While ‘leaving your workers to get on with the job’ can increase motivation in the West, in Japan the opposite may be true – “Supervisory intervention is a positive motivational force among the Japanese” (this does not necessarily imply less autonomy, however).
Example: Finding from a comparative study of American and Japanese factories.
Example: From a confidential interview with a former executive of the Japanese offices of several large multinational companies.
Source: Lincoln, J.R. and Kalleberg, A.L. (1990). Culture, Control and Commitment.; Confidential Interview (2008)