maybe there was a huge cultural shift after world war 2. people's psyche got damaged and priorities changed.
as someone who was born in a former british colony. then lived in the us.and now live in the uk.
what I find within european countries is a lack of urgency.
in america for example - something as moving around cities - you can easily secure a place i.e sign a lease etc all within 2 days. hell even do it without seeing the place if your appetite for risk is high.
on both the seller end / buyer end there's always a sense of urgency. of making things happen.
in east asia it is the same. e.g in tw you can sign a lease for an apartment without speaking a lick of chinese. and the landlord going off on your word.
in uk or europe that can be whole bureaucratic mess - that can easily take two weeks or even longer.
social life is the same - in the us / if you meet someone you gel with social wise could be business or pleasure. there is a sense of urgency in making things happen fast e.g meeting up for coffee or setting business meeting really quickly. in europe - there's a sense of rigidness. an extra busyness that doesn't make sense.
maybe due to current political climate - europeans wanna be extra polite.
but then again this is based on my personal experience and interpretation of it.