Group Life In Japan

Group Life in Japan Group life is different in Japan than in the United States because the Japanese believe that it is important to belong, while in America it is acceptable if you do not conform with a group. Japanese children are also also taught that group loyalty is more important than individually; American children believe the exact opposite. American children are taught to care for the group, but keep your opinion unless presented evidence. In Japan, children are taught that if one were to rebel against the rules set by an authoritative figure, the entire group would be punished. Japanese children are not only expected to follow the idea of group loyalty, but adults as well. It can be seen that individualism shapes formal organizations …show more content…
In the 1930s and the 1940s the nation, emperor, and the military were the center of Japanese life; however, after the defeat of the nation in World War I the society turned towards economic growth. In order for economic growth, their must be a need for unity. In Japan’s current society the life of the individual is focused on groups. The primary task, in life as seen through the Japanese perspective, is to fit into society. This belief can be seen from the infrequent amount of lawsuits, ambiguous statements, and the dodging of conflict. Harmony in group life is also seen as important in the East Asian culture. Group life in America differs from Japanese culture due to Americans’ belief that it is okay to not conform with groups. While Japanese sees their main goal in life to conform, Americans tend to believe that their primary goal is to find themselves. Americans also typically believe that it is more important to be an individual than to belong to a group. Values of group loyalty are taught to young children in Japan just as the values of individuality are taught to young children in …show more content…
Individualism also shapes business in America but in different ways. In Japan, those who work for a company are centered around said work. Not only is the company the center of their life, the company matters more than the job. America’s idea of business are contradicting; it is mainly considered in America that it is about the job and not about the company, and that work being the center of life is not considered important. Due to the Japanese working in groups, their social interactions become limited to those who work in the same company. Individualism shaped the companies in Japan differently than in America because they choose company loyalty. They center themselves around work and believe that the company matters more than the job itself. America is shaped by individualism because most company workers stick to themselves and work for themselves. The Japanese “marry” the company while the Americans “date” the