Differences Between American And Chinese Adolescents

China has been the home to various religions. At different times different dynasties endorsed certain religions while repressing others. While Buddhism flourished during the Sui and Tang dynasty, it faced opposition from the government during the Song dynasty. Confucianism lost government endorsement during the Sui and Tang but gained momentum during the Song as Neo-Confucianism. Yuan dynasty promoted Islam and Tibet Buddhism but ignored Confucianism. Different rulers sponsored and protected different religions but Confucianism and some form of Buddhism have always been alive in Chinese society from 600 to 1450.

It seeks high values for individualism and respect of adolescents to others. Their culture always looks toward the future and never lets any short interests interfere with what they praise. Their values and ideas are which made this country a secure society and have been held together for thousands of years. China’s stable society is payable to the way they obey to their future commitments established by discipline practices that were taught at childhood.

Common food that Chinese heritage usually consume are peanuts, soybeans and grains. The Chinese culture believes in steaming most of their foods and only fried what is needed. They believe drinking something cold can damage and out balance their body system. When it is suppertime, everyone joins in at the middle of a table and food is served among the most important guest there, then someone signals everyone to eat. It is important for the Chinese heritage to uphold their health. The Chinese people try to keep their body well-balanced with a healthy diet. A healthy diet will aid and prevent imbalances and indigestion (Purnell, 2013).

Chinese culture is also greatly embedded in religious and philosophical beliefs. The way a relationship is developed between and individual and the society differs according to various beliefs. In China, two common philosophical and religious ideas are Confucianism and Taoism. Confucianism

In the sixth century B.C.E., the religion of Buddhism was founded in India. Seven centuries later, the religion would find itself arriving in China in the midst of the Han Dynasty. In China, there were many different views of the religion as it arrived and spread throughout the country. There were two main responses to the religion. One response was that Buddhism could stand alongside other Chinese religions and philosophies such as Confucianism, as it could do a lot of good for China; while another view was that Buddhism had no place in China, as it came from foreign people and was barbaric, stealing from the Chinese.

DBQ: Buddhism in China After the fall of the Han dynasty, many Chinese people converted to Buddhism. They seeked a simpler way of life among all of the chaos and political instability going on at the time. This led to a drop in productivity in China, as many Buddhists spent their time meditating. The rise in Buddhism among the lower class led to a hate for the religion by the upper-class. While some people saw Buddhism as a new form of thinking in China’s evolving social landscape, many others saw it as a threat to the traditional Chinese way of life, as they were reluctant to change.

The region of China is extensive and profound. “In China lay people did not belong to an institutionalized sect, nor did their religious life have anything to do with signing articles of faint. Religion in China was so woven into the broad fabric of family and social life that there was not even a special word for it until modern times, when one was coined to match the Western term” (Thompson, 1). In China, Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism are all blended. In the earliest period, Shang Dynasty (2000 BC), people in China had worshipped a lot of different gods (polytheism) such as weather god, river god. People in the Shang Dynasty believed that their ancestors become like gods after they died, so people worshipped their

The main Chinese religions have many key features. The main religions include shamanism/ancestor reverence, Confucianism, Daoism, Mahayana Buddhism, and idol worship. These 5 religions share some features in common. For example, Chinese popular religion focuses on the human being’s pursuit of health, wealth, and happiness in their lives (quote the textbook). Chinese popular religions want the human to be doing well and succeeding in their day-to-day activities of their lives. Another key component of the main Chinese religions is respecting one’s elders. The religions teach the importance of obeying the commands of the elders and honoring the family name. The Chinese allow place a strong emphasis on the temple. The temple is a place where the people could communicate, understand, and learn about their gods (quote the textbook). The next subsections will be describing the key religious practices of each of the 5 Chinese religions.

There is also potential for friction with the way that risks are handled. In America, we tend to be greater risk-takers than they are in China. American managers often see this as a difference in bravery, but this is not the case. Chinese people are just more likely to avoid decisions whose outcomes are uncertain. They are more methodical and calculated. Sometimes that means a Chinese person would miss an opportunity that could have been taken but he would not see that as such a problem as an American would.

The three most important religious beliefs in China were Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. These people believed in many gods, making them polytheistic. Their gods were natural gods, river god, earth god, rain god…The most powerful was the sky god, T'ien, the king of all gods.

Buddhism for centuries, has long been influencing the population all over the world, specifically in China . Buddhism first came to China as a result of merchant traders from India. From there it spread within the merchant community. It mainly expanded because it gave people a sense of hope and faith with the chaos they were experiencing from the collapse of the Han Dynasty. It also spread because it covered what Confucianism lacked; a more spiritual and emotional approach that appealed to many people of different classes. It is because of this that Buddhism spread and was able to influence and greatly affect China during the period of 300-900 CE. Buddhism influenced philosophy and moral teachings, kept the Chinese society peaceful and orderly, as well as affecting the overall economy. Buddhism had strong religious teachings that appealed to the lower class with the idea of afterlife and nirvana as well as an emphasis on following your own path that transformed Chinese beliefs causing a large portion of the population to convert (doc’s 1,4). Buddhism kept the Chinese society orderly by reminding all of Buddha’s life and teachings with statues and the influence it had on monks to spread charity and missionary work (doc’s 2,3,6). Buddhism also had an effect on the economy of China. As it spread from other regions, it caused more farmers and silk producers to convert and spread the religion as monks and nuns. (doc 7,5).

At the core of any nation’s culture are its religious beliefs. In China there are the “Three Jewels” Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, as described in Lopez (1996). There are small numbers of people practicing other religions such as Christianity and Islam, but these are the three dominant beliefs of the region. While they are separate in content, they have coexisted for several thousand years. Lopez (1996) goes on to say, “Historical precedent and popular parlance attest to the importance of this threefold division for understanding Chinese culture…Buddhism is the sun, Daoism the moon, and Confucianism the five planets…suggesting that although they remain separate, they also coexist as equally indispensable phenomena of the natural world.” Each belief system stands alone, and at the same time needs the other(s).

There are many different religions in both China and India. The most popular religions in China are ancient Confucianism and Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, Protestant, Catholic, and a new form of religion Falun Gong. India has many religions that are different or the same as the Chinese. Indian religions include: Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism. There are also many people from China that do not follow a religion because of its communist background.

The United States and China aspire to command the world economy, but their lifestyle and standpoints look like east and west. When comparing the U.S. and China in Hofstede 6 dimensions model, there were four main dimensions that are strikingly distinctive. These dimensions include individualism, power distance, long-term orientation, and indulgence. Recognizing cultural differences is the first step towards understanding each other. The difference between the United States and China are pronounced, and they merit rigorous examination.

This year is my forth year that I has been studying in the United State. I’m already used to the U.S. culture and the U.S. living style. So in general, I didn’t experience any culture shock after I got here. If I had any culture shock, it’s probably three years ago. I couldn’t remember any of them. However I do have some thoughts about the differences between the U.S. and China after four years of studying in the United States.