China USA China and the United States

China USA

China and the United States are a lot more alike than many people think. However, there are more differences than similarities. To understand these differences can mean better communication. One difference is the schools. In Chinese culture, school is very formal. Students remain quiet, usually wait for the teacher to ask a question, and things are very serious. The teacher is the authority figure. Students must stand up before they speak, and remain quiet in class. In the United States, it is the complete difference. The students in the United States speak when they want. They don't need to wear the uniform and sometimes sit in circles with the teacher like one of the students. There are some similarities too. For example, in China students enjoy all the different subjects including art, history, and economics. In the United States, the students have the same types of subjects but with a different focus.

Food is an important part of all cultures. There are some similarities between China and the United States. Chinese people eat American food, and American people eat Chinese food. Chinese people can eat with the fork and knife, and Americans eat with chopsticks in the Asian restaurants. People eat too much fast food in both China and the United States. But there are many differences in the ways Chinese people eat vs. Americans. In Chinese culture, it is usually a family meal where people sit around the big table and sharing their food. People take food off the same plates and pass it around to the others. There is no such thing as a steak for one person. American people usually eat their own plate of food and it is separate from the others. It is very common in China to eat dinner with many family members, friends, and colleagues, but in the United States, the tables are smaller.

The social life is different in China than in the United States. In China, many people live with their parents until the old age. Chinese people are not having a lot of privacy, and live together with family or friends. In the United States, people live alone or with just one other person and not with the parents. Students also socialize differently in China vs. The United States. In China, even the friends shake hands when they meet each other on the street. In the United States, the handshake is too formal. Friends meet each other with hugs. Another thing is the family. Chinese people do not like to go against their parents, but in America it is common to argue with the parents.

The business relationship in China is a very different one from the United States. In China the business people need a long time to make negotiate, it requires the business partners in the relationship to become friends. They go out to lunch, dinner, and meet each other's families. In the United States, the business people shake hands, they sign a paper, and that is all. The business people in China are also very respectful of other people's feelings and reputation and never cause someone to lose face. In the United States, a person can criticize someone and get away with it easier because people say the thing they want to say, even if it hurts the other person. It is the same in any relationship or situation, in China people do not show they are angry or upset the same way as they do in the United States.