While Westerners have been socialized to think linearly, Japanese think in a more cyclical way.
There is also more tolerance for ambiguity – less yes/no, more ‘shades of grey’.
Problems are complex, incoherent and vague. They require incremental, diffused solutions (cf wicked problems).
Everything is relative.
Source: Tatsuno, S. (1990). Created in Japan: from imitators to world-class innovators.