West German and American Interaction Forms: One Level of Structured Misunderstanding

Abstract

Forms of interaction are seldom addressed in comparative perspective. This investigation based on field notes and interviews examines the manner in which a series of American and West German patterns of interpersonal relations diverge. The insider/outsider, public/private, Freundschaft/friendship dichotomies, as well as modes of speaking and group dynamics, are discussed. A series of regular and structured misunderstandings may result when Americans and West Germans come into contact.