[sustran] Re: Regional focus for sustran-discuss: Asia or the global South?

[Zvi Leve]

I do not think that it is exactly "fear of punishment" that inhibits people
from certain cultures from participating in such 'public' exchanges - it is
more a "fear of losing face". That is, they are worried about how they will
be perceived by others.... When interacting with people directly it is
easier to understand the social cues, so more people would be inclined to
actively participate.

Not sure what can be done about this. If one desires, it is not difficult to
hide one's true identity from the forum (generic email address, no full
name, etc.), but this does not seem to make much of a difference.

Anyway....

Zvi



2009/6/6 Jonathan E. D. Richmond <richmond at alum.mit.edu>

>
>
> I do not think the issue is fear of lack of knowledge but fear of
> punishment.
>
> In many Asian countries there is a taboo about expressing opinions, an
> activity often felt to be reserved for politicians and the most senior
> officers --Jonathan!
>
>
>
>
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