Indeed, some Confucian teachings are at odds with western values. Confucius taught that stability in society is based on unequal relations between people, while Americans hold equality to be a virtue. Where Americans stress individualism, the Confucian teachings stress the importance of the family as prototypical of how society should be organized, a family in which children are taught to restrain their individuality so as to maintain harmony in the family, at least on the surface.
Second, China is also a Stalinist-Leninist-Maoist society. It is a unique brand of socialism. While they have a history of entrepreneurial activity and may speak of market principles, it should not be assumed that their view of the market is the same as that of western capitalism.
This Chinese socialist philosophy is completely alien to Confucianism, and yet the Chinese people live with this dumbfounding contradiction. In fact, not only do they hold these two major philosophies in tension, about 80 percent also claim to be Buddhist and 75 percent would additionally consider themselves Taoists. Given their ability to synthesize, or at least concurrently hold, such incompatible philosophies, the Chinese find it difficult to understand how ideological differences can be so divisive in other societies. It makes no sense to them, for instance, that Protestants and Catholics should feud when both practice the same religion.
Chinese foreign policy is driven by real politik. Asia, and especially Southeast Asia, is their sphere of influence. It is a view similar to the 19th century U.S. commitment to Manifest Destiny in the American West. It is their destiny to dominate this area, and they do not take kindly, or lightly, to outsiders telling them how to behave within their sphere of influence. To them, human rights of their citizens, the plight of Tibetans, and the use of prison labor, are, simply, none of our business.
China is a developing economy that requires enormous change. The Chinese society is in the process of a dramatic and painful metamorphous. They have the daunting task of feeding over a billion people very day, and this must be the first priority. Given this short-run reality, the long-run and simultaneous need to grow the economy and visibly increase the standard of living is an overwhelming challenge by any standard. They cannot afford the luxury of failed economic experiments. Their focus must be at once on survival and growth. It requires a mindset fundamentally different than ours.
To confuse the untutored mind even more, is the often -- and officially -- ignored fact that China is not a single linguistic or cultural society. The People’s Republic represents more than 15 language and cultural groups that have somehow, often by force, learned to live with each other far more cohesively than the similarly-diverse cultures of Europe. While most of the language groups can read written Chinese, they cannot necessarily understand each other’s spoken languages. Because the written language is ideographic rather than phonetic, non-Mandarin Chinese can understand a character’s meaning without having a clue as to how it may be spoken 100 miles away. These are not dialects of the same language, although each of the different languages may have dialects within it. They are different languages that are as remote from each other as French and German. Since culture is primarily linguistically based and transmitted, each language group has a somewhat different cultural bias, adding further to the confusion. An American planning to do business in China should take note of these differences, giving special attention to the area where he or she plans to operate.
In summary, remember that a trustworthy, personal relationship must precede any successful Sino-American transaction. Focus on protecting your counterpart’s feelings with the family and friends that you will never meet. Read. Speak with at least three Americans who have done business in China. Ask what mistakes they have made and how they resolved them.
By the way, before you visit China, investigate what your Chinese associates would consider appropriate gifts and keep an inventory of them to continually express your appreciation. Then, "be square." (It’s an attitude.) Finally, there is no alternative to unfailing courtesy.
