The Outsider Looking in:
An American in Japan
SNHU

Communication between people is always unique as no two people are alike and this difference is even greater when we communicate with people outside our own culture or country. As humans we generally strive for the same basic needs in life; food, shelter, companionship, but beyond those points we can find it difficult to communicate more complex ideas with those of different backgrounds. Once we are aware of another person’s differences and we can understand their point of view we increase the chances of better comprehension, fewer misunderstandings, and a mutual respect for one another (Academia). For this discussion we will examine the differences between a high-context culture, Japan, and a low-context culture, the United States, and how people from each are able to work on communication despite the language and culture barriers.

I was able to speak with Maiko Suzuki, a colleague of my wife, who is from Japan and has lived in the United States since 2010 working in a PhD program as well as a research lab in Boston. From the start I knew she had trouble understanding the research I was trying to do but we were able to overcome this in time. Like most foreigners, even those who have a firm grasp on the English language, they still struggle to make communication that is native to the United States due to the cultural differences. From that point Maiko was able to describe how she has been able to overcome the differences in communication here in the US while I tried to explore the opposite based on her knowledge. She pointed out that working in the US has brought her confusion at times when it comes to management and superiors within the workplace. Maiko stated that in Japan, when working with those above you, the directives and objectives are mainly implied and the oversight is less than what she has