Globalization has caused the inevitability of inter-cultural communication. In fact, by looking at our immediate environment, NUS, which consist of students from all over the world, it is clear that there is no escape from inter-cultural communication in our everyday life.







When HSBC came up with a series of commercial on cultural differences, I was in love with them. The commercials greatly emphasis on cultural diversity. Different culture have their own unique values, beliefs, artifacts, way of behaving, and way of communicating. Knowledge of other cultures is fundamental to understnading how the world functions at the macro level. It is also essential to prevent unnecessary conflicts that would arise due to misunderstanding. A few days ago, my hairstylist, Peter, happen to tell me a cultural conflict he encountered in Japan.

Peter had always admire works produced by the creative Japanese hairstyling industry and it was like a dream come true when he was offered a place in a well known saloon in Japan. Peter is a delicate hairstylist who takes pride in his work. Having been exposed to the western culture all his life, he favors clarity and directness. When his clients insist that he cuts their hair in a certain style that brings out the worse off them, he would give his negative comments in a polite but direct manner. He felt that the customers should be given professional opinions instead of being given a false impression that their suggestions are good.

A few days into his new job, Peter was giving his usual comments to a Japanese lady politely, when suddenly, she demand an apology for his rudeness and told him that she did not ask for an opinion from him. His supervisor overheard the complaint and immediately told Peter to bow and ask for forgiveness. Although Peter felt that he did not do anything wrong, he apologized. However, the Japanese lady was not satisfied by the simple sorry and demand that he offer her a cup of tea with his head held low. He felt that the Japanese lady insulted him on purpose and was even disappointed with his supervisor who told him to do as he was told. It was too much for his ego to take and he chose to resign instead of budging in.

Initially, I felt that he was being treated unfairly and the client was just being unreasonable. Even though we are paying for the service, respect should still be given to the individuals serving us and there is a limit to the humidity one should receive. Furthermore, it was just a small misunderstanding and even if Peter was at wrong, a sincere apology would be enough. However, after talking to my Japanese friend, I gained a new insight into the culture of the Japanese service industry. Japanese believes that the customers are always right and it is a value that should be uphold under all circumstances. The Japanese lady wasn't picking on Peter, instead she was asking for what she deserves. In the Chinese culture, it is a crush on one's ego to bow while offering tea to the other party and this way of asking for forgiveness is only when one had committed an unforgivable sin. But in Japan, it is a common way to ask for forgiveness, especially in the service industry. In fact, customers should be treated like royalties and one should ask for their permission before giving any suggestions.

The incident made me realize that our sense of efficacy in interaction depends to a large extent upon our knowledge and willingness to be open to other cultures. The more you build your capacity to engage in different cultures, the greater your opportunity to succeed in this ever changing global village.