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Alberto De Melo Albuquerque, Yamanashi Gakuin University, JapanAbstract
This presentation explores the Japanese concepts of honne (true feelings) and tatemae (public facade) as cultural mechanisms for navigating social harmony and identity. Rather than viewing these terms as a binary of truth versus deceit, the session reinterprets them as part of a broader communicative choreography embedded in high-context societies. Drawing on intercultural communication theory, cultural semiotics, and symbolic interactionism, this conceptual analysis compares Japanese communication norms with similar dynamics in Brazilian and South American contexts—such as jeitinho, simpatia, and vergonha. These cultural scripts of “truth-masking” challenge Western ideals of transparency and raise important questions about how truth, tact, and authenticity are constructed across cultures. Through cross-cultural comparisons and reflective storytelling, the presentation will explore how culturally sanctioned deception can serve prosocial, pedagogical, and organizational functions. Attendees will be invited to rethink intercultural misunderstandings not as ethical failures but as misalignments in communication logics. Key theoretical frameworks include Hall’s high vs. low-context communication, Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, and Ting-Toomey’s face-negotiation theory. Designed for educators and professionals, this session offers insights into how communication styles are shaped by cultural norms rather than personality traits, and provides practical implications for teaching, training, and leadership in diverse environments. Ultimately, it invites a shift from judgment to interpretation, recognizing tatemae not as hypocrisy, but as a culturally meaningful form of relational performance.
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