Thought Patterns

Different cultures arrive at their concepts of reality in different ways. Their perception of reality may come through faith or belief, independent of fact. It may come from fact based on evidence, which is the most predictable concept of reality. Or a culture may perceive reality primarily through feelings or in­stinct, which is the most common basis for reality perception in the world.

^{North Americans usually} reason inductively, going from facts to theory, whereas Japanese and French logic is primarily deductive, from theory to facts.⁵⁸ “Facts” make up the real world for the British and North Americans: get the facts and then talk. The French work from the abstract to the concrete, and North Americans and the Brit­ish from the concrete to the abstract, which makes for different persuasive and presentation styles.⁵⁹ The result is that European writers state that North Americans distrust ideas as opposed to facts, and one proclaimed that North Americans “never” speak in abstract terms.⁶⁰

^{Persons in different cultures also} learn to learn differently: they may learn by rote, by demonstration, by guiding, by doing, and so on.⁶¹

Different cognitive styles result in different perceptions of reality:

• Open-Minded versus Closed-Minded Approaches: Open- versus closed-minded approaches govern whether one seeks additional information.⁶³

• Associative versus Abstract Thinkers: Associative thinkers filter data through a screen of experience; abstractive thinkers can more easily imagine something new. Rote education tends to produce associative thinkers; problem-solving education produces abstract, “scientific” thinkers.⁶⁴

• Particularistic versus Universalistic Thinkers: Particularistic thinkers value personal relationships more than rules; universalistic thinkers value abstract rules and laws.⁶⁵

Values

Values are the learned (through acculturation) organization of rules for making choices and resolving conflicts,⁶⁶ and differences in values can be an obstacle to intercultural communication.⁶⁷ To respect another culture’s val­ues can deny our own values as a basis for judgment.

^{There is much debate over relative and absolute values.68} Values regarding money, work, and suc­cess are often based in religion.⁶⁹ Religious values are manifested not only in dogma, but also in living patterns and outlook. Material welfare also af­fects intercultural communication.⁷⁰

Worldview

This may well be the most important cultural perception and the most difficult to describe. Worldview is a culture’s orientation toward God, nature, life, death, the universe — the meaning of life and “being.” ⁷⁵ A person’s view of the world synthesizes many of the categories of perception discussed. It has to do with such concepts as whether one sees oneself as master of one’s fate or views the human condition as a product of destiny, whether a person should act individually or collectively as part of a group, whether people are basically equal or have a predestined rank in life, and what daily activities are most valued and praised by people in a culture.

• Which of above mentioned culturally shaped perceptions are the most challenging? Give your arguments.

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