Yes, I love those charts! So true, and such an eye-opener when I first encountered them (sadly long after they'd have been of much personal use) and I've been amused to see how truly they play out in cultures I've got to know since then (the Korean one, for example, is still largely true for the Korean-Americans I've worked with).
I can only assume the 'direct' Americans are the Northeasterners, as you propose, because I've never met any either – either that or the author is using a different definition of 'direct.' My Ex-Bostonian ex-housemate prided herself on her New England bluntness, but was still as prone to taking things personally and balking at my brand of bluntness as any other American. OTOH she was less afraid of being overtly abrasive than most Canadians I know. Maybe that's directness, in a way? Not caring about bothering others?
A funny difference I've noticed between Canadian and English business email styles: Canadians get right to the matter at hand, paragraph 1, line 1, then close with niceties ('Hope you have a nice weekend' etc), but it's the other way around in the UK. Everyone knows the opening paragraph is throwaway small talk but you've got to make the gesture anyway, even in a short email. Given how much else has been directly handed down from Britain to Canada this is a little surprising. OTOH maybe it's the Scottish way of doing things, and I've never worked at/with a Scottish company; generally if there's a divide between the Scottish and English way, Canada defaults to the former.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2017-08-31 07:46 pm (UTC)I can only assume the 'direct' Americans are the Northeasterners, as you propose, because I've never met any either – either that or the author is using a different definition of 'direct.' My Ex-Bostonian ex-housemate prided herself on her New England bluntness, but was still as prone to taking things personally and balking at my brand of bluntness as any other American. OTOH she was less afraid of being overtly abrasive than most Canadians I know. Maybe that's directness, in a way? Not caring about bothering others?
A funny difference I've noticed between Canadian and English business email styles: Canadians get right to the matter at hand, paragraph 1, line 1, then close with niceties ('Hope you have a nice weekend' etc), but it's the other way around in the UK. Everyone knows the opening paragraph is throwaway small talk but you've got to make the gesture anyway, even in a short email. Given how much else has been directly handed down from Britain to Canada this is a little surprising. OTOH maybe it's the Scottish way of doing things, and I've never worked at/with a Scottish company; generally if there's a divide between the Scottish and English way, Canada defaults to the former.