CONVERGING CULTURAL VALUES? A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CHINESE AND US COLLEGE STUDENTS Zhihong Gao, Ride Uni!

e "i#$ C$n#hia M% Ne&'an, Ride Uni!e "i#$ A("# a)# Given the impact of globalization on local cultures, the current study surveys the cultural values of Chinese and American college students to investigate whether cultures are converging. The findings suggest homogenizing trends between the two groups on some dimensions, thus highlighting the need to approach culture as a historical construct. In# od*)#ion Culture conditions individual behavior. For such a reason, cultural values have been a predominant focus of cross-cultural consumer research, and various theories and models have been developed to categorize world cultures !ofstede, "#$%& Triandis, "##'(. )eanwhile, culture itself is historical and continuously evolves. This is especially true in the era of globalization, when local cultures are constantly e*posed to and interact with a web of foreign ideas, values, and lifestyles Featherstone, "##%(. The +uestion is, have such intense interactions led to convergence between peoples around the world in terms of cultural values, To e*plore such a +uestion, the current study investigates the cultural values of Chinese and American college students. As part of Generation -, today.s college students / born in the "#$%s and growing up with globalization in its full swing / are more global in their world view and eager to embrace multiculturalism in their lifestyle 0evere, "###& 1tapins2i, "###(. Thus, if world cultures are indeed converging, then this segment would be the foremost group e*hibiting such a trend. Li#e a#* e Re!ie& Na#iona+ C*+#* e" and Indi!id*a+ ,eha!io Cultures around the world have been grouped on a number of dimensions for a summary, see Triandis, "##'(. 3ver the years, the dimension of individualism versus collectivism proves to be the most seminal. According to such a framewor2, individualistic cultures put great emphasis on values such as personal autonomy, freedom of choice, orientation toward individual goals, competition, and success& in comparison, collectivism values interdependence, relationships, duty, orientation toward group goals, hierarchy, and harmony !ostede, "#$%& Triandis, "##'(.

An individual is inevitably born into a specific culture and inherits a repertoire of values shared by society as a whole. These values prescribe the norms and boundaries for individual behavior. )ore specifically, individualistic and collectivistic values foster different self-concepts in individuals4 The former spells out a separated self-schema, enforcing firm self-other boundaries, independence, and self reliance while the latter provides a connected self-schema, which is characterized by relationships and interdependence 5ang and Chan, 6%%"(. The concept of self-construal is used to describe image of self and serves as the bridge that lin2s cultural values to individual behavior 1ingelis and 7rown, "##8(. There are two basic types of self-construal, independent and interdependent. 9ndependent selfconstrual reflects individualistic cultural orientation while interdependent self-construal is the product of collectivistic values. For such a reason, the self-construal scale 1C1( 1ingelis et al., "##8( has been recognized as an important tool to measure collectivism and individualism Gudy2unst and 0ee, 6%%:(. 5hile culture determines individual behavior to a great e*tent, there are still considerable variations among individuals of a given culture. This is because people may choose to embrace a varied subset of the shared values rather than the entire repertoire 0inton, "#'8(. 9n addition, some individuals may initiate cultural change by embracing and acting upon new ideas and values Althusser, "#$;(. C*+#* e and C*+#* a+ Change Culture is not static but historical because <no culture is a completely self-sealing system= >luc2hohn, "#;6, p. ?"(. 3n the one hand, a culture contacts and interacts with other cultures& on the other hand, culture e*ists, together with economy, politics, communications, etc., within a larger system and thus interacts with these non-cultural elements. These interactions contribute to the continuous reformulation of a culture. 9n investigating the relationship between modernization and cultural change, 9nglehart and 7a2er 6%%%( posit that economic development <seems to move societies in a common direction, regardless of their cultural heritage= p. 6#(. @articularly, industrialization is found to have profound impact on cultural values, as the transition from agrarian society to industrial society usually involves painful battles between change and tradition @riem, 0ove, and 1haffer, 6%%%& 1tearns, 6%%"& Tse, 7el2, and Ahou, "#$#(. )ar2eting and advertising, the engine of modern economic development, have played a critical role in fostering cultural changes by emphasizing a particular set of values / often consumerist and individualistic in nature / over others 1tearns, 6%%"(. For instance, the advertising campaigns of Bi2e promote values such as individual autonomy, competition, and success Goldman and @apson, "##$(. The wide spread of these messages around the world inevitably challenges traditional cultural values which emphasize duty, interdependence, and family ties.

