The image of deceit in Russian and Japanese linguocultures

Abstract
Perceptions of deceit in Russian and Japanese linguocultures are compared on the basis of associations experiments. It has been shown that false representation of true intentions is perceived differently by Russians and the Japanese. The Japanese comprehend deceit as a moral problem to a greater extent than Russians. At the same time, it is characteristic of the Japanese linguoculture to hide one’s true intentions by putting on an imaginary “mask”. The Russian linguoculture demonstrates habituation to deceit; this conclusion is testified by lesser emotionality of reactions collected from the 21st century Russians as compared to the 1990s Russians. At the same time, Russian and Japanese linguocultures share the same belief that the deceit is the opposite of the truth.

Keywords: Russians, Japanese, linguoculture, deceit, reaction, politeness