Will the tidal wave of globalization lead us to a bland and uniform cultural landscape dominated by a unified cultural perspective? Will cultural imperialism triumph in the twenty-first century? Or will the cultural imperative that drives human behavior through religion, language, geography and history maintain its influence on the human consciousness? Richard Lewis explores these questions and proposes his own thesis in this sweeping new book that examines the forces that keep us from taking off our “cultural spectacles” and explains how cultural traits are so deeply embedded as to resist the homogenization predicted by so many others.
As with his other books, Lewis uses easy-to-understand diagrams throughout to illustrate his concepts. His original three-category classification of cultures—linear-active, multi-active, and reactive—comes to life through his elegant design.
About the Author
Richard D. Lewis is chairman of Richard Lewis Communications, an international institute for cross-cultural and language training with offices in more than a dozen countries. Author of the best-selling When Cultures Collide (Nicholas Brealey Publishing), Lewis is widely considered one of the world’s most renowned intercultralists and linguists. He speaks ten European and two Asian languages and has spent five years in Japan, where he tutored Empress Michiko and other members of the Japanese Imperial Family. He lectures and consults worldwide with clients that include Mercedes-Benz, Nokia, Rolls Royce, Volvo, Deutsche Bank, British Airways and Unilever. He was knighted by President Ahtisaari of Finland in 1997.