( CNN ) -- Akio Toyoda 's appearance before U.S. legislators on Wednesday represents not just a fact-finding mission by committee members and a public relations move by Toyota , but a clash of cultures that in many ways created the recall controversy . `` They turned a rather ordinary recall into a brand-threatening crisis , '' said Jeff Kingston , a professor of Asian studies at Temple University 's Japan campus in Tokyo . Indeed , a key reason why Toyoda is in the hot seat is because the company leadership responded in a very Japanese fashion , Japan watchers say . `` Their decision-making process was painfully slow , but the international media and concerned customers do n't want to wait so long for answers , '' Kingston said . `` Anytime the public hears 'brake ' and 'problem ' in the same sentence , they want quick answers . '' Toyoda 's long silence as the company deliberated what to do is a hallmark of the Japanese culture of consensus building . `` The decision-making process is really the planning process in Japan -- you do n't see a lot of rapid response to a strategic issue , '' said Michael Alan Hamlin , president of Team Asia , which provides communications advice to multinational companies . Difficult , too , will be how Toyoda handles hostile questioning , especially since most of his public experience has been before a largely deferential Japanese press . `` There is a huge difference in how Japanese media cover companies , '' said Hamlin , who lived in Japan for a decade . `` They are careful not to upset or annoy business leaders too much , because they do n't want their access to information or press conferences blocked because of negative reporting . `` In the West , you take Microsoft , Google or GM -- once they are big , successful companies , they are targets ( of aggressive media ) , '' he said . `` That 's the trade-off for visibility and success . '' How the two audiences -- American and Japanese -- view Toyoda 's performance may be very different because of cultural differences in body language . `` Japanese when in an apology mode -- especially before an authority like the U.S. Congress -- will be very humble . That means , you do n't necessarily look people in the eye , '' said Deborah Hayden , Tokyo managing partner of Kreab & Gavin Anderson Worldwide , a communications consultancy . `` From a Western perspective , that can be mistaken as weakness or perhaps trying to hide something . '' Also , Japanese language tends to be indirect -- whereas before the committee members are likely to pepper him with direct questions and `` be a bit of political theater , '' Hamlin added . `` He 's got to walk a very fine line of polite respect -- which Japanese have in bucket loads -- and the confidence of being head of one of the largest , most respected companies in the world , '' Hayden said .
Toyota 's handling of the financial crisis has elements of a culture shock . Toyota 's long silence is a hallmark of the Japanese culture of consensus control . Toyota has little experience dealing with hostile questions from the public .