There are no doubt interesting anecdota inside, that might be insightful and there is no doubt some truth to some clichés, but I seriously doubt a box so big as "asians" has much value.
And even for "small" boxes like "germans", there are for example great differences between east and west germany (seperated by the iron curtain and different systems for over 40 years) - but more so for the older and less for the younger generation. Etc.
So reading in general about cultural differences when meeting someone from that culture can be surely be helpful - but in my experience it is not useful for taking such advice by the letter.
The alternative to considering "asians" or "germans" is probably not understanding each person's cultural background individually but rather putting everyone in a single "world" box. Which is the biggest and most useless one of all. Once you have a good understanding of a typical german you can of course zoom in and get more detail, but if you refuse to learn about germans in general then that's going to make you less understanding of both an old person from east germany and a young person from west germany, not more.
There is also the alternative of treating humans as humans first, if you don't know much about them, except their looks and their passport nationality.
And not assuming one has these and those traits, because they look "asian", but were raised in the US for example.
I know I met many people from many backgrounds all over the world and my thinking in boxes default mode, was never really helpful, but often very wrong. So it is good to know what some common traits are for a person from a certain cultural background, but not with the assumption that the individual in front of you is in fact like this. That can also offend people.
For example some cultures do not like to shake hands. Germans usually do, but personally I also don't. So just be conscious and try to read body language, would be my advice. And in case of doubt, asking a person on the side and not in front of everyone usually works to work around missunderstandings.
> There is also the alternative of treating humans as humans first
No there isn't, that's the same thing as just putting everyone in the "world" box. Which tends to boil down to just treating everyone like a member of your own culture (since most of the people from the world you've met are from your own culture), and ends up being worse.
> - then there is the more specialized interface with your local countrymen
If this is a good thing then surely it's good to do the same for other countries and regions. Occasionally there will be an individual from one of those countries/regions who is more like the average human than like the average human from their country/region, sure - but that's also the case with people from my local country.
> Or do you talk around here, like you talk with your peers around you? Would you know I am german, if I would not have disclosed it?
I am extremely conscious that HN is an American cultural space and one has to talk in specifically American ways to avoid getting downvoted or worse. It's not remotely a "neutral world human" way of interacting with people. If you came to my country I would hope you wouldn't act like you were on HN, there's already enough American cultural imperialism here as it is.
You are right, that in many political topics, american culture is dominating here. But I don't think it is true for technical topics. And many people here, including the moderation in my perspective, try to keep it as neutral as possible.
And the way to talk about technical things - to the point, no personal attacks, no ambiguity if possible, but clearly articulated - this is the way I also try to communicate in international settings.
Well, the differences between western cultures are less pronounced, but I do think that knowing, say, Chinese etiquette when meeting mainland Chinese people is essential to not come across accidentally as rude. There are significant differences there, and natural body language does differ with culture.
Nonetheless, I agree with your general point/sentiment.
"Chinese etiquette when meeting mainland Chinese people is essential to not come across accidentally as rude"
For sure. And I read up about any culture I visit the first time. But chinese are quite different from mongolians and thais for example. So my issue was especially with "asian". This term is allmost meaningless to me, as it puts billions of different people in one basket.
Alternatively, by doing what you suggest you embed stereotypes into the person which may then need to be undone, which is harder then starting from a blank slate.
This is how we get to harmful (even if well intentioned) ideas like “Asians are good at math”.
What you think the book is, and what it actually is, are very different.
It is not about stereotypes for judging someone from another culture. It is about how to think about other cultures so that we won't fail in stereotypical ways when we have to function in those cultures. And how to understand and resolve common conflicts that happen between businesses from different cultures.
There are no doubt interesting anecdota inside, that might be insightful and there is no doubt some truth to some clichés, but I seriously doubt a box so big as "asians" has much value.
And even for "small" boxes like "germans", there are for example great differences between east and west germany (seperated by the iron curtain and different systems for over 40 years) - but more so for the older and less for the younger generation. Etc.
So reading in general about cultural differences when meeting someone from that culture can be surely be helpful - but in my experience it is not useful for taking such advice by the letter.