Risk adversity and multicultural teams

In general, Japanese people have a strong propensity to avoid risk. In contrast, Westerners often tend to view risk in a more positive light.

An article on Japanese risk aversion describes these contrasting attitudes. The author says Japanese people “interpret the word ‘risk’ . . . as ‘something dangerous that will lead to a negative outcome.’ As a result, . . . people living in Japan do their best to avoid risk.” This strongly contrasts with Western countries where “the concept of ‘risk’ . . . contains a stronger sense of ‘a calculated act that will be a great success if it goes well’ . . . It is the polar opposite of the Japanese usage, with its strong nuance of a negative outcome.”¹

Of course, this is a strong generalization, and counterexamples abound: there are many risk-embracing Japanese people and plenty of risk-averse Westerners. Also, faith can cause the most naturally timid people to take bold actions that appear risky to those viewing situations from a human perspective. Gideon is a great case in point. When we first encounter him, he is threshing wheat in a winepress out of fear of the Midianites (Judg. 6:11), but one chapter later we find him leading a band of 300 men against an army of around 135,000 Midianite warriors.

However, given the Japanese tendency to be more risk-averse than Westerners, how can mixed-nationality teams function well? The following three suggestions may be helpful.

Viewing diversity as an asset

Probably the most important observation is that, while diversity within teams can often be a source of friction, it can be a source of strength if harnessed well. And a diversity of attitudes towards risk is no exception. This requires recognizing the different contributions that members bring to a team and exploiting everyone’s strengths. For example, the Japanese hesitancy to take risks can provide a helpful counterbalance to the Western “can-do” attitude. Japanese people tend to be good at identifying things that could go wrong with a plan. By drawing on this skill, teams can plan for various eventualities that might go overlooked. Rochelle Kopp notes that the strong desire of Japanese companies to avoid risk can lead to “a high level of quality and carefully considered decision-making.”²

Addressing concerns by supplying information

In the context of making business propositions, Kopp points out that it is important for Westerners to provide as much information as they can to allay Japanese fears of risk. “When risk-averse people like the Japanese feel that they need more information, they tend to stall,” she says. “More information, and the right information, is what makes them feel less sensation of risk, and thus become more comfortable moving forward. The key, then, is to better understand what concerns your Japanese colleagues have, what aspect of the risk makes them most uncomfortable.”

She gives an example of a US subsidiary of a Japanese company that wanted to persuade Japanese management to market a new product line in the US. The proposal failed twice but succeeded on the third attempt when, on Kopp’s advice, they incorporated information on past market trends. “Without information on how the market had behaved in the past, most likely the head office did not feel that the proposal was sufficiently grounded,” she explains. “Once the historical information was added and other enhancements made to the proposal, the third time was the charm and it was approved.”

Shielding Japanese from the stigma of failure

One way that members of cross-cultural teams can help each other is by Westerners accepting responsibility when things don’t work out as planned and thereby shielding Japanese co-workers from a public perception of having failed. There is less shame from a Western perspective since it’s often perceived to be better to have taken a risk and failed than to have played it safe. This proposal of missionaries protecting Japanese pastors from the shame of failure came up in a recent meeting of the JEMA Leadership Team. Since Japanese pastors often feel increased pressure from public perception, overseas missionaries can help pastors by allowing them to take the credit when things go well and taking the blame when things don’t turn out so well. JH

1. Almoamen Abdalla, “Japan the Risk-Averse,” Nippon.com, https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-topics/g00728/japan-the-risk-averse.html (September 26, 2019).
2. Rochelle Kopp, “Overcoming Japanese risk-adverseness,” Japan Intercultural Consulting, https://japanintercultural.com/free-resources/articles/overcoming-japanese-risk-adverseness (accessed February 14, 2023).