Casey and I ventured out at 9pm one evening to do laundry and grab some dinner. As we walked through the dark and deserted Kyoto neighborhood, we remarked how safe we felt.
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| Kyoto neighborhood street at night. |
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| Kyoto neighborhood street at night plus cat. |
The fact that Japan is a collectivist culture could explain why we can safely walk the dark streets at night. The Japanese value the group over the individual. Japanese people are "we" conscious. "Their identity is based on the social system to which they belong (Dimensions of Culture)."
Japan, a collectivist culture, is also a shame culture. When a person does something wrong it not only reflects poorly on them but also on their family or the group to which they belong. Japanese are brought up to respect their families and in-groups. They do not want to do anything to reflect negatively on them.
Collectivist cultures put high priority on these relationships in contrast to individualistic cultures which put high priority on tasks. The Japanese spend more time building friendships than western cultures.
People, relationships and the community is important to the Japanese. It is reflected in the feeling of security when traveling in their neighborhoods and their country.
For another take on this subject, read the following article.
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