The wish to form a realistic picture of Japanese culture is what motivates a consulting engineer, preparing for an extended business trip to Japan, to attend a cultural briefing in London. The engineer hopes the briefing will give him a clear picture of important values, conventions and practices of Japanese culture, and he is not disappointed.

The presenter, a Japanese professor, begins by talking about aspects of Japanese communication that create problems for foreign visitors, whether the language used is Japanese or English. For example, the Japanese show:

● A tendency to avoid debate, argument or confrontation. The Japanese are especially careful to avoid embarrassing others by saying no in public.

● A tendency to emphasize sentiment and harmony over logic. The professor mentions the agony aunt columns in Japanese newspapers that repeatedly offer advice on the virtues of social harmony, avoiding confrontation and not complaining.

● A tendency to choose ambiguous words which, together with vague reactions and controlled facial expressions, can lead to misunderstandings when talking to foreigners.

The professor stresses that such tendencies reflect deep-rooted cultural preferences and so are resistant to change. The best way of dealing with them, he says, is to take them into account when communicating with Japanese people – ‘so you don’t get the wrong message.’
Conflict avoidance Participants are warned that ‘yes’ said by a Japanese person may not mean yes, and that a plain ‘no’ in Japanese ears sounds intolerably blunt. This explains the Japanese tendency to use ambiguous or misleading phrases such as ‘We will give your request careful consideration.’ Such words are chosen to show politeness and respect to the other person and to avoid unnecessary friction. The professor stresses that Japanese people usually agree with their conversational partners since Japanese place great value on harmony and avoiding open disagreement and conflict. Usually Japanese people are reluctant to debate an issue, or to argue or risk confrontation. He admits that this tendency can be frustrating for Western business visitors who like to get straight down to business without wasting time on small talk.
In Japan After arriving in Japan the engineer discovers that the Japanese do indeed communicate in ways mentioned by the professor, including the use of ambiguous or misleading phrases. Such characteristics, he suspects, will make some foreign business visitors perceive their Japanese counterparts as evasive.
The engineer is surprised by some Japanese customs not mentioned in the cultural briefing. When he spends a night at a ‘ryokan,’ a traditional-style inn, he is surprised to find the bathroom set up for group use and that the bath is filled with fresh hot water just once a day. Guests are expected to wash thoroughly and rinse before stepping in, leaving the water clean for others. The manager of the ryokan, who speaks a little English, tells him of the difficulties she has with foreign guests: ‘When something goes wrong they won’t accept our explanations. Americans and Europeans argue a lot.’

The professor mentions several aspects of Japanese communication that frustrate foreigners. How should a foreign business visitor who is looking for straight answers and clear information deal with these traits if they constantly occur in business discussions?