atlantic draws a connection between Arab and Japanese cultures to try and figure out how to best explain this trend in Japan when the same values ostensibly characterize Arab cultural values:

So why is Japan different? Why do its top officials — and this trend extends across senior government posts — resign office, seemingly at the drop of a hat? The theories are endless, most of them relying on oft-repeated but simplistic stereotypes about the supposed centrality of honor, saving face, and respect in Japanese culture. But if these traits really are so important to Japanese culture, then the same could be said of Arab culture. But, clearly, Arab political leaders feel no compunction to step down, even if they become so loathed that the country rises up by the millions to demand their exit.

What do you make of this? Arab culture is not similar enough to Japanese culture to make this kind of comparison (read an article I authored in MOBILITY on the topic for more information on Middle Eastern culture). What may look like corruption in the Arab world is not necessarily seen as such by Arab leaders. Fierce authoritarianism and a prideful, paternal culture would better explain the reasons why many Arab leaders refuse to step down. An aversion to change and a low tolerance for risk are also key values that prevent a regular shift of power.

In a general sense, it’s true that Japanese highly value rank in society and recognize the responsibilities of its leaders to conform to the nation’s needs. A loss of face, or a tarnished reputation because of low popularity ratings, would be hard to overcome in Japan, especially when highly visible. What is it about Japan that compels its leaders to so easily step out of office? Are there any Japan experts out there that can provide their insights?

Sean

RW3 CultureWizard

The three friends from the village were ecstatic. It’s not everyday that one gets to be in presence of one so wise and holy. For the hours long walk home that afternoon, the three longtime mates could hardly even bring themselves to speak.

Finally, said the tall friend, “Wasn’t that wonderful!? And by heaven, I was surprised by how tall the holy man was.”

“It was wonderful,” answered his bearded friend, “And did you see how long and fine his beard was?”

“I didn’t notice,” replied the final friend in the trio, “I was so surprised to see a bald saint that I don’t recall anything else.”

As the story points out, it’s surprising, yet hardly uncommon, how desire, both conscious and unconscious, shapes our experience. So much so that each of the three friends saw only in the holy man what was most like themselves, but did you know that what we see can even be shaped by our culture?

In a social/cultural experiment CNN covered, the above fish scene was shown to groups of Japanese and Americans. They were given a few seconds to study the photo before it was removed and they were then asked to describe the scene in detail.

What do you think they noticed most?

Well, the Americans, by a large majority, were most aware of the placement of the three large fish, while the Japanese paid far more attention to the overall environment. When asked to reproduce the picture, the Japanese could place the kelp and the small fish, but lost site of the three large fish, while for the Americans, it was just the opposite. How do we learn to recognize our own cultural biases?

Might you have an experience where what you saw was so shaped by your cultural bias that you saw something as tall, bearded and bald, when in actuality it was short, clean-shaven and with a full head of hair?

Adam

RW3 CultureWizard

The growth of individualism in Japan is something we’ve watched over the past decades, as technology and globalization have irreversibly influenced its youth. Exposure to a world of popular culture, greater opportunities to travel the world and more channels to pursue one’s interests have made the idea of being a unique individual, a hallmark of many Western cultures, a popular one among Japanese.

However, the individualistic tendencies of Japanese youth don’t look similar to what a Westerner is accustomed to seeing. Take cosplay for example, which is a kind of performance art popular in many parts of Japan where people dress in costume and congregate in a designated area of a city. The desire to emulate a fictional character that one connects with on a personal level is similar to the way one might idolize celebrities or other famous individuals, but cosplay is one unique, Japanese manifestation of the value.

Ian Buruma of the Wall Street Journal tells us the far right in Japan claim Japanese youth “have lost the old collective spirit of the obedient, disciplined Japanese, who supposedly always put the interests of the nation before their own.” However, the opposite has been true from what the media has shared about the greater reaction to disaster in Japan: a strongly collective effort to “remain calm and carry on” despite widespread physical and emotional misery.

Furthermore, many of us have noted the stoicism with which the Japanese have responded to the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster. The cerebral if not sublime expressions we see in photos of people in the affected regions tell a unique, cultural story of collective responsibility and attitudes towards expression. The Journal also reflects on this:

Foreign observers have remarked on the discipline and solidarity of Japanese in the face of their current circumstances…It comes from the social conformity that is imposed on all Japanese from an early age, as well as from the duty to take care of one’s own and the fear of causing trouble to strangers. But it is also the result of an awareness, instilled by centuries of living with disasters, that what comes down can be rebuilt.

Many non-Japanese have a hard time interpreting the typically inward expression of emotion, which applies to both positive and negative situations. Many interactions between Japanese are highly intuitive, and feelings are transmitted with only the slightest visible or audible expression. Homogeneous societies such as Japan’s tend to be extremely contextual, as nearly 100% of the population share a common history, lifestyle and upbringing, eliminating the need to communicate in explicit, direct or overt ways (to compare, think about the way one would communicate with a person on the street in New York City).

Rescuers and victims carry bags of food aid from a helicopter in Yamada, northern Japan

The Journal continues to trace a path to the root of where many in Japan derive their feelings towards calamitous acts of nature and how to overcome them, two very cultural topics.

The sense of danger from natural calamities has deep roots in Japanese culture. The country’s earliest native religion, Shinto…is composed of rituals to appease the forces of nature, which are held to be divine. Since nature can be angry as well as benevolent, these gods must be kept happy with offerings, ceremonies and sacrifices.

Although many buildings are no longer made of wood (which is too expensive and hard to maintain), Japanese cities still look a little jerry-built, rather like movie sets, as though in anticipation of impermanence…

Impermanence is also a central concept of Buddhism, embodied in the changing of the seasons, which are heavily marked in Japan by festivals and other holidays. A somewhat fatalistic attitude towards nature is embedded in the Japanese psyche.

How does the Japanese mentality relate to the mentality of people living near active volcanoes, for example, or tornado prone areas, where disaster is known to strike without warning?

Is this a chance for Japan to steel itself and emerge as an even stronger nation and economy?

We appreciate your comments and thoughts. Please leave them by clicking on the title of this post and then scrolling to the bottom to leave your thoughts in the comments field.

RW3 CultureWizard

Yet, watching the televised images of Japanese reacting to the disaster reminds me again how different cultures are as they express their grief, fear and trauma. In an unprecedented event, Emperor Akihito gave a televised speech in which he comforted his people and applauded their ability to remain calm and respectful of each other.

Emperor Akihito's Speech

We are very interested in hearing your thoughts on what has happened and would especially value any accounts from individuals who have been in Japan or have heard stories from people in Japan. How would you react to the “keep calm and carry on” theme that many officials in Japan have exuded over the past few days? How is the stoic facade the Japanese have maintained connected to Japanese culture?

Click here to read a personal account of what’s happened from an intercultural consultant based in Tokyo, Japan.

Below are links to related articles:
Bangkok Post: “Stoic calm in the face of utter calamity“
Japan Times: A round-up of updates
Washington Post: “Emperor Akihito gives message of comfort in televised address“
Korea Herald: “Former ‘comfort women’ pray for Japan“