The Geography Of Thought Nisbett
In his book The Geography of Thought, Richard Nisbett examines how the cognitive processes of eastern and western cultures organize knowledge to make sense of the world. By east the author usually means Far East Asian cultures such as Japan, China, and Korea. By west he means most of Europe and America. This is an important topic as cultural diversity continues to become a critical part of business and life around the world. Nisbett states that Westerners are more object-based thinkers, while Eastern thinking is based more on context and relationships. The book helps us understand how and why Westerners and Easterners have developed these different ways of thinking based on social, cultural, religious, geographical and other factors.
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Being grounded on the thought processes and behaviors of other cultures is what may cause potential business endeavors to either succeed or fail. This is why it is important for all of us to have an understanding of why certain people may act or think a certain way, because cultural misunderstanding can be devastating not only to business but also to the way of life in general. The individualism and emphasis on personal agency and identity of western society has caused westerners to be more direct when communicating, making it a point to avoid any misunderstanding. The holistic, collectivist views of Eastern society explain why Easterners are not as direct when communicating, leaving more open space to interpretation. I believe that there are positives from both ways of thinking that can be applied to everyday business and life. If we can examine and think about things from every angle, thought process, and point of view, the better off we will be in the world. Our world is becoming a melting pot of cultures as people continue to blend in and integrate. A good example is our university, George Mason. Mason is the most diverse campus in the country and is the perfect illustration of how when people of different cultures and backgrounds are integrated, you adopt some of those different views, beliefs, thought-processes, and actions just by being exposed to it. Ultimately, I believe a universal way of cognitive thinking will develop not only from Eastern and Western thought processes, but also from other cultures around the
Being grounded on the thought processes and behaviors of other cultures is what may cause potential business endeavors to either succeed or fail. This is why it is important for all of us to have an understanding of why certain people may act or think a certain way, because cultural misunderstanding can be devastating not only to business but also to the way of life in general. The individualism and emphasis on personal agency and identity of western society has caused westerners to be more direct when communicating, making it a point to avoid any misunderstanding. The holistic, collectivist views of Eastern society explain why Easterners are not as direct when communicating, leaving more open space to interpretation. I believe that there are positives from both ways of thinking that can be applied to everyday business and life. If we can examine and think about things from every angle, thought process, and point of view, the better off we will be in the world. Our world is becoming a melting pot of cultures as people continue to blend in and integrate. A good example is our university, George Mason. Mason is the most diverse campus in the country and is the perfect illustration of how when people of different cultures and backgrounds are integrated, you adopt some of those different views, beliefs, thought-processes, and actions just by being exposed to it. Ultimately, I believe a universal way of cognitive thinking will develop not only from Eastern and Western thought processes, but also from other cultures around the