Culture Shock: Working in China - Term Paper Example

Working in China Name: Course: Tutor: Institution: City and State: Date: Working in China Executive Summary The Chinese economy is currently one of the fastest growing in the world and is headed towards becoming the second largest in the globe. Expatriates face various problems in China. Culture shock, language barriers and differences in the perception of time normally affect many of the expatriates who move to China to work. Working in China affects expatriates in three key ways. Firstly, almost all expatriates in China suffer from culture shock. Foreigners also face language barriers as many of them are unable to speak in local languages. Lastly, the varying perceptions of time between the business culture in China and the West makes it hard for foreigners to cope. One solution to the problem is the involvement of companies in the training of workers so that they can be adequately prepared for life in China. Another recommendation is for the expatriates to learn at least one local language. Lastly, companies should also help expatriates understand the perception of time within China’s business culture. Introduction As China’s economy continues to grow, an increasing number of foreigners from Europe, the Americas and Africa are seeking employment in the country. Experts are currently predicting China’s economic prospects to turn the country into the second largest economy in the world. Already, this growth has helped the country avoid the recession that has dogged the world’s economic giants over the past decade. This steady development means that many people are now considering employment in China, to escape the slow growth and unemployment issues plaguing their own countries. However, even with the right credentials and knowledge, employment in China is likely to become a stressful and difficult experience for expatriates living and working there. This is because China’s five thousand year old culture and heritage makes the nation markedly different from many others in the world. The heritage and culture of the Western has not pervaded the Chinese nation as much as it has other countries and this means that many aspects of life in China, such as cuisine, language, general behaviour and business tradition, are different from what most expatriates are used to. Because of this situation, many expatriates leave the country and their employment positions earlier than they intended or predicted. With cultural differences being key concerns for expatriates in China, there is a need to analyse the decision-making process that many people use leading to their inability to cope with life in China. This analysis will begin with a brief review of the literature concerning expatriate life in China. These problems will specifically include culture shock, time culture in China and language barriers. The analysis will then scrutinize the problem facing expatriates in China and focus on their decision-making process. Lastly, the paper will offer various recommendations on the problem that could make it easier for expatriates to live and work in China. Literature Review Culture Shock Culture shock is a phenomenon that people normally experience when they are inserted into an unfamiliar environment. Normally, the difference between a person’s culture and that of his or her new environment is what creates the shock that they have to deal with. Scholars claim that the phenomenon occurs in situations where there is intercultural contact. Ward, Bochner and Furnham (2005) explain that intercultural contact could occur where there is interaction between two diverse societies or in scenarios where a person has to leave his or her indigenous culture and live in the midst of another. In situations involving the second scenario, the person who has moved to a foreign society is likely to experience culture shock. Accordingly, Kleindl (2007) refers to culture shock as the trauma that a person experiences when they move into a foreign society. This trauma normally results from the differences between the subject’s indigenous culture and that of the host society. Lau, Hsu and Shaffer (2013) explain that globalization shock can affect expatriates as well as local people. Culture shock for expatriates in China occurs on two distinct levels. Firstly, there will be a clash between the cultures of the host society and the expatriate’s. Secondly, the complicated mix of Chinese culture and the influences of globalization is likely to become another source of frustration for the expatriate (Lau, Hsu & Shaffer 2013; Cullingford & Gunn 2004). In China, globalization shock presents itself in a situation where a distinct difference emerges between the Chinese culture that the expatriated expected (and prepared himself or herself for) and the one that has emerged from the nation’s interaction with the rest of the world. Language Barriers in China Language is also a significant cultural issue that expatriates in China have to deal with on a regular basis. Countries in the West recognize English as the international language of business and many people speak it. Additionally, English shares some similarity with languages from the Italic and Germanic groupings. However, Chinese languages such as Cantonese and Mandarin are markedly different from English and have no similarities with it whatsoever. This language difference creates a significant problem for expatriates who move to China to work. Fernandez and Underwood (2006)explain that when companies transfer people to China and other countries in Asia, they expect them to maintain the same responsibilities that they had in their home nations. These involve constant interactions with subordinates and senior employees, managing relations between people from different departments, relating with customers in a pleasant and efficient way as well as representing the company appropriately in various social functions that may occur outside the office. While these responsibilities may not be a problem for expatriates in their home nations, the inability to speak Chinese dialects makes them several times more difficult and raises the foreigner’s chances of failing to perform his or her job properly (Fernandez & Underwood 2006). This means that expatriates seeking to work in China need to learn the local languages if they are to have any real chance at succeeding in the nation. Boncori (2013) maintains a similar position on the importance of language in China, explaining that there is a positive correlation between the ability to speak local languages and the success of expatriates. This is particularly the case in China, where the local languages are completely alien to people from other countries. The largest impact of the language barrier in China occurs outside the office, where expatriates have to socialize with other Chinese people without the ability to speak local dialects. This socialization could involve simple interactions with people in places such as shops, train stations and bus stops. However, it also involves more meaningful social interactions such as making friends and meeting new people. Perception of Time in China The culture of time in China is also an issue that causes many problems for expatriates who live and work in the country. The Chinese perception of time is heavily influenced by local religion and globalization. Accordingly, The Chinese people perceive time in a manner that is markedly different from that in the West. Li (2008) notes that Confucianism and Taoism, two of the most influential religions in the nation, influence the time culture in China. This has resulted in significant differences between the way that the people in China perceive and manage their time and the manner in which westerners do the same. One significant difference comes through the way that the Chinese consider their work more worthy of their time than other engagements concerning friends and family. Indeed, Chinese people tend not to have a daily plan or schedule for their activities, with their work pressure and social engagements dictating how they spend their time (Steele 2004). The value that Chinese people place in the careers means