In the long-running crime series Tatort, scenes involving financial transactions or business deals often depict Germans adhering to strict price structures without negotiation. Detectives and businesspeople engage in straightforward exchanges, where the focus is on procedural integrity rather than negotiating a better deal. This portrayal reinforces the perception that price bargaining is unprofessional and potentially disreputable.
Kant and Pricing
The concept of objective pricing aligns closely with Immanuel Kant’s philosophy, which emphasizes rationality, structure, and universal principles. Kant argued that truth can be determined through reason, and that objective reality is knowable through structured analysis. Kant’s emphasis on universal principles suggests that there is a correct or just price that can be logically deduced, independent of market forces or subjective negotiation. Kantian ethics also emphasize duty and moral principles over personal gain. Thus, establishing a fair, objectively justified price is considered a moral obligation, rather than a transactional opportunity.
Besserwisser
Wikipedia: A know-it-all is colloquially referred to as a person who expresses their opinion in an instructive and intrusive manner and thus gives the impression that they have more knowledge or education in certain (or in all) matters or can judge better than others.
People take offense at the behavior of such know-it-alls – not so much because they are envious of their knowledge (alleged or actual), but because they teach others uninvited, but are closed to the opinions, arguments and knowledge of other people.
This creates an air of arrogance and lack of tact. Exaggerated competitive behavior is also perceived as unpleasant by people who are discussing less out of interest in the topic than to be right.
Besserwisser literally besser, better + wisser, from wissen, to know. Better-knower.
Social Order
German cultural norms prioritize order, transparency, and fairness in business transactions, leaving little room for price bargaining. Historical influences, literary depictions, cinematic portrayals, and everyday expressions all reinforce the notion that negotiating prices is undignified, unnecessary, and even untrustworthy. The emphasis on fixed pricing reflects a deeper cultural preference for predictability and social order, making price negotiation an unwelcome practice in many German settings.
precision and standardization
The German emphasis on precision and engineering excellence extends to pricing as well. In manufacturing and engineering, precise calculations and standardized cost structures are central to determining product prices. German manufacturing culture emphasizes detailed cost accounting, ensuring that prices reflect the actual costs of production, labor, and materials, rather than perceived market value. The tendency toward precision and standardization fosters the belief that there is a correct price for every product or service, calculable through objective analysis and engineering specifications.
Know-It-All: dealing with Dr. Clever
Every company has them, nobody particularly likes working with them and they can drive every colleague to the brink of despair: know-it-alls. They have to give their two cents on every topic, have a different opinion on everything and no matter who makes a suggestion, the know-it-all will certainly have a better idea ready in his eyes.
You can certainly imagine how quickly this behavior overstrains the nerves of colleagues. But what can you do to defend yourself against the constant know-it-all attitude? Which colleagues tend to be particularly know-it-alls and how you can deal with a Dr. Bypass smartness in your department?
Tom Buchanan
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Tom Buchanan’s confrontational business dealings reveal a willingness to negotiate aggressively, reflecting a broader American acceptance of price negotiation as a sign of power and influence.
German know-it-all attitude after the floods helps no one
July 2021. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. But accusing politicians and disaster management officials of “system failure” underestimates the forces of nature, DW’s Fabian Schmidt writes.
It’s all too human to look for someone to blame after a huge natural disaster, but that doesn’t help anyone — certainly not the victims, the survivors or the people whose livelihoods were washed away by the masses of water within minutes.
This know-it-all attitude gets on my nerves: Just like Germany has 80 million football coaches after the national team loses a game, now everyone seems to be a disaster relief expert. And not just in Germany.
German movies
German movies often illustrate negotiation as a process defined by structure, order, and factual analysis. Characters in positions of power tend to focus on rule-based arguments, logical reasoning, and procedural adherence. Emotional appeals are secondary to procedural integrity and factual evidence, revealing the German preference for consistency, predictability, and methodical negotiation processes.
Why Schäuble sees too many Germans going it alone
Wolfgang Schäuble has been a member of the Bundestag for exactly 50 years, making him the sole record holder. For the anniversary, the CDU politician will basically be with Markus Lanz. He criticizes Germany’s “know-it-all” on many issues, which means that Germany is met with a lack of understanding from many international partners and allies.
As an example, Schäuble cites the discussion about the “One Love” armband at the World Cup in Qatar. This moral exaggeration does not fit the federal government’s gas deal with Qatar. Germany needs this relationship right now. And don’t stick to what other countries would like to dictate.
But even in the debate about the raid in the “Reichsbürger” milieu, an internal contradiction becomes clear. Such a successful search is only possible thanks to a certain level of surveillance of suspects, for example by wiretapping communications. Here Germany must find the right balance between freedom and security. And between security and morality.
It is similar for Schäuble in energy policy. Germany has been going its own difficult path here since Nord Stream 1. But with Nord Stream 2 at the latest, they have moved far too far away from the other Europeans and the Americans.