Sociocultural Analysis Of Taiwan

Australia boasts one of the world's most multicultural societies. Therefore, it can be difficult to pinpoint what being "Australian" really is, or to define Australian culture. The best way to approach an analysis of Australian culture may be to compare it with another culture. Chinese culture is equally as complex and diverse as Australian culture, as both countries have a large variety of ethnic groups within their borders. However, in terms of the many aspects of culture such as meaning, language, human activity, lifestyle, works of art, and leisure activities, Australian and Chinese cultures differ from one another. Some of the aspects of culture that differ the most between Australian and Chinese societies include gender, lifestyle, and language.

Culture can be defined as the behaviours and belief characteristics of a particular social, ethnic,

Considering the specific characteristics of Asian culture, the explanations can be drawn from two perspectives: what decreases the risk and what hides the risk. From general perspective to specific perspective, the following sections will compose the whole

There are about 195 countries worldwide, yet if one were to be questioned about any one specific culture, they would not be able to answer. As already known, the United States is a country of immigrants. It could be described as “a ‘melting pot’ in which different cultures have contributed their own distinct ‘flavors’ to American culture” (Zimmermann, 2017). One of the most distinct cultures that have entered America would have to be the Chinese culture. China is a unique country in itself yet with so much to learn, it is safe to say that the average person would not know a small fraction of what makes up the Chinese culture. China, as every other country, is unique due to its tourism, customs, family life, and its government.

There are many laity use of the word culture that gets thrown around in day-to-day conversation amongst our peers. Culture is used to define certain aspects of our lives and how we live on a daily basis. There are some that believe that they do not possess a culture. There are others who feel that we all live our own individual unique culture in our lives. However, being that culture is such a broad subject, the only way to define it is to operationalize its context and attempt to try and understand it based on a universal definition. Sergiovanni and Corbally (1986) defined culture that includes a system of values, symbols, and shared meanings in a group that includes embodying these values, symbols, and shared meanings in ritualize practice. Using this particular definition of culture, the small island of Okinawa is enriched with it. Their way of day-to-day lifestyle, geographical terrain, as well as their military history can all be analyzed through their culture as well as provide information in terms of our current military jargon for the benefit of the United States Army.

I chose Cambodian Americans for my target culture because it was a place I knew very little about. My ignorance of that side of the world is laughable to say the least. Cambodian American was a great choice because both the people and the culture are very captivating to me. While some Cambodian Americans become very westernized, accepting most of America’s cultural norms, some hold strong to their Cambodian traditions and way of life. Through Geert Hofstede’s Taxonomy, I will explore the dynamics of the Cambodian American culture. Through Identity, Hierarchy, Gender, Truth and Virtue I will attempt to describe a culture previously virtually unknown to me. I chose Hofstede’s Taxonomy over Bond’s because Michael Bond himself told me to.

Looking at the chart the first dimension of culture plotted is individualism-collectivism. This dimension addresses how people define themselves and their relationships with others. Cultures that fall on the individualism side of the continuum share four characteristics. First, such cultures consider the individual to be the most important entity in any social setting. Second, individualistic cultures stress independence rather than dependence. Third, individualistic cultures reward individual achievement. The last characteristic is; individualistic cultures value each individual’s uniqueness.

Chinese culture is truly one of the great civilization our world has come across. It boasts a vast geographic expanse, over 4000 years of written history, as well as a rich and profound traditional society. Many aspects of Chinese civilization can be traced back many centuries. It is so diverse and unique, yet harmoniously blended, and presents itself a priceless benefit to the world.

The geographical area of China is more than 9 million square kilometers and as a result, it is the fourth largest country in the world. There are several ethnic groups in China, the Han Chinese is the largest group, and it is found in almost all parts of the country. Other minority groups include Tibetan, Zhuang, Korean, and Mongol. The Chinese society is high context and non-verbal. The Chinese people acquire the knowledge of what they are supposed to do and say even if they are not told through conversation. Voice and facial expressions play a critical role in determining the feelings in a person. They do not have facial expressions when in a conversation. Direct eye contact is avoided because it is viewed as a symbol of disrespect (Clair & Norris, 2011).