9n ac2nowledging the impact of accelerated globalization, some scholars see converging consumer lifestyles and values around the world Alden, 1teen2amp, and 7atra, "###(. !owever, others contend that cultural values are e*tremely enduring and thus resistant to change de )ooCi, 6%%%(. Given such different views, it becomes necessary to empirically test whether cultures are converging. Chine"e C*+#* e and A'e i)an C*+#* e From a conventional perspective, China and the Dnited 1tates represent two distinct cultures with contrasting economic, social, and political conditions. Embedded in the tradition of Confucianism, Chinese culture is said to value hierarchy of relations, harmonious family life, and group mentality, thus highly collectivistic in nature& in contrast, American culture has a strong individualistic orientation 7ond, "##"& !ofstede, "#$%& !su, "#$;& Triandis, "##'(. 9n recent years, China has undergone rapid mar2et-oriented economic development accompanied by drastic social changes. Botably, competition rather than social harmony has become the norm of the day, and consumerism and hedonism are eagerly embraced by people from all wal2s of life Favis, 6%%%& Far+uhar, 6%%6& Gun, 6%%%& 0in2, )adsen, and @ic2owicz, 6%%6(. Chinese advertising reflects as well as reinforces such cultural changes with its message of modernity, individualism, and competition )c9ntyre and 5ei, "##$& Ahang and 1havitt, 6%%:(. -oung Chinese, in their pursuit of material ac+uisition and personal goals, champion individualistic values while spurning the traditional way of life Chen, 6%%8& Chang, 6%%8(. As a flagship of capitalistic development, the Dnited 1tates hosts ;6 of the world.s "%% most valuable brands 1parshott, 6%%8(. 9nterestingly, it also has more churches, synagogues, temples, and mos+ues per capita than any other country 1ands, 6%%8(. 1uch conflicting images of American culture confirm 9nglehart and 7a2er.s 6%%%( contention that the Dnited 1tates, despite its high degree of industrialization, represents a stronghold of traditional values and beliefs. The most recent surge of intense religiosity in the country further strengthens American culture.s engagement with moral conservatism <The Triumph,= 6%%'(. 9n summary, as Chinese culture heads toward individualism as a result of industrialization and American culture embraces religious beliefs and traditional values, there is the possibility that the value gap between the two cultures is shrin2ing. Thus, !ypothesis " !"(4 There is no significant difference between Chinese and American college students in their independent self-construal. !ypothesis 6 !6(4 There is no significant difference between Chinese and American college students in their interdependent self-construal.

Me#hodo+og$ Hespondents for the study consisted of ;6 Chinese college students from 1hanghai, China and 88 American students from the Dnited 1tates. There were '; females and "; males in the Chinese sample, and :% females and 6: males in the D1 sample. The instrument of the study was a +uestionnaire composed of "; items from the selfconstrual scale refined by Triandis and Gelfand "##$(, with eight items to assess independent and interdependent self-construal, respectively see Appendi*(. Hespondents were as2ed to rate their agreement with each item on a ?-point 0i2ert scale " I strongly disagree and ? I strongly agree(. The 1tandardized Cronbach.s Alpha for independent and interdependent items is .;8" and .?%'. The +uestionnaire also included an open-ended +uestion as2ing respondents to write down the most important valuesJthings in their life. Five underlined slots were provided for answers to the +uestion, which are further coded into ten categories, including education, career, relationships, faithJmorality, enCoymentJhedonism, health, good character, wealthJmaterialism, successJachieving goals, and freedomJindependence. The instrument of the study was translated by a native Chinese spea2er into Chinese, which was translated bac2 into English by a different Chinese. Fiscrepancies between the English translation and the original versions were resolved through discussions between the translators and revisions of the Chinese translation. Re"*+#" The results of AB3KA analysis indicate that the two groups do not differ in their average means on interdependent self-construal items see Table "(. -et, there is significant difference between them in terms of independent self-construal, though the level of significance is low p I .%6'(. 1urprisingly, based on the mean scores, the Chinese mean I 8.'"$%( seem to have a stronger orientation toward independence than their American counterparts mean I '.#":8(. TA,LE ANOVA Ana+$"i" o. SCS S)o e" o. Chine"e and A'e i)an Re"/onden#" 1elf-Construal 9ndependence 9nterdependence )ean China 8.'"$% 8.';"" F D.1. '.#":8 8.8%%% 8.6?' .%?8 1ig. .%6' .?$8

