Linear-Active, Multi-Active and Reactive Cultures

Culture can be defined as the set of customary beliefs, social forms and material traits
of a racial, religious, or social group. Considering that, one might classify the numerous
cultures of the world according to their social forms, namely the manner people comprised in
each group communicate, and behave both as individuals or social beings. The three main
categories are called linear-active, multi-active, and reactive. The first consists of persons
who are punctual, patient, introvert, and quiet. The second encompasses individuals who are
unpunctual, impatient, extrovert, and talkative. The third comprehends people who are
punctual, patient, introvert, and silent.
inear!active individuals are private, unemotional, and task!oriented. They mind their
own business and plan everything ahead. They are slaves to their schedules and only like to
do one thing at a time. The persons in this group might seem somewhat constrained, as they
follow plans and procedures methodically, rarely interrupt, and use limited body language.
"ery different to #ra$ilians, they confront with logic, reluctantly accept favours, and dislike
losing face. The %ermans and the &wiss are known for being the epitomes of this culture.
&candinavians, 'mericans, 'ustrians, #ritons, Canadians and (ew )ealanders are also part
of this group.
*ulti!active persons, on the other hand, are the opposite of those in the first category.
They are gregarious, emotional, and people!oriented, besides being inquisitive and virtually
unpredictable when it comes to timetables. +ndividuals in this category do several things at
once, often change plans, and generally don,t mind pulling strings and seeking favours in
order to get what they need. *ulti!active people make use of unrestricted body language,
and frequently interrupt others, which is usually frowned upon by the other groups. They
confront with emotions and always have a ready excuse to explain their mistakes. atin
'mericans, 'rabs, 'fricans, +ndians, *iddle -asterners, &outhern -uropeans, and
*editerranean peoples are the most representative embodiments of this type of culture.
.eactive individuals are the third pole of the triad, and they combine characteristics of
both groups in response to the environment. They are quiet and yet caring, respectful,
people!oriented, and, possibly as a result, very good listeners. Their respectful attitude seems
to extend itself throughout their personas, as they use very subtle body language, avoid
confrontation, and never interrupt others. .eactive people analyse the general principles of a
situation and react according to said context /which includes their partners, timetables0. They
are enigmatic and calm, and give great value to face /their own or other people,s0. The
1apanese and the Chinese are, perhaps, the best examples of this type of behaviour2 Turks and
3inns are also in this category.
.eactive individuals seem to have a lot more in common with linear!active people. The
3inns, for instance, can be considered part of either group. They definitely have a linear
concept of time and a task!oriented approach to life, but they also respect old sayings, such as
silence is gold, and are, thus, intensive listeners as well. 4hereas those two groups have
many similarities and are partly overlapped, cultural differences become evident when
contrasting either of them with the multi!active category. +n fact, several of the mannerisms
and inherent characteristics of the latter are deemed very rude by people in the former
categories. The impulsiveness, loudness, and loquaciousness shown by multi!active persons
are often viewed as impoliteness and inappropriateness, and, if displayed in the work
environment, are considered a lack of professionalism and decorum. 'nother typical trait
which is also regarded as loutishness by linear!active and reactive people 5 who rarely
inter6ect, in the case of the former group, and never do so, in the case of the latter 5 is the
excessive number of interruptions uttered by multi!active persons, who habitually speak and
listen at the same time. #ut rather than feeling uncomfortable around each other and making
of their differences an extra reason not to get along, people from the three groups should use
their dissimilarities to create unique relationships of mutual exchange, such as the one
developed between +taly and &wit$erland. The +talians are /mainly0 classed as multi!active
individuals, whilst the &wiss are known to be linear!active, and yet, the two countries
managed to learn from and adapt to each other,s notion of time. The +talians realised that
schedules, deadlines, and budgets help to clarify their goals and assess their performance,
while the &wiss learnt that flexibility might actually be an advantage, as it allows them to
ad6ust timetables to unforeseen changes and make last!minute improvements. 7espite some
successful partnerships, it is fair to say that most individuals in each category find it difficult
to work alongside and adapt to persons from the other groups. ' probable catalyser for the
animosity between different cultures is the fact that people often use their nationality to
6ustify certain behaviours. 3or instance, +,ve heard #ra$ilians say during a movie session,
sure +,m loud, +,m #ra$ilian8, and 3rench people swear non!stop during a lesson and be
excused 6ust because they are 3rench. This sort of mentality might be one of the reasons as
to why specific stereotypes are associated to certain cultures. *any a time individuals are so
fixed in their ways they can,t even contemplate changing, and what that does is set in stone
the way a whole country is portrayed abroad. +t is important to respect the differences and to
learn to adapt when in the presence of persons from the other groups, as what might seem
natural to some, might seriously offend others. That is particularly applicable if one is in a
foreign country, where even mundane gestures and dress codes can be considered impolite.
3or instance, in *iddle -astern countries, giving someone the thumbs!up is an insult2 in
Thailand, showing the sole of your feet is an equivalent of giving someone the finger2 in
&audi 'rabia, French-kissing in public is an attack on morality2 and, in +ran, wearing tight
6eans or shorts is, to say the least, an unadvisable clothing choice. 'd6usting to the culture one
visits and interacts with is mere common sense, or so it should be 5 and one would certainly
not assume otherwise given the overuse, still to this day, of the fourth century proverb which
says, when in .ome9.
:the definition of culture was taken from the *erriam!4ebster,s ;nline 7ictionary
:: + chose to take a detached approach, +,ve used first person, but + didn,t want to include myself in any
of the groups /even though, as a #ra$ilian, + am a typical multi!active person0, because + wanted to try to write
this paper with a view as unbiased as possible /and + think the distance provided here aided in achieving that0