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. Linear-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. Very different to Brazilians, they confront with logic, reluctantly accept favours, and dislike losing face. The Germans and the Swiss are known for being the epitomes of this culture. Scandinavians, Americans, Austrians, Britons, Canadians and New Zealanders are also part of this group. Multi-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. Individuals in this category do several things at once, often change plans, and generally dont mind pulling strings and seeking favours in order to get what they need. Multi-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. Latin Americans, Arabs, Africans, Indians, Middle Easterners, Southern Europeans, and Mediterranean peoples are the most representative embodiments of this type of culture. Reactive 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. Reactive people analyse the general principles of a situation and react according to said context (which includes their partners timetables). They are enigmatic and calm, and give great value to face (their own or other peoples). The Japanese and the Chinese are, perhaps, the best examples of this type of behaviour; Turks and Finns are also in this category. Reactive individuals seem to have a lot more in common with linear-active people. The Finns, 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. Whereas those two groups have many similarities and are partly overlapped, cultural differences become evident when contrasting either of them with the multi-active category. In 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. Another typical trait which is also regarded as loutishness by linear-active and reactive people who rarely interject, in the case of the former group, and never do so, in the case of the latter is the excessive number of interruptions uttered by multi-active persons, who habitually speak and listen at the same time. But 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 Italy and Switzerland. The Italians are (mainly) classed as multi-active individuals, whilst the Swiss are known to be linear-active, and yet, the two countries managed to learn from and adapt to each others notion of time. The Italians realised that schedules, deadlines, and budgets help to clarify their goals and assess their performance, while the Swiss learnt that flexibility might actually be an advantage, as it allows them to adjust timetables to unforeseen changes and make last-minute improvements. Despite 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. A probable catalyser for the animosity between different cultures is the fact that people often use their nationality to justify certain behaviours. For instance, Ive heard Brazilians say during a movie session, sure Im loud, Im Brazilian!, and French people swear non-stop during a lesson and be excused just because they are French. This sort of mentality might be one of the reasons as to why specific stereotypes are associated to certain cultures. Many a time individuals are so fixed in their ways they cant even contemplate changing, and what that does is set in stone the way a whole country is portrayed abroad. It 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. For instance, in Middle Eastern countries, giving someone the thumbs-up is an insult; in Thailand, showing the sole of your feet is an equivalent of giving someone the finger; in Saudi Arabia, French-kissing in public is an attack on morality; and, in Iran, wearing tight jeans or shorts is, to say the least, an unadvisable clothing choice. Adjusting to the culture one visits and interacts with is mere common sense, or so it should be and one would certainly not assume otherwise given the overuse, still to this day, of the fourth century proverb which says, when in Rome.

*the definition of culture was taken from the Merriam-Websters Online Dictionary ** I chose to take a detached approach, Ive used first person, but I didnt want to include myself in any of the groups (even though, as a Brazilian, I am a typical multi-active person), because I wanted to try to write this paper with a view as unbiased as possible (and I think the distance provided here aided in achieving that)