A close loo2 at individual items shows that the two groups differ on five of the "; items see Table 6(. 3n independent items such as <9 often do my own thing= and <Competition is the law of nature,= the Chinese have higher means, suggesting that they are more independent than their American counterparts. 9nterestingly, the Americans have higher means on two interdependent items, including <The well-being of my cowor2ers is important to me= and <@arents and children must stay together as much as

possible,= while the Chinese have a higher mean on the item of <Families should stic2 together, no matter what sacrifices are re+uired.= TA,LE 0 SCS I#e'" &i#h Signi.i)an# Di..e en)e Indi)a#ed ($ ANOVA Ana+$"i" 9tem 9 often do my own thing. Competition is the law of nature. The well-being of my cowor2ers is important to me. @arents and children must stay together as much as possible. Families should stic2 together, no matter what sacrifices are re+uired )ean China 8.6; ;.68 8.%6 '.:$ ;.8' F D.1. '.;: :.#$ 8.;% 8.%% 8.$" 8.?'% ?'.;%: ;.'%8 '.":; "".%?# 1ig. .%"$ .%%% .%": .%'' .%%"

TA,LE 1 Th ee Mo"# I'/o #an# Va+*e"2Thing" in Li.e .o #he Chine"e and A'e i)an" Kalue Category )ost 9mportant Kalue China D.1. B B L( L( "8 % 68( %( "% % ";.?( %( 6: 6# :$.:( 86.?( % ' %( ?.:( " % ".?( %( % 6 %( :.;( " "$ ".?( :6.?( " % ".?( %( 6 " :.:( ".$( : % 8.%( %( 6nd )ost 9mportant Kalue China D.1. B B L( L( 8 : $.:( 8.;( ": " 6".?( ".#( 6# 6$ '$.:( 8".#( % " %( ".#( % % %( %( " % ".?( %( % 6% %( :?( " % ".?( %( : % 8.%( %( 6 " :.:( ".#( :rd )ost 9mportant Kalue China D.1. B B L( L( 6 8 :.'( #.;( ? 6 "".#( :.$( :% "8 8%.$( 6$.$( % ? %( ":.8( ; " "%.6( ".#( : % 8."( %( % "; %( :%.$( : % 8."( %( : " 8."( :.$( % : %( 8.$(

Education Career Helationships FaithJ)orality EnCoymentJ!edonism !ealth Good Character 5ealthJ)aterialism 1uccessJAchieving Goals FreedomJ9ndependence

