They really want to know who they are dealing with, who sent them, and what the future of this relationship might hold. Age can be an important factor in Asian communities. There is far more reliance on non-verbal signals for the Chinese and Japanese in acquiring information than for North Americans. Even when North Americans know about a particular set of cultural differences, they do not know how to use the information. It can take some time before they find out.
Confusion exists due to a real lack of experience in working with people having different values.
Making the assumption, that any single person is going to reflect the group or even the group norm, can lead to terrible misunderstandings. There is also the danger of viewing a culture as a static entity instead of an evolving, fluid, environmental situation. Both sides must recognize the other side as part of the process. Equality in attitude cannot always be assumed by each side. This cannot be assumed either.