Interactivity on Japanese versus American Corporate Websites

Abstract

This study is designed to compare interactivity functions employed on Japanese and U.S. corporate websites. We utilized several cultural analysis criteria such as high vs. low context, power distance and individualism-collectivism to conceptualize cultural differences in employment of interactivity between U.S. and Japanese websites. We found that U.S. corporate websites are more likely to emphasize customer-message and customer-advertiser interactivity, while Japanese websites highlight customer-customer interactivity.

Key Words:

• Interactivity
• corporate websites
• culture
• Japanese
• American