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Learning about the American way of thinking I read this book as part of a class I took called socio-cultural perspectives on language and found this book very interesting and insightful. I teach German at an American university and since I am not American it is important to have an understanding of American culture. A lack of understanding can lead to miscommunications and frustrations both on part of the learner as well as the instructor. Though American Cultural Patterns is somewhat philosophical in its approach, it remains a very readable book with numerous comparisons between American and other cultures which are very helpful. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in knowing more about American culture, be it for professional or personal purposes. Perhaps their patterns would be useful for knitting... This book seeks to look at American cultural patterns within a cross-cultural perspective. A number of cultural stereotypes are compared with the American stereotype, particularly Japan. I say "cultural stereotypes" because this is what is primarily used. At times, I have to disagree completely with the authors' interpretation of the meaning behind the actions of the cross-cultural experience. For example they give some examples of difficulties the author(s) had in Japan and then they explain why this occurred, always giving the benefit of the doubt to the Japanese culture. However, if that same action would be seen as an insult by a Japanese person I really see no reason for the authors to explain it away using a Japanese cultural value. In other words, they fail to critically analyse different cultures either from within or from an American perspective. The end result is that you are to assume that other cultures always treat people with respect and it is only an American-centric view that would think otherwise. I am not American and can claim something of a dispassionate view on the subject. At first glance this book appears to be a useful, quick read for those going overseas but in reality it is a tough slog through some unanalysed stereotypes. This book fails to get past surface meanings to the deeper reality of the cross-cultures with which it contrasts American culture. Useful but dry academic read I read this book as part of a sociology class back in my college days. The intended audience is the college student, scholar, and academic. It was a difficult read for me because it's not intended for the layperson. I'm an American citizen but was born in West Germany and spent the first nine years in that country. Both my parents are Korean. At 9 years of age we moved to the United States. I've more or less lived on the west coast since then. I was aware of cultural differences since my youth. This book helped me to understand why native Americans (particularly WASPs), think and act the way they do. The book doesn't claim that all Americans behave the same way, but that as a group, they generally do tend think and behave in a similar manner. Communication differences do exist between Koreans, Germans, and Americans. Communication differences also exist between subgroups of a certain country. For example, minority groups such as black Americans, Hispanic Americans, and so forth, typically not only know how to communicate according to white mainstream cultural standards, but also their own. If you are new to sociological terms, you'll need to look up a few words in a good dictionary. If you are used to academic reading, you should have no problem with this book. Please keep in mind that the focus is on explaining the white American majority communication pattern. Insightful A fantastic book for understanding how much our culture defines us. The authors do explain that they are addressing the main American culture (versus our rich group of subcultures). Additionally, they do not privilege one culture over another (as one reviewer stated). Their goal is to (1) explain how deeply our cultural responses are ingrained and (2)to help us recognize that our American outlook is not universal--amazingly there are other ways of perceiving the world than the way most Americans do. The book is not a quick, easy read--both authors are university professors (who probably use their book as one of their required readings ;D) Academics & those used to scholarly texts will get the most out of, everyone else will need to be patient and take it slow. Compare prices:
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