Living in a culture that is different from your own can be both an exciting and challenging experience. Here are some major cultural differences between China and the US to help promote mutual understanding.
Privacy
Chinese people do not have the same concept of privacy as Americans do. They talk about topics such as ages, income or marital status, which Americans think is annoying and intrusive (侵扰的).
Family
In China, elders are traditionally treated with enormous respect and dignity while the young are cherished and nurtured. In America, the goal of the family is to encourage independence, particularly that of the children.
Friends
Chinese people have different meanings to define friends. Friendship means lifelong friends who feel deeply obligated to give each other whatever help might seem required. Americans always call people they meet friends, so the definition of friends is general and different. There are work friends, playing friends, school friends and drinking friends.
Money
They are always conservative when they are planning to spend money. It is different in the USA, where far fewer families are saving money for emergencies and education than their Chinese counterparts.
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Basically, China values the community and the US values the individual. If you achieve something in the US, it's because you were great. While in China, if you achieve something in China it's because the team, or family, or company is great. Everything you do gets attributed to the greater whole, while in America individual merits are celebrated.
A. Collectivism vs. Individualism
B. Education and Career vs. Character and Faith
C. You're welcome to leave your comments.
D. As is known to all, the Chinese like to save.
E. Just hanging out together time to time is not friendship.
F. You have to learn different cultural practices and try to adapt to them.
G. Unlike the Chinese, older Americans seldom live with their children.