Fata obtained from the open-ended +uestion map out some convergence as well as differences between the two groups see Table :(. 9t seems that relationships top the value lists of both groups. -et, the raw data also suggest that the Chinese have a more hierarchical view of relationships and differentiate between parents, spouses, children, and friends while the Americans only list two types of relationships, family and friends. 9n addition, career is the second, and education the third, most fre+uently listed value for the Chinese, while for the Americans it is good character and faith. Finally, more Chinese than Americans consider enCoyment of life, success, and wealth important, though the absolute number of Chinese reporting so is small. Di")*""ion The results of the current study indicate that cultural values held by Chinese and American college students are converging in a couple of ways, thus partially supporting !" and !6. @articularly, the two groups are found to e*hibit similar tendencies in their independent and interdependent self-construal. 1uch a result contradicts the prediction of cross-cultural theories that the Chinese are more interdependent oriented and the Americans more independent oriented. )eanwhile, relationships are e+ually valued by both groups. The convergence between the two groups can be e*plained from two perspectives. First, mar2et economies, based on the liberalistic ideas of atomism and competition, inevitably foster individualistic values among their members. The same applies to China, a country rapidly progressing in the direction of mar2et economy. 1econd, there are universal values shared by cultures 0inton, "#'8(. Helationships, especially family ties, may be such a universal value. The study does find some differences between the Chinese and Americans in their cultural values. For instance, the Chinese value education and career more than Americans, who in their turn put more emphasis on good character and faith. )any Chinese respondents consider caring for their parents as one of the most important things in their life, thus testifying to the persistence of some traditional values. 1urprisingly, the Chinese are found to e*hibit stronger individualistic tendencies than their American counterparts on a few items. This finding can be traced bac2 to the fact that contemporary China, given its huge population, limited resources, and high unemployment rates, is a far more competitive place than the Dnited 1tates. 9n addition, because of China.s one-child policy, nuclear families consisting of wor2ing parents and one child have become the norm in Chinese cities Gun, 6%%%(. Children from such families may be much more independent than those raised in traditional, e*tended families. Giving the findings of the study, there is the need for cross-cultural scholars to revisit theories in the field and test their validity in the new cultural conte*t 0evine et al., 6%%:(. For instance, based on the current study, collectivistic and individualistic values may not be antagonisms but coe*ist in an individual as parallel tendencies. 9n other

words, being independent and self-reliant does not necessarily mean that a person values human relationships less. The study also illuminates the need to e*plore the relationship between etic and emic cultural constructs. For instance, family, rather than an emic value of collectivism, is etic in nature, though it is subCect to varied interpretations in different cultures. 3nly by paying attention to both etic and emic dimensions of cultural constructs can the subtleties of cultural differences be reliably detected. Con)+*"ion The findings of the current study draw attention to the converging trend between Chinese and American culture on the dimension of individualistic values. 9t also corroborates the general observations made by anthropologists that the Chinese society is rapidly transforming, eagerly embracing 5estern values and ideas. The comple* and evolving nature of contemporary Chinese culture lends insight to the state of other traditional cultures which have been similarly caught up in the rush of globalization and industrialization. 9n such a conte*t, rigid dichotomous categorization of world cultures is inade+uate to capture the nuances and comple*ity of cultures in transition. Hather, consumer researchers and mar2eters need to adopt a historical, holistic approach and readily adCust their theoretical paradigms to accommodate new reality. A//endi3 Co++ege S#*den# S* !e$ In"# *'en# ". @lease indicate how much you agree with each statement using the ?-point scale indicated below. Choose the number that is closest to how you feel and write it in the space to the left of each statement.

1trongly disagree 1trongly agree " 6 : ' 8 ; ? Agreement 1core4 MMMMMM 9.d rather depend on myself than others. MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM 9 rely on myself most of the time& 9 rarely rely on others. 9 often do <my own thing.= )y personal identity, independent of others, is very important to me. 9t is important that 9 do my Cob better than others. 5inning is everything. Competition is the law of nature. 5hen another person does better than 9 do, 9 get tense and aroused. 9f a cowor2er gets a prize, 9 would feel proud. The well-being of my cowor2ers is important to me.

MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM MMMMMMM

To me, pleasure is spending time with others. 9 feel good when 9 cooperate with others. @arents and children must stay together as much as possible. 9t is my duty to ta2e care of my family, even when 9 have to sacrifice what 9 want. Family members should stic2 together, no matter what sacrifices are re+uired. 9t is important to me that 9 respect the decisions made by my groups.

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