Different cultural values are at the root of many misunderstandings that occur in crosscultural interactions. For instance, people from low-context countries such as Australia and the United States value clarity and outspokenness when communicating with others

(Hall, 1976). But people from many Asian countries try to avoid disharmony by suppressing their opinions, by not being outspoken. Most Japanese wish to avoid uncertainty to a much greater extent than Indians do, and Japan also scores much higher than India on the masculinity dimension (Hofstede, 1980). Indeed, Japan is one of the most masculine societies in the world. Japanese society is driven by competition, achievement and success, and Japanese managers and employees are most motivated when they are fighting in a winning team against their competitors.

Tensions caused by clashing cultural values were revealed whenever managers from Indian and Japanese firms held project meetings. The firms were involved in an ambitious international joint venture being operated in India (Vijaya and Tiwari, 2010). In the meetings major differences in the nonverbal communication styles of the two groups of managers appeared, causing confusion and conflict.

Bowing, not touching The Indian managers, for instance, would greet their Japanese counterparts as they entered a conference room by shaking hands. But such a greeting got the meeting off to a bad start because Japanese culture is based more on bowing and less on touching. The Japanese managers had absorbed Japanese business values. According to these, bowing indicates status. Juniors must bow lower than seniors in recognition of the senior’s high status.

Nonverbal Aspects of Cross-Cultural Communication 43 Walking differences were also noted. The Japanese walked in short quick strides with drooping shoulders. According to Japanese cultural values, this behaviour signals humility and respect. This behaviour is strongly valued by Japanese people – but not by Indians, whose values are different. For Indian managers such nonverbal behaviour signals weakness and uncertainty and should be avoided. Consequently, the Indian managers walked tall with long strides and an upright posture, signalling confidence and strength.

Eye contact Another nonverbal difference was eye contact. For the Indian managers, establishing eye contact during a discussion is valued because it shows interest, honesty and sincerity.

But the Japanese have different values and for them direct eye contact can be rude and aggressive. As many foreign business visitors to Japan have discovered, it is normal practice in Japan for people in business meetings to keep shifting their eyes away during the discussion.

Japanese cultural values discourage external displays of negative emotion, which helps to explain why a calm, unrevealing expression is common among Japanese. A calm face and smile help to sustain social harmony. Business visitors to Japan have reported that in crosscultural business meetings Japanese managers will smile when giving a negative answer to a proposal from another participant. For foreign business visitors this creates ambiguity since it is difficult to know if their Japanese counterpart is happy or angry.

Saying ‘no’ nonverbally During the Indian–Japanese meetings observed by Vijaya and Tiwari (2010), Japanese managers would indicate ‘Yes’ wordlessly by nodding the head up and down, and ‘No’ by shaking the head left to right. Indian managers, however, tended to shake their heads about 180 degrees to indicate a ‘Yes’ as well as a ‘No.’ This culturally-influenced difference led to uncertainty and confusion. In one meeting, for instance, after explaining an important technical point to an Indian supervisor, a Japanese manager asked the supervisor if he understood everything. The supervisor indicated ‘Yes’ wordlessly, in the Indian cultural manner, by shaking his head about 90 degrees. But the Japanese manager interpreted this nonverbal signal to mean ‘No,’ leading him to patiently explain the same technical point once again. After this second attempt he again asked the Indian if he understood this time.

Again the supervisor nodded his head at about 90 degrees. The Japanese manager now reacted with suppressed irritation to what he saw as the inability of the Indian counterpart to understand him in spite of repeated clarifications. The Indian was indignant: ‘Sir, as I keep telling you, I understand everything. Please don’t repeat again.’

Clashing business values During another project meeting an Indian manager interrupted a presentation by a Japanese executive to ask questions. The questions were highly relevant and the Indian’s communication style was very polite. Nevertheless the reaction of the Japanese team was unexpected. While such interruptions during someone’s presentation are acceptable in Indian business culture, they are considered extremely unprofessional by Japanese managers. The result was that the Japanese team felt insulted and greatly offended. Indeed, after the meeting, some members of the Japanese team hinted that it might be necessary to cancel the joint venture agreement of the two companies.

1 In what specific ways should the Indian managers adjust their nonverbal behaviour so as to reduce the risk of future misunderstandings and conflict when communicating with their Japanese counterparts?
2 In what specific ways should the Japanese managers adjust their nonverbal behaviour when communicating with their Indian counterparts?
3 Explain the impact (positive or negative) that the paralinguistic aspects of speech –
tone of voice, loudness, intensity etc. – can make during cross-cultural business discussions.