Why do Germans so often deny other people's observations about them?
Of course, nobody enjoys criticism, and some of these observations may be based on misunderstandings and do not necessarily have to be accepted without question. But some things are also obvious and completely accurate. And yet everyone reacts as if they have never heard of such an outrageous claim before. It is like the first spontaneous reaction to each and every observation is to scream "NOT TRUE!" before even thinking about it. That will probably be the case with this observation as well :))
I'm not the only one who has noticed this. I've discussed this phenomenon with others many times. It seems to apply mainly to Germans, not to other nationalities.
For example, if I said that Americans are too loud, maybe 10% would feel offended and say that they are not. The other 90% would say, "Haha, yes, that's true! Terrible, isn't it? :)"
But with Germans it is the other way around. If someone asks Germans, "Why don't you rinse your dishes with clean water after washing them with soapy water?" most people deny ever having heard of such a thing. Even though there are even hundreds of scenes in movies and TV shows with exactly that behaviour, not to mention countless personal observations.
Or if someone asks, "Why do German mothers make a visiting child wait in another room while the family eats or send them home?" everyone denies it. And yet this is a very typical German thing.
Of course, nobody likes being criticised, but I'm sure you have your reasons for these habits. Denying them doesn't really help :)