American Culture Versus Japanese Culture

Name: Course Code: Date: Culture Culture is often regional, and it may contrast sharply on how the people perceive some of the simple basic things which are universally accepted by in their community. Western and Asian cultures differ on many levels and it is easy to disregard the norms of another culture if you judge them from the perspective of your own. Japan is the most ‘westernized’ Asian country, yet its culture sharply contrasts with other western civilities especially American. It however harbors some insightful perspective on social and economic perspectives if analyzed from an American viewpoint. One of the cultures that contrast sharply with American culture is Japanese. Japanese people are collectivist while Americans are individualistic CITATION Tao04 \l 1033 (Sun, Horn and Merritt). The Japanese people tend to live and act in groups. Japanese people tend to stick together as families, and some live in the same house or nearby. This is unlike many western cultures especially American where a family is scattered all over the country and sometimes beyond and only meet a few times per year or longer. On the other hand, in Japan, children still live with their parents and grandparents because the culture bestows responsibility on them to take care of their parents and grandparents as they age. There is a social understanding that resonates through Japan of children caring for the older generation instead of banking on pensions and personal savings to be withdrawn in retirement. On the other hand, Americans typically take their parents to hospices and their children are expected to move out at age 18 to start their own lives. The Japanese collectivism shows which is unlike American individualism proves that different cultures work for different peop...