that many of them prefer to sacrifice social engagements for their work. However, many people in China still manage to find time for social engagements, as they dine with their friends after work. Interestingly, Chinese people tend to reserve Sundays for their family, something that expatriates may have problems adapting to as they are used to socializing with their kin on an almost daily basis (Steele 2004). The fast-paced lives of people living in large cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou have resulted in the emergence of several stores and petrol stations that are open throughout the day and night, to facilitate their hard working clients. Analysis of the Problems Culture Shock The issues that Rance outlines in her article suggest the existence of problems regarding the way that companies make decisions regarding the management of expatriate employees. The specific flaws in this case involve both the management style and the decision-making processes in the firms that deal with expatriates. The fact that seventy percent of all expatriates are unable to stay in China for as long as they want to is evidence of several failures in the management and decision-making processes of the firms. One failure in the management style of the companies is their underestimation of how much culture shock affects the workers in a company. Culture shock is a serious concern for expatriates in China and the large percentage of professionals unable to cope implies that the management within the affected firms have not paid enough attention to it. This has seen the management in firms fail to train the expatriates and prepare them for their stay in China by offering short courses that help the employees familiarize themselves with the host culture. Language Barrier The language barrier is a key problem that expatriates face when living and working in China. As an old country with a strong culture and heritage, China’s local languages are different from those that people in the West speak. Mandarin is the language that most Chinese people speak along with others such as Cantonese (Selmer 2004). Unlike the similarity that is there between Germanic and Italic languages, Mandarin and Cantonese are in no way similar to popular tongues from Europe (Selmer 2004). Recently, the impact of these language barriers has been reduced by a growing trend where Chinese business people learn English. However, this solution is not holistic. The inability to communicate in local dialects means that most expatriates are unable to have meaningful social interactions outside the business world (Boncori 2013). Additionally, the majority of the people who learn to speak English in China are young, educated youth from urban areas. Accordingly, expatriates who do not speak Chinese dialects are greatly inhibited by this language barrier. Perception of Time The Chinese perception of time is influenced mostly by religion and culture. These influences have merged with the ways of the West to create an understanding of time that is compatible with the modern world but still unique and distinct. One apparent difference in the way that the Chinese perceive time concerns the activities that they value. In China, business people normally dedicate a large amount of time towards their work. This mean that important social functions are often brushed off in favour of business meetings and trips (Chu & Lublin 2014). While Chinese people are already used to this culture of time, expatriates normally have difficulty balancing their personal and work lives. These difficulties mean that their careers become increasingly stressful, as they have to stay away from their families and friends for prolonged periods. Summary Culture shock is a problem that expatriates to China have to contend with because of the country’s deep heritage and culture. Foreigners are likely to experience difficulties caused by the difference between their culture and that of China. The complicated blend of Chinese culture and the forces of globalization in the country could also cause problems. China’s rich culture and heritage also translates to language problems for expatriates. This difference makes it even harder for foreigners to cope in the country. Though some Chinese people speak English, expatriates will mostly find these speakers in the office. This means that they will have trouble engaging in any meaningful social interactions outside work. Time is another issue that causes cultural problems for expatriates living in China. One key difference between the perception of time between the Western and Chinese cultures concerns the manner in which people should spend it. The business culture in China forces businesspeople to prioritize their work over their social lives. Accordingly, expatriates in China as have trouble balancing their work with social engagements. Recommendations Various strategies can help foreigners deal with culture shock when they are trying to build careers in China while living in the country. One apparent issue is that the companies employing expatriates have a large role to play in helping the foreign works overcome the problems concerning culture shock (Marx 2004). One key solution for this issue is for the companies to provide the workers with training courses that help expatriates familiarize themselves with the country before they arrive there (Pedersen 1995). These courses will help expatriates understand Chinese culture better and prepare themselves for both culture and globalization shock. The classes will be particularly helpful in cases where the foreigners have an understanding of China based on the nation’s ancient culture but one that does not incorporate influences of the modern world, which have been the result of globalization. A similar strategy can help expatriates handle living and working in China when they are struggling to deal with a language barrier. The local languages in China differ significantly from those in the West meaning that classes are necessary for foreigners to understand them. The learning of the local languages will make it possible for the expatriates to interact with locals on different levels (Adeney-Riskotta 2004; Storti 2004). This could include social interactions at various events and business exchanges with partners, co-workers and clients. Understanding Chinese languages will also improve an expatriate’s life by making it possible for him to communicate easily within simple interactions that are a part of daily life like buying something from a shop or speaking with a bus driver. Indeed, Selmer (2006b) notes that understanding the local languages is one of the most important steps that a foreigner takes when making necessary adjustments to aid their life in a foreign country. Lastly, adjustment to the different appreciation of time in China is a problem that requires a similar solution to culture shock. Most foreigners will struggle to deal with this issue, making their stay in China far more turbulent and troublesome than it needs to be. Classes orienting foreigners on the business culture in China can help expatriates know the situation that they will have to deal with when they start working in the country. This will lessen the shock of having to work such long hours and spending a lot of time away from their family (Selmer 2006a). It will also help them prepare themselves adequately for the stress that could result from such working conditions. References Adeney-Riskotta, BT 2004, Strange virtues: Ethics in a multicultural world, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove. Boncori, I 2013, Expatriates in China: Experiences, opportunities and challenges, Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke. Chu, K & Lublin, JS 2014, Chinese firms lure native executives home, The Wall Street Journal, viewed 03 September 2014, Cullingford, C & Gunn, S 2004, Globalisation, education and culture shock, Ashgate, Burlington. Fernandez, JA & Underwood, L 2006, China CEO: voices of experience from 20 international business leaders, Wiley, Singapore. Kleindl, BA 2007, International marketing, Thomson Southwestern, Mason. 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