Author: Culture is Key To U.S.-Japan Struggle

Americans worried about the economic struggle between the United States and industrial East Asian nations, especially Japan, should focus their concerns on the cultural differences between the nations, an author of a new book on U.S. economic competitiveness said yesterday.

James M. Fallows '70 told an audience of more than 75 people at the Brattle Theatre that the goal of his new book, More Like Us: Making America Great Again, is to make Americans examine "the extent to which the economic competition is really a clash of cultures."

Although it may be said that the Japanese are "better capitalists," Americans need to think not only about the "better-ness," he said, but also about the "different-ness."

As an example, Fallows said "there is more emphasis on effort for its own sake in Japan, and more emphasis on teamwork" than in the United States and suggested that Americans improve conditions so that more people enjoy their work. But the cultural differences can never be completely eliminated, he said.

"We can make work more appealing, but we can never have that same ethic that exists in Japan," he said.

Fallows said the U.S. and Japan have contrasting goals for their economic systems. The philosophy behind the American economy, he said, is to provide each consumer with a better standard of living, while the Japanese economy focuses on the development and improvement of its industries.

Another difference is the larger amount of defense spending and research in the United States, Fallows said. American military development hurts the private sector not only by absorbing government money, but, more importantly, by drawing prominent scientists and engineers away from industry, he said.

After accepting the differences between Japan and the U.S., Fallows said, Americans need to consider "how we can do the best to cope with this different culture within the limits of our own."