ABSTRACT
An understanding of Japanese behaviour is more easily achieved if one views and evaluates individuals above all else in the context of their reference group. A large amount of personal interaction in Japan is ritualised. Although Japanese are strongly group-oriented, there is a long tradition of seishin, that is, the training of one’s own inner mental strength. This is basically an individualistic trait which can only be fully developed by years of practice. Japanese-western relationships are often clouded by the fact that many important aspects of Japanese daily life are rarely, if ever verbalised. Even if verbalising something, there is often a large element of understatement, and silence is valued for its powers of communication. All this is possible only in a highly homogeneous culture but serious misunderstandings occur in attempts at inter cultural communication. A Japanese is firmly ‘locked into’ a set of face-to-face relationships with seniors on the one hand and juniors on the other.
