It’s an important and powerful concept to wrap your mind around, especially when setting expectations. The overwhelming conclusion after years of research is that “birds of a feather flock together,” meaning that people who are alike tend to become friends, partners, and mates (Berscheid & Reis, 1998; Byrne, 1997; McPherson, Smith-Lovin, & Cook, 2001). And one of the similarities that brings people together is personality (Boyden, Carroll, & Maier, 1984; Acitelli, Kenny, & Weiner, 2001; Caspi & Harbener, 1990; Gonzaga, Campos, & Bradbury, 2007). Also, people are more likely to help others who are genetically similar to themselves, as demonstrated in research that shows people are most likely to help close kin members before others (Burnstein, Crandall, & Kityama, 1994; Sime, 1983).
It’s key to understanding the human condition and how it can affect a global organization. Understanding culture is a key aspect to developing relationships in business. Grouping Eastern Europe and Russian vs Russia and Asia revolves more around the culture similarities then the distance between to countries or lines that divide them. There is a historical context as well, dating back to the the opposition of the West (originally Europe) to the East in European thought goes back to Ancient Greece, namely to the fifth century B.C., when Greeks encountered the growing threat from the powerful Persian Empire, situated in the part of the world that the Greeks called “Asia.” From the time of the Greek-Persian conflict, Europe was associated with political freedom and the “opposition between Greece and Persia was viewed by the Greeks as representing that between Europe and Asia, and stood for freedom as opposed to despotism.”
Now, the culture of Russia is undoubtedly more European than Asian and speaks to the basic concept of: birds of a feather flock together.