In every culture communication is vital
on all levels for daily functioning. One of the distinct ways in
which Western and Eastern cultures differ is in the realm of
communication style. For example in the Western world, direct as well
as open honest communication has become the basis for building
understanding with one another. Western culture tends to generally
value truth over harmony in communication. (Although that has been
changing with the concept of political correctness!) However, in
Japanese society the value of harmony has become the basis for
understanding one another when communicating. How is harmony achieved
in communication? In the place of truth as the prime value in
communicating, Aimai, or obscurity exists as the norm to
achieve harmony. Why?
Japanese society in general was built
around densely populated amounts of people having to work together
closely in a small area for survival, hence the need for harmony
became necessary. The group became more important than the
individual. In a group setting the need for harmony was said to be
more important than truth so as to not cause offense as well as
division. This characteristic became evident in the development of
Japanese culture as ideas from Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism,
Confucianism, Taoism, Secular-Humanism, Christianity, and Materialism
all blended together with no one 'truth' overriding another. With
these strong influences being incorporated into culture the concept
of truth became highly obscured which is especially evident in
communication. Even to this day Japanese people tend to have a
difficult time clearly saying: “Yes” or “No”! Decisions often
take a long time since every small detail of each part of the group
must be carefully considered for the sake of harmony. In America
indecisiveness is considered a great weakness, however in Japan it is
considered very wise!
More complexities arise when the
vertical hierarchy of Japanese society is included into the equation.
For example in new interactions Japanese people carefully try to
ascertain what the social ranking of the person they are talking to
is so as to not cause offense. To avoid potential offense it became
safer to speak ambiguously rather than specifically. Even though
Japanese speak in a very obscure as well as ambiguous style, it is a
highly valuable trait to be able to discern true intentions. This is
called 'reading the air', or the art of understanding what is
actually trying to be communicated from the vagueness of what is
actually being communicated! For instance, rather than saying 'No',
most Japanese will say 'chotto' which being translated means 'it is a
little bit hard for me to..'. So, even though the Japanese person is
not directly saying 'No' it is generally understood that 'chotto' is
a polite way of trying to get out of something! Rather than pressing
the matter for details as to why the person is saying 'chotto', most
Japanese will be able to 'read the air' and understand not to pursue
the topic further!
How can this impact ministry in Japan?
On a positive note cooperation with church projects is high because
of harmony as well as not wanting to offend in communication. A
strong sense of group unity can help a church face adversity as well.
However on the negative side, just as in a church in America that
practices love and harmony while abandoning truth, so can be life in
Japan in the realm of communication – frustrating. General
acceptance exists while at the same time making it difficult to
understand what people really believe. Truth becomes a matter of
group decision. Also, Japanese people without exposure to the West
are not used to direct communication, so it can seem barbaric or rude
to them when it does happen! (However the new generation is changing
because of increased exposure to the West.) Finally, because Japanese
people can be afraid of being excluded from the group, they will
often 'go along to get along' no matter how bad a situation can
become. Please pray for us as we navigate communication in Japan!
