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armonious relationship with each other.
Confucianism
As the authoritative school of thinking, Confucianism has ruled china for over 2000 years, not only our Chinese view points towards life had been influenced by Confucianism, but our living patterns and standards of social value have been set. And the background for Chinese political theories and structures has been offered.
Confucianism is named after Confucius. His main purpose was to find a way to bring order out of the feudal system. Confucius hold the idea that the society was made of individuals and family units, if every individual and family conducts properly, a perfect society will be formed. In order to become a virtuous one, according to Confucius, one should possess four virtues: sincerity, benevolence, filial piety and propriety.
In essence, Confucius envisioned an orderly harmonious society based on a hierarchical and reciprocal interpersonal relationship.
Collectivism
Traditional Chinese values attached great importance to collective interest. Collectivism originated in the early agrarian economies and further enhanced in the teaching of Confucius. According to Confucianism, social and economic activities are based on the principle of cooperation coexistence and mutual support rather than competition. Individualism has negative meanings, intention of independence or distinction from others is destructive. It is in fact considered as selfish and immorality. The interest of the society, the country and the family was always counted number one while that of the locality, the part, or the individual sometimes ignored. Thus, the meaning of a person’s life is defined by the community he or she belongs to. Based on the principle of collectivism, the Chinese are regarded as extremely hospitable, cooperative and helpful to the people within the same community, while rude or even hostile to the outsider.
Interpersonal Relationship
Interpersonal relationship is defined as Guanxi by Chinese. It performs as a major mechanism in the Chinese social psychology. Guanxi is everywhere in china and can be defined as a special relationship individuals have with each other. It is usually established among people who share a commonality or certain identities, such as among friends, schoolmates, or fellow villagers. In Chinese culture, sound interpersonal relationships are considered as the basis of society. Building long-term relationship is very important, especially in doing business. “Business in china is not about doing business between people. You have business when you have established an interpersonal relationship.” (Fang, 1999:235)
Respect for Hierarchy and Age
One important doctrine of Confucianism is its teaching on respect for hierarchy and age. In the Confucian tradition, age is wisdom and must be respected. Instead of individual freedom and social equality, Confucianism attaches great importance to social hierarchy and order. According to Confucianism, social stability and harmony can be achieved only through individual’s whole-heartedly doing their duty as defined by their positions in the hierarchical society.
Avoidance of conflict and need for harmony
The notion of harmony is of great importance in Chinese society. In the ancient time, agricultural production relied heavily on the blessing of nature; therefore the premise of its success lay in complying with farming seasons and having favorable