Culture Clash
Culture Clash
Mark Ozawa, from Honolulu, had traveled to New York City to talk to small businesspeople about the Web design company he worked for in Hawaii. He had contacted Abe Rabinowitz, the president of a specialized book publishing company. Mark told Abe that a weekend meeting was possible, adding he was flexible given that Abe might be attending services at his synagogue. Arguing a form of
dialogue in some culturesMark and Abe met at a restaurant on a Sunday afternoon. When Mark talked about the advantages of working with his company, Abe pointed to the benefits of working with a Web design company in New York. When Mark talked about the expanding markets for books in Asia, Abe described horror stories colleagues experienced when they tried to enforce intellectual property rights in China. After presenting other ideas and hearing opposing arguments, Mark concluded he and Abe had not found enough common ground that would allow them to do business together.
Abe is using a discussion style that is familiar to Jewish people. The style involves a great deal of argumentation, presentations of disagreements, and exploring multiple aspects of complex issues. The goal of this style is not to win arguments. Rather, the goal is to come as close as possible to discovering and identifying relevant knowledge about complex topics. Jewish adults often remember this style being the basis of family dinner conversations. As teenagers, they would present their thinking, and then parents, aunts, and uncles would take opposing positions. The goal was to put as many issues forward as possible and to explore deeper levels of understanding and meaning.
This argumentative style contributes to excellent preparation for higher education. College students take courses that expose them to many different positions on complex issues in politics, economics, philosophy, and human behavior. If they are accustomed to discussing various positions based on years of dinner table conversations, they will be well prepared to argue with and to impress professors.
This incident and analysis developed from conversations with Michael Salzman, counselor education, University of Hawaii. If people want to learn this style, it will likely take a great deal of practice. People should not be discouraged if they enter discussions but find it difficult to argue various sides of issues. They should try again and again and eventually they will become more comfortable with this style.
The purpose of this column is to increase understanding of human behavior as it has an impact on the workplace. Special attention will be given to miscommunications caused by cultural differences. Each column will start with a short example of such confusion. Possible explanations will be offered to encourage thought about these issues.
Richard Brislin is a professor in the College of Business Administration,
University of Hawaii. He can be reached through the
College Relations Office: cro@cba.hawaii.edu