1、 文化差异对中美商务谈判的影响 摘 要 在世界经济日趋全球化的今天，随着国际商务交往活动的频繁和密切，各国间的文化差异先得格外的重要，稍不注意就会引起不必要的误会，甚至可能直接影响商务交往的实际效果 。正因如此，如何化解 国家间不同的文化背景在商务谈判中是非常重要的。本文通过研究中国与美国之间的文化差异及其对商务谈判的影响，探讨如何正确处理在谈判过程中出现的中美文化差异问题，使中美商务谈判能顺利进行。 关键词 ：文化差异，商务谈判，影响，建议 The Influence of Cultural Differences on Sino-American Business Negotiation
2、Author: Zhang Panli Tutor: Zhang Xuemei Abstract With the economy globalization and the frequent business contacts, cultural differences seem to be very important, otherwise they could cause unnecessary misunderstanding, even affect the result of the business negotiations. This means it is very impo
3、rtant to know the different culture in different countries and the ways to avoid the culture conflicts in the international business negotiations. The paper presents cultural difference between the two countries from values and negotiation style and emphasizes the importance of taking cultural sensi
4、tivities into consideration during business negotiation to make proper negotiation tactics. The thesis researches the differences between China and America and the influence in transculture negotiation. Finally it analyzes how to deal with the problems of the culture difference correctly in negotiat
5、ion process in order to make the negotiation smoothly. Key words: Culture difference, Business negotiation, Influence, Suggestion Contents Abstract in English . I Abstract in Chinese . II 1 Introduction . 错误 !未定义书签。 2 A Survey of Sino-American Business Negotiation. 4 2.1 Negotiation and Culture. 5 2
6、.2 Present situation of Sino-U.S. business negotiations . 6 3 The Impact of Cultural Differences on Sino-American Business Negotiation. 7 3.1 Individualism vs. Collectivism . 7 3.2 Low-context vs. High-context . 8 3.3Verbal and nonverbal differences in Sino-American business negotiations . 9 4 cultu
7、ral phenomenon of the reasons .11 4.1 Different values .11 4.1.1 Interdependence and Independence .11 4.1.2 Modesty and Forwardness . 12 4.1.3. Friendship and privacy. 12 4.2 Sense of Law . 13 4.3 Differences in thinking mode . 14 4.3.1Integration and segmentation . 14 4.3.2 Spiral and linear. 14 5
8、Negotiation Style Affecting Sino-American Business Negotiation . 16 5.1 Communication Style . 17 5.2 Decision Making Patterns . 18 5.3 Risk-taking Propensity . 19 5.4 Different Time Concepts. 20 6 Suggestions for Sino-American Business Negotiation . 22 6.1 To create a harmonious atmosphere. 22 6.2 T
9、o strengthen the awareness of cross-cultural negotiations . 22 6.3 To overcome the obstacles of communication . 23 7 Conclusion： . 23 The Influence of Cultural Differences on Sino-American Business Negotiation 1 Introduction Nowadays, due to the rapid development and integration of global economy, i
10、nternational business contacts and activities are increasingly frequent and complex. The unprecedented growth of international business has resulted in an increased volume of face-to-face negotiation between members of different culture. While pursing the success of international business negotiatio
11、n, it is imperative for negotiators to know the cultural difference of negotiating parties. As we all know, China is one of the largest economic country in the world, and America is our biggest trade partner. Since the normalization of relations between China and America began 25 years ago, Sino-Ame
12、rican business relationships have been growing at a fast pace. Negotiations have often been a difficult process for both sides, for cultural and other reasons. Cultural differences of China and America constitute an enormous challenge for cross-border negotiation. In the Sino-American business negot
13、iation, cultural difference must be paid much attention, or a lot of influences will be produced, such as influences on negotiating goals (business or relationship) and attitudes (win/win or win/lose). This thesis focuses on the influences of cultural difference on Sino-American business negotiation
14、. 2 A Survey of Sino-American Business Negotiation With the development of economic globalization, international trade has already become the major engine in promoting the worlds economic development. During the process, China has also established economic connections with a large number of other co
15、untries. As the second trading cooperation partner of China, America communicates with China more and more business negotiation is the key point of developing Sino-American business relationship. As we all know, people from different cultural backgrounds with different world views and values may hav
16、e various problems, misunderstandings and conflicts during the process of associating. International business negotiation deals not only cross borders, they also across cultures. Culture definitely influence how people think, communicate and behave. It also affects the negotiation style in business
17、transactions. 2.1 Negotiation and Culture Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties to reach an understanding, resolve point of difference, or gain advantage in outcome of dialogue, to produce an agreement upon courses of action, to bargain for individual or collective advantag
18、e, to craft outcomes to satisfy various I interests of tow people or parties involved in negotiation process. It is also a kind of basic human activity that were involved almost everyday. International negotiation is the process in which two or more entities from various cultural backgrounds discuss
19、 common and conflicting interests in order to reach an agreement of mutual benefits. It is clear that international business negotiation refers to the negotiation that take place in the business world and deals with business relationship. It may be understood as encounters between firms (or economic
20、 organization) with the goal of reaching agreement to gain economic benefits. It is no surprise that when business people negotiate across cultures, the process is often more difficult than within their own culture. Culture differences and communication barriers in how the negotiation game is enacte
21、d can lead not only to simple misunderstandings, but sometimes a complete breakdown of the process and relationship between the parties. When negotiating internationally, there are a variety of factors contributing to the result of business negotiation, such as geographical distances, political situ
22、ation, economic factors and foreign cultural backgrounds. However, the most crucial factor is the negotiators sensitivity and responsiveness to the new cultural context. But in fact, members with different cultural background may behave quite differently, and may focus on different aspect of busines
23、s. Therefore it is better for both negotiating parties to understand their cultural difference well. Culture, in humans history, has been defined in a variety of ways, and there is no agreement on a single definition of the term. More than a century ago, “culture” was defined as that complex whole w
24、hich includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, laws, customs and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society. More recently, “culture” was again treated as the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another. As America i
25、s a typical Western country while China is a typical Eastern country, there exists huge cultural differences between this two countries. 2.2 Present situation of Sino-U.S. business negotiations The formal establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States began in 1979. Sino-A
26、merican economic and trade relations have normalized since 1979. Looking back to more than 20-years development, though there are many frictions and disputes in trade between the two countries, we can see that the trade between them is still developing very fast. According to the statistics of Chine
27、se customs, the total amount of Sino-U.S. bilateral trade was 2.45 billion dollars in 1979. And the total amount of Sino-U.S. bilateral trade was 80.48 billion dollars in 2001. The later is 32.8 times than the former. The average annual growth rate is more than 17.2%. The United States is the princi
28、pal founding member of APEC and WTO. China was not accepted by APEC until 1991 and officially became a member of WTO on December 11, 2001. At present, China and American are considered as two important member countries in the economic organization. They have an extremely important influence on the t
29、reatment of international economic affairs. From the present situation now, the United States is the largest export market in the world, the largest trade surplus original country, the second largest foreign direct investment country and China second largest trading partner. According to the statist
30、ics of the Department of Commerce s in United States, China is the second largest trade deficit original country and Americas the fourth largest trading partner and the twelfth largest export market in the world in 1999. This shows that the economic and trade relationship between China and United St
31、ates plays an important role in both of their trade development. At the present time, the government of China has taken a number of measures to promote the development of the business activities in order to increase the international competitiveness. Some Chinese entrepreneurs who have potential abi
32、lity are also trying to enter the international market. The economic relations between China and the United States are becoming closer than before, thus, China has become one of Americas largest trading partners. As the economic and cultural exchanges between the two countries are getting more frequ
33、ent than before, so the business negotiations between the two countries are increasing. 3 The Impact of Cultural Differences on Sino-American Business Negotiation As is known to all, China is a typical Eastern country, while America is a typical Western one. There is no doubt about their big cultura
34、l differences. In view of business negotiations, many researchers have found some core values concerning business cultures of China and the United States. 3.1 Individualism vs. Collectivism “Individualism-collectivism is the major dimension of cultural variability used to explain cross-cultural diff
35、erences and similarities in communication across cultures”. Individualistic cultures emphasize personal rights and responsibilities, privacy, voicing ones own opinion, freedom and self-expression. Collectivistic cultures emphasize community, collaboration, shared interests, harmony, tradition and pu
36、blic good. Chinese culture is collectivism-oriented. The Chinese people think that harmonious relationships are the basis of our society, they place high priority on collectivists interests and values. In their minds, a “we” consciousness prevails: identity is based on the social system; the individ
37、ual is emotionally dependent on organizations and institutions; the culture highlights social organizations; organizations invade private life and the clans to which the individuals belong. Different from Americans, when in business negotiation, Chinese people always choose mutual self-benefits, see
38、k to advance the interests of the group and group rewards. Obviously, individualism is highly prized in the United States. In American culture, individual achievement, sovereignty and freedom are the virtues most glorified and canonized. The value of the individual is supreme and it is the individua
39、l who has the capacity to shape his or her own destiny. They believe that “God always help those who help themselves”. In terms of business negotiation, American negotiators tend to be self-motivated and their business relationships are based on self-interest. 3.2 Low-context vs. High-context There
40、is another effective means of examining cultural similarities and differences by categorizing culture into high or low context. It is the information that surrounds an event, it is inextricably bound up with the meaning of the event. In other words, it refers to the amount of information that a pers
41、on can comfortably gain. Chinese are in the high-context culture, and American people are in the low context culture. People in high context cultures prefer to communicate indirectly. Meanings are internalized in the context of message and must be inferred to be understood. There is a large emphasis
42、 on nonverbal clues, such as facial expression, movements, speed of the interaction and other subtle forms of nonverbal communication. Low-context communication is like a computer program, everything must be specified in the coded message or the computer will not run. In the United States, common expressions and sayings such as “get to the point” and “say what you mean” reveal the Americans emphasize on the content above context. For them, the environment is less important and non-verbal behaviors are