April 2nd, 2008Does Japan Change Us?
While checking out JapanSoc I happened to see a discussion regarding a post on Blogging Brad’s new site. The question brad asked was quite simple and one that many foreigners ask when living in a new country: Did Japan change you?
We can exchange Japan for any nation we might spend any length of time in, as the question is just as valid. Any change of scenery will change us, as will moving to a new city in the same country.
Moving from Hamilton to Vancouver in 2002 was a pretty big change as my previous lifestyle was no longer maintainable. It had to be modified, albeit slightly to be less wasteful and less angry. This isn’t to say I didn’t get upset in Vancouver, but the environment was less tolerant to such outbursts. The move from Vancouver to Kakamigahara, Japan in 2007 was even greater as a serious language barrier was in place, as well as cultural differences. If this wasn’t enough, I married my wonderful Reiko and have been living in the same house as my in-laws.
Past habits and behaviors were just not possible under these circumstances.
So what has changed? Quite a bit, I think.
I no longer swear, as I find it to be awkward. I rarely get upset and, when I do, the feeling passes in a matter of seconds. I’ve lost 23 kg since August and now eat 3 times a day. My communication skills have greatly improved, as has my writing (I hope). The list goes on, but these are the main attributes that friends and family will notice.
Change Happens
Wondering if I was alone in the realm of attitude adjustment, I asked some co-workers if they had noticed anything since moving to the country. Suffice to say, I wasn’t surprised with the answers. What did surprise me, though, were the details.
Two people have said that Japan makes them more frustrated, while other’s say just the opposite. Like Brad’s post mentions, some have become loud, but most have settled down. This said, I should mention that eight of the nine people I’ve discussed the mater with are either married or in a committed relationship. Regardless of what nation we call home, long-term relationships tend to have a powerful effect on our emotional states.
Does this invalidate my unofficial survey? I don’t think so. When it comes down to it, our environment plays a big role in how we act and react to stimuli.
Are We a Product of Our Environment?
Psychologist Philip G. Zimbardo proved quite some time ago that, regardless of our learned responses, we tend to modify our behavior when confronted with a foreign environment. There are exceptions to this rule, and the length (or potential length) of time we spend in any one place will certainly have a strong bearing on our psyche. However, at the end of the day, we modify our behavior to fit not only our environment but the role we play in it.
An example of this would be the Stanford Prisoner Experiment. Here, a group of volunteers agreed to take part in a study. They were not told what the study involved, but the compensation was apparently enough to entice these people. I will strongly suggest you take a quick peek at the article as it’s a fascinating look into how strongly we’re affected by our environs and expected roles.
How Does This Relate to Japan?
Although I do complain about the politics in this nation, Japan is a great country for the most part. The food is great. Most of the people are friendly. The trains usually run on time. Heck, most of us could go on for at least 20 minutes talking about all the things they might like about this country. But the fact of the matter remains: our environment changes our perceptions of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour based on previously learned rules and new sets of rules adopted during our time in Japan.
The way we respond to stress is also a rather large part of who we are in this country. Are we permitted to shout and scream when frustrated in Japan? Perhaps in our homes, but it’s not quite acceptable in public. Can we be loud, obnoxious and use explicit language wherever we might go? Sure, but we won’t fit in or make friends that way.
Whether we like it or not, we have pre-programmed roles and expectations “programmed” into us which dictate our actions. Depending on our response to different levels of stress, we could find ourselves speaking louder than usual or getting frustrated more often. With the number of people who are fluent enough in English to explain how to do something as simple as pay a bill through an ATM, I’m often quite impressed that more English-speaking people aren’t flying off the handle at every little “Japan-only” way of doing things.
So, has Japan changed us? Without a doubt. This country has changed many of us the very same way that Canada and the United States changes the people who have lived there for any length of time. We have a need to fit in to a society, wherever that society may be. Hopefully the changes that we aquire when living or working in another nation help us appreciate the incredible diversity that we can find in every part of the world.
I changed a little after living in Japan for 5 years. I am not as argumentative. I don’t disagree for the sake of disagreeing. I try to maintain the “wa” in settings - for example, a group of people are talking about how much they enjoy this certain type of food - I will not chime in and talk about how much “I hate ikura” - because that drags the whole conversation down - upsets the balance. I am quieter. I am socially obedient. I queue up quietly and stand quietly. It surprises me when I see a group of foreigners and notice how loudly they talk in restaurants and so on.
Jason it’s interesting that you mention Professor Zimbardo’s prison study. I corresponded with Professor Zimbardo a few times about the study some years ago (even though I am not a psychologist) - he’s a very warm person and enjoys talking about it. I haven’t corresponded since Abu Ghraib; and I am curious how he might have reacted to that. Almost certainly he must have viewed it as a vindication of his study. I would like to get a copy of his new book The Lucifer Effect. I think I’ll pick it up the next time I am in the U.S.
I was in a japanese language class 3 years or so ago, and the only other american in my class was some kind of immature beer-willing loud-mouthed american a$$hole. Where do these people come from? And you see on the internet where people post the stories about how they spent 20 days or so in jail for beating up a Tokyo taxi driver. Where do these clowns come from? The good, well-behaved americans must all be hidden and silent.
Yes - it applies to people from any country, particularly westerners. I usually talk in terms of “americans” because I am one, and have such high hopes - often dashed - for our image worldwide.