What Foreigners Have Noticed since Coming to Japan
Miyuu Yasuda, Tomoka Sento,
Yuka Kojima of the English Groups

1. Introduction
There are many troubles which can occur between Japanese people andforeigners due to cultural differences. Our team researched 16 foreigners whocame to the intensive English conversation lessons in Kozu high school lastsummer about the troubles they had experienced in their daily lives. There wereunexpected answers from some Americans, about the custom of tipping and therelationships between seniors and juniors. Therefore, we decided to researchthose cultural differences between Japan and America.

2. TipsAmerica has a custom of paying tips, but Japan doesn’t have such a custom. A
tip is a service charge and it is included in the price of meals at restaurants or
hotel rooms in Japan. However, it is not included in America. This is because
Americans feel service charges should not be fixed in advance. Americans pay
chefs or managers of the restaurants for the meals and pay waiters a service
charge in the form of a tip.
There are some theories about how the custom of tipping began in the U.S.
First, a long time ago, the customers were supposed to pay a fee into a box sothat they can receive services quickly in British pubs. There was a sign written“To Insure Promptness” on the surface of the box. The word TIPs comes from thisold tradition.
Second, some people say the custom of tipping was related to slavery inAmerica. As a compassion for colored workers that were excluded from theminimum wage, customers tried to fill the wage difference with tips.
We also considered the reason why the custom of tipping continues inAmerica now. For example, if there are two people working at the same place,and one works hard while the other doesn’t, if there was no custom of tipping,they would get the same pay. As it is not fair, it is thought that people in America
continue using a tip system to recognize good customer service.

3. Relationships between seniors and juniors
American people talk back to their bosses with no hesitation if they thinktheir bosses are wrong. On the other hand, Japanese people don’t talk back totheir bosses in any situation. This is because the priority when they
communicate with their bosses is different in Japan and America.
In America, it is more important for workers to tell their own ideas clearly.
Also, many people think relationships should be flat. For them, it is not a“talking back”. It is a “discussion”. On the other hand, in Japan, it is consideredthat instructions or orders from bosses are important, even if they are not right.
Seniority is well-established in Japan, and people follow their bosses to express
their respect.

4. Conclusion
We researched some cultural differences between Japan and America (suchas tipping), and the relationships between seniors and juniors. There are many
more things which we can still research because there are a lot of differences
between cultures. We should attempt to understand those differences and not topush our own customs and common sense on people who come from different
cultures, so that we can live together in harmony.

5. References
Japan Internet Partner Agency. (2015). チップの預け方～相場や文化についてRetrieved September 13, 2017, from http://tiptrik.com/contents/history.htm
BeiNSPiRED! (2017). Tip History. Retrieved September 13, 2017, fromhttp://beinspiredglobal.com/tip-history
KEI. (2015). チップの文化と歴史 Retrieved September 13, 2017, fromhttps://www.english360.jp/2315/