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The instinctual and spontaneous filial affection and filial attitudes/behaviors belong to the nature of filial piety (or natural filial piety), while the external teachings, ethics, rules, social norms, behavioral prescriptions, religious beliefs and so forth belong to the culture of filial piety (or cultural filial piety). Various ethnic groups and societies share similarities and differences in their exercise of the cultural manifestations of filial piety. Generally speaking, filial piety related cultures in the world are quite religious, while the culture of filial piety in Chinese tradition is non-religious but holistic.
2.3.2 Son Preference
Sons of families were considered as the main figure in traditional Chinese family system. For the mothers, if the husbands were dead, they would listen to what their sons told them. Sons have the second significant status just lower then their fathers. Though such traditions are still significant in China, it was lower than most other Asian countries (Arnold & Kuo, 1984). Wong and Ng (1985) agree with the ideas of Arnold and Kuo. Further more, Chinese in China showed a more balanced view on gender preference.
2.3.3 Kinship Network
There is a merger of the east and west values on human network nature. Confucianism has revealed an important aspect of human nature: the human network nature that means each individual is a distinct node, or junction of relatedness, within a web-like network of different relationships (Lai, 1995). Because no one can be isolated or separated from human networks, the self is conceived as a center of relationships rather than an isolated individual. Beginning with our common ancestors in the distant past, family relationships expand with each new generation, connecting all human beings in a network that involves all aspects of human life. Confucianism views the unchangeable parent-child blood tie as “cosmic order”, and each node in this order bears the responsibilities of his or her role. From the perspective of human biological nature, extended to an anthropocosmic scope, Confucian humanity as embodied love originates with the bonds of common parentage and extends infinitely in space and time to embrace humanity as a whole (Tu, 1997). Because of this view, Confucianism emphasizes role responsibility and the importance of respecting and following the natural cosmic order. Confucians believe that to deny one’s relationships is to deny one’s own nature. Thus, the kinship network is considered the most important to individual. Human instinctual filiality is viewed as one’s personhood, the root of humanity, and the immanent moral order in the universe (The Classic of Filial Piety, chap. 7).
The development of a trans-generational approach in the practice of family therapy in the West is embracing the viewpoints of Eastern wisdom. Modern family therapists are working to develop an understanding of the human network nature and the importance of harmonious human relationships to human health. Family therapists deal with human disorders and problems that have already developed. Their accumulated experience with human problems leads them to share the insight that many human problems have their causal factors in unsolved problematic relationships in the vertical family chain (Boszorenyi-Nagy&Sparks, 1984; Schutzenberger, 1998). On this point, ancient Eastern wisdom and modern Western science are merging. Family therapy entails a profound epistemologic