I was born in Hong Kong and moved alone to Taiwan to live with my grandmother when I was 12. I struggled to learn the language, Mandarin, and to live and learn alongside children from a very different culture. I was like some alien from outer space in Taiwan – generating stares but not acceptance. However, by being open minded about both my potential and the potential of this little island, I succeeded in adapting. I spoke back to the television set to practice Mandarin; I read books and watched videos to learn Taiwan's culture, history, and literature; and I helped my fellow classmates in our

It is not easy to define culture because culture is too broad a concept, can be both abstract and specific. However, what is agreed is culture covers all faces of our life as well as direct the way we behave, interact and communicate. (Liu et al., 2011). One popular definition is that “Culture is the total way of life of a group of people, comprising of the deposit of knowledge, experience, belief, values, traditions, religion, and notion of time, roles, spatial relations, worldviews, material objects and geographic territory”. (Liu et al., 2011, p.57). In this essay, I will analyse components and characteristics of culture, and based on that grounds, I will reflect on my own culture-being a Vietnamese. Dodd (1998) considered that culture is made up by three layers which consist of the core layer, the intermediate layer and the outer layer. I will examine what values and beliefs are considered important in my culture. Those are components of the inner core. Then, I will take some examples of the intermediate layer (expression of cultural activities by manifestation) such as communication patterns, customs and festivals.

When I was on middle school, I spent my holiday vacation with my family to go to China. I went to some part of China such as Beijing, Luoyang, Shanghai and the others, but I only remembered the one in the Beijing mostly. I was really surprised that China got many cultures that I had not known before. These cultures include food, history and some local tradition. In this essay, I will tell my experience in China and some China’s culture that I have gotten in my trip.

Today more than ever, individuals and societies are built as an integration of different cultures and carry different characteristics that construct their unique identity.

The unique guanxi culture in Chinese society sets its societal framework distinctively apart from the West. Although guanxi is often portrayed as one’s social network, it is much different from the so-called “connections” in Western society. Guanxi is a special social phenomenon in the Chinese societal context. It has survived throughout history and continues to be a prevalent trend because it has its Chinese characteristics and attributes that are not found in other societies. The existence of guanxi in Chinese society originated from the core Chinese value of collectivism. Since centuries ago, Chinese society’s group life and social organization has been based on collective interests. “Familial sentiments and obligations, [which were regarded as ethical relations], extended from the family into society [later on]”. The unofficial, informal networks of familial and kinship obligations provided the social support mechanisms through which peasant families survived in the economy of transition and hardships” (Bian, 2001, p.276). The twin themes of guanxi and the sense of hierarchy mutually enhance each other because private networks thrive through the existence of the principle of giving and reciprocating, which highlights that there is a dependent on a more resourceful party in the relationship. The future of the twin themes in China will continue to be built upon mutual reliance and the looked upon generous favour giver in bridging the connections between multiple parties.

The United States and China boast the two largest economies in the world but, despite this fact, these two countries have very little in common. At first glance, this may seem very obvious to most people but, what exactly is it that makes these two countries so different? How is it that such different perspectives and approaches can both lead to great success? Hofstede’s six dimensions of culture are an attempt to answer these questions and more. Dr. Geert Hofstede, studied employees of the computer firm IBM in over fifty different countries. When he examined his findings he found “clear patterns of similarity and difference along the four dimensions” (Manktelow, Jackson Edwards, Eyre, Cook and Khan, n.d.). The fact that he focused his research on solely IBM employees allowed him to eliminate company culture as a differentiating factor and “attribute those patterns to national and social differences” (n.d.). He used his findings to originally identify four dimensions, later expanded to six, that could “distinguish one culture from another” (n.d.). The six dimensions all on a scale from 0 to 100 are: