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Values are grounded in beliefs about the way the
world should be rather than assumptions about the way
the world is (Hall, 2005). Values are one omponent of
ulture and an !ary greatly in the way that they are
demonstrated. "he meaning behind a partiular !alue
an differ greatly from one ulture to another. #n order
to understand the pereptions of a partiular !alue in a
gi!en ulture, it is neessary to reogni$e the affets that
other aspets of a ulture may ha!e on one%s
understanding of what onstitutes honesty, suess,
e&uality, or loyalty.
"wo ultures who ha!e different ideas on these four
!alues are the 'nited tates and hina. *hile the
differenes between the ultures of these two nations
ha!e lessened in reent years, they are still &uite
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different. +or eample, the -merian syhologial
-ssoiation has published researh demonstrating the
differenes in the brain funtion of a hinese person who
is eamining his own !alues and the brain funtion of an
-merian person when eamining their !alues. "hese
partiular researhers belie!e that olleti!ist ultures
suh as the hinese, !iew themsel!es in suh lose
onnetion to those around them that their brain shows
the same ati!ity when they eamine their !alues as
they do when eamining the !alues of others. #n
ontrast, the researh ontends that -merians brain
ati!ity when eamining the !alues of self are !ery
different than the brain ati!ity when e!aluating the
!alues of other people. "his is belie!ed to be due to the
strong sense of indi!iduality in -merian ulture (-$ar,
20/0).
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*hen looing at honesty, espeially in the ontet of
gi!ing opinions, the two ultures !ary greatly. -merians
are noted for speaing their minds, gi!ing their opinions,
and speaing freely. "he hinese ulture onsiders it
ungraious to openly disagree with another, espeially if
they are a foreign !isitor. *hat they are far more liely
to do if they disagree with an opinion or statement is to
nod their head and smile. "his
gesture is intended to say, #
hear you, not # agree with you
(1otus, 20/). -gain this
differene goes ba to the different world!iews of the
ultures. "he olleti!ist hinese ulture is more foused
on the relationship, while the indi!idualist -merian
ulture is more foused on the rights of a person to ha!e
their own opinions and to freely spea them. "he
hinese ultureplaes more emphasis on a!oiding diret
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onfrontations and ontro!ersial topis, while -merians
are muh more liely to debate an issue.
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Chinese and American cultures also have
different perceptions on what it means to be
loyal. Due to greater importance placed on
relationships, people of the Chinese culture
feel a heightened sense of loyalty to their
family and their community. This is due to not
only their collectivistworldview, but also their
hierarchical worldview. The personal identity
and social position of a person in the Chinese
culture is tied to their family, their community,
and their occupation. When one identity is so
greatly defined by ones relationships to
others, loyalty to these groups is going to be
intensified. While a person of the Chinese
culture may go to great lengths to remain loyal
to family, employer, or even government, an
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American is more likely to reserve that degree
of loyalty for self or immediate family. An
Americans worldview is more galitarian and
Achievement. !ince an American is not as likely
to feel that personal success is due to his
relationship with others, the sense of loyalty or
obligation is not as high "#rientation for
Chinese !tudents$.
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This overlaps into the differences in the way
that the Chinese culture views success as
opposed to the way theAmerican cultureviews
it. While the Chinese culture
has been changing their
worldview on views of success
over the last few years, there are still
differences. The Chinese place greater
emphasis on personal relationships and
maintaining harmony within these
relationships is more important than the
completion of a task. While a person in the
American culture is considered a
success if they have ac%uired
wealth, even at the e&pense of
others around them, the Chinese
would place greater emphasis on
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how other people were treated. The fact that
the Chinese culture is still more hierarchical
than egalitarian, influences the manners in
which Chinese view success. The
accomplishments or status of a person in the
Chinese culture may have more to do with the
caste system to which they were born. Their
ability to achieve success is more about
ascription than personal achievement
"#rientation for Chinese !tudents$.
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%uality is another area in which the Chinese
culture is slowly becoming more like the
American culture. Again, there are still very
obvious differences. Americans are raised to
believe that every individual is a good as
another. Children are taught that they can do
anything and be anything that they desire.
This is a reflection of the egalitarian worldview
of the American culture. #n the other hand,
people of the Chinese culture tend to identify
themselves based on the station in life to
which they were born. They are more
comfortable knowing the rules and customs for
dealing with each level of the hierarchy. They
assign different rules of social interaction and
behaviors based on an individuals placement
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in the social hierarchy of the Chinese culture
"'Anhonacker, ())*$.
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When studying the world views of the Chinese
and American culture, it is important to note
that both cultures may have some of the
%ualities of opposing world views and that the
world views of a culture are continually
evolving and changing. +or the purpose of
comparison, one must look at the overall
values and norms.
The Chinese culture
has traditionally been
collectivist, with
individuals more concerned with individual
actions that reflect well on family, employers,
community, and government. They social
system hierarchical in nature, with a persons
social status based on the status of their family
and ancestors. n the same manner, personal
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success is attributed to ascription, not
individual achievement. n communication, the
Chinese are high-conte&t, focused more on
body language, past e&periences, and the
social setting to determine conversation. Their
language is more lubricant, believed to be a
very powerful tool words are used more
sparingly and less freely. /y comparison,
Americans favor an individualist world view,
focusing on personal goals, ideas, and desires.
The individualist view of Americans goes well
with their egalitarian view of the world also
/elieving that everyone should have the same
potential, rights, and opportunities. Americans
assign success and status based on individual
achievements. The primary purpose of an
Americans conversation is to share
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information and Americans are much freer with
saying what they think. /ecause they are low-
conte&t social, they are less likely to consider
social setting or past e&periences of the
listener when choosing their words "0all,
*112$.
While some would argue that the two cultures are
becoming more alike
each day, there are still
obvious differences in
the world views, and
conse%uently the perceptions of values,
between the Chinese and American cultures.
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Works Cited
A3ar, /. "*1(1$. 4our /rain on Culture. !cience
Watch , 55-56.
Chinese values, customs, and beliefs. "*1(7$.
8etrieved !eptember 16, *1(7, from 9otus
Tours Connect Cultures:http:;;www.lotustours.net;info;connect;culture;
culture*.shtml
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0all, /. T. "*112$. Among Cultures: The Challenges
of Communication . Wadsworth.
#rientation for Chinese !tudents. "n.d.$. 8etrieved
!eptember 1