[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"siteSettings":3,"post-by-gurleen":24},{"data":4,"sourceMap":-1},{"headerPages":5,"settings":9},[6],{"slug":7,"title":8},"about","About",{"contactEmail":10,"faviconUrl":11,"heroDescription":12,"heroImage":13,"heroTitle":18,"ogImageUrl":19,"seoDescription":20,"seoTitle":21,"siteAuthor":22,"siteName":21,"socialLinks":23},"matsushita_sei@kindai.ac.jp","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.sanity.io\u002Fimages\u002Fzbxc2ul2\u002Fproduction\u002Fbd8e5c871dc32af558af4cdabe8efda12a8066c1-32x32.png","Share your stories, thoughts, and insights while studying at Kindai University, Osaka, Japan.",{"_type":14,"asset":15},"image",{"_ref":16,"_type":17},"image-e5476b326a4484e8c912f842b742f8be4de00edf-2993x1995-jpg","reference","Go Global.","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.sanity.io\u002Fimages\u002Fzbxc2ul2\u002Fproduction\u002Fc032be9c0b341a63d784449e3db69c83fdb2b4c0-2848x1504.jpg","This is an English-language media platform run by students and staff at Kindai University in Osaka, Japan. Here, exchange students and local students share stories, reflections, and insights about campus life and their experiences in Japan.","Kindai Global Media","Global Education Center, Kindai University",null,{"data":25,"sourceMap":-1},{"_id":26,"author":27,"body":33,"group":196,"image":200,"imageUrl":203,"publishedAt":204,"title":205,"visibility":206},"36fd6890-7235-48b8-8c2b-810a6bb972ff",{"avatar":23,"description":28,"fullName":28,"name":29,"slug":30},"","Gurleen",{"_type":31,"current":32},"slug","2697303023f-mj1h",[34,45,53,61,69,77,85,94,121,143,165,189],{"_key":35,"_type":36,"children":37,"markDefs":43,"style":44},"7ef15230ebce","block",[38],{"_key":39,"_type":40,"marks":41,"text":42},"7ef15230ebce0","span",[],"In Lesson 4, we explored Hofstede’s dimension of Individualism vs. Collectivism. According to Hofstede (2014), individualistic societies prioritize personal autonomy and individual achievement while collectivist cultures emphasize a \"we\" identity, group harmony and interdependence.",[],"normal",{"_key":46,"_type":36,"children":47,"markDefs":52,"style":44},"4d309bd8d9d6",[48],{"_key":49,"_type":40,"marks":50,"text":51},"4d309bd8d9d60",[],"Looking at recent data, Germany scores very high on individualism with 79, focusing heavily on personal excellence and self-actualization (The Culture Factor Group, n.d.). In contrast, Japan has traditionally been viewed as more collectivist, which I also thought. However, socio-economic shifts reveal a more nuanced picture. The Culture Factor Group (n.d.) shows Japan with a score of 62, which reflects increasing individual acts, urbanization and nuclear-family independence (Ogihara, 2017). I also noticed that Japan is more individualistic than many other Asian countries, they tend to be more private and reserved.",[],{"_key":54,"_type":36,"children":55,"markDefs":60,"style":44},"aa133a6d22c7",[56],{"_key":57,"_type":40,"marks":58,"text":59},"aa133a6d22c70",[],"This dynamic between cultural continuity and change is also visible in education. As Trommsdorff and Essau (1998) point out, Japanese adolescents often develop a balanced control orientation, combining traditional group harmony with a growing need for primary control and individual goals. I think a great example of this difference is how learning and testing are structured. In Germany, classrooms encourage individual debate, critical self-expression and personal opinions, which matches the individualistic drive for uniqueness. But Japan’s education system heavily emphasizes standardized preparation and intense group studying for entrance exams, where discipline and endurance within the group lead to collective success, even as schools nowadays increasingly encourage children's independence (Ogihara, 2017).",[],{"_key":62,"_type":36,"children":63,"markDefs":68,"style":44},"f72fe790c5b7",[64],{"_key":65,"_type":40,"marks":66,"text":67},"f72fe790c5b70",[],"During my time at Kindai University, I noticed that many Japanese people don't raise their hands or voice their opinions, so they don't stand out. Being \"different\" is viewed more negatively in Japan than in Germany and as Professor Lafleur said, sticking out like a sore thumb needs to be avoided in Japan.",[],{"_key":70,"_type":36,"children":71,"markDefs":76,"style":44},"590d379c19d4",[72],{"_key":73,"_type":40,"marks":74,"text":75},"590d379c19d40",[],"During our class discussions on whether we prefer individual goals or strong group loyalties, I realized how deeply individualistic Western educational systems actually are as most of our class is from Europe. Coming from an Indian family background, I can see both worlds: while European systems like Germany's push individuals to shine entirely on their own, the collectivist side tends to have students share collective responsibilities for their classroom and environment, such as cleaning and organizing together. I assume students in Japan have a deeper sense of shared duty and accountability from an early age than focusing solely on personal achievement. I personally wish Germans would have a higher \"School Spirit\".",[],{"_key":78,"_type":36,"children":79,"markDefs":84,"style":44},"4a187ff3e69f",[80],{"_key":81,"_type":40,"marks":82,"text":83},"4a187ff3e69f0",[],"Still, both systems have good sides. While individualistic education cares about independent innovation, a collectivist approach builds more teamwork and mutual support. A healthy balance of both would be ideal for me, as I don't see myself being in a world that is either extremely individualistic, like USA, or extremely collectivist, like India.",[],{"_key":86,"_type":36,"children":87,"markDefs":92,"style":93},"f774d29beee0",[88],{"_key":89,"_type":40,"marks":90,"text":91},"f774d29beee00",[],"References",[],"h2",{"_key":95,"_type":36,"children":96,"level":116,"listItem":117,"markDefs":118,"style":44},"dceb5a9b67f8",[97,101,106,111],{"_key":98,"_type":40,"marks":99,"text":100},"dceb5a9b67f80",[],"Hofstede, G. (2014). ",{"_key":102,"_type":40,"marks":103,"text":105},"dceb5a9b67f81",[104],"em","10 minutes with Geert Hofstede on Individualisme versus Collectivisme 20.11.2014",{"_key":107,"_type":40,"marks":108,"text":110},"dceb5a9b67f82",[109],"strong",": ",{"_key":112,"_type":40,"marks":113,"text":115},"dceb5a9b67f83",[114],"81b05deeb645","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fwatch?v=zQj1VPNPHlI",1,"bullet",[119],{"_key":114,"_type":120,"href":115},"link",{"_key":122,"_type":36,"children":123,"level":116,"listItem":117,"markDefs":141,"style":44},"8937a02b3ec3",[124,128,132,136],{"_key":125,"_type":40,"marks":126,"text":127},"8937a02b3ec30",[],"The Culture Factor Group. (n.d.). ",{"_key":129,"_type":40,"marks":130,"text":131},"8937a02b3ec31",[104],"Country comparison tool",{"_key":133,"_type":40,"marks":134,"text":135},"8937a02b3ec32",[],". Retrieved October 21, 2026. ",{"_key":137,"_type":40,"marks":138,"text":140},"8937a02b3ec33",[139],"69cfee54842c","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.theculturefactor.com\u002Fcountry-comparison-tool",[142],{"_key":139,"_type":120,"href":140},{"_key":144,"_type":36,"children":145,"level":116,"listItem":117,"markDefs":163,"style":44},"ff6279e5dfb3",[146,150,154,158],{"_key":147,"_type":40,"marks":148,"text":149},"ff6279e5dfb30",[],"Ogihara, Y. (2017). ",{"_key":151,"_type":40,"marks":152,"text":153},"ff6279e5dfb31",[104],"Temporal changes in individualism and their ramification in Japan: Rising individualism and conflicts with persisting collectivism. ",{"_key":155,"_type":40,"marks":156,"text":157},"ff6279e5dfb32",[],"Frontiers in Psychology, 8, Article 695: ",{"_key":159,"_type":40,"marks":160,"text":162},"ff6279e5dfb33",[161],"7a57c964f5c8","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.3389\u002Ffpsyg.2017.00695",[164],{"_key":161,"_type":120,"href":162},{"_key":166,"_type":36,"children":167,"level":116,"listItem":117,"markDefs":188,"style":44},"56c9f88a57e7",[168,172,176,180,184],{"_key":169,"_type":40,"marks":170,"text":171},"56c9f88a57e70",[],"Trommsdorff, G., & Essau, C. A. (1998). ",{"_key":173,"_type":40,"marks":174,"text":175},"56c9f88a57e71",[104],"Japanese and German adolescents' control orientation: A cross-cultural study. ",{"_key":177,"_type":40,"marks":178,"text":179},"56c9f88a57e72",[],"In G. Trommsdorff (Ed.), ",{"_key":181,"_type":40,"marks":182,"text":183},"56c9f88a57e73",[104],"Japan in transition: Sociological and psychological aspects",{"_key":185,"_type":40,"marks":186,"text":187},"56c9f88a57e74",[]," (pp. 198–211). Pabst Science Publishers.",[],{"_key":190,"_type":36,"children":191,"markDefs":195,"style":44},"444db1069bcc",[192],{"_key":193,"_type":40,"marks":194,"text":28},"444db1069bcc0",[],[],{"name":197,"slug":198},"Intercultural Dimensions & Understanding (Fall 2026)",{"_type":31,"current":199},"intercultural-dimensions-and-understanding-f2026",{"_type":14,"alt":28,"asset":201,"caption":28},{"_ref":202},"image-0390de0f26cb5aabf48f135661cb1ba46625977e-1920x1080-jpg","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.sanity.io\u002Fimages\u002Fzbxc2ul2\u002Fproduction\u002F0390de0f26cb5aabf48f135661cb1ba46625977e-1920x1080.jpg","2026-10-21T09:53:41.886Z","Education in Japan & Germany by Gurleen","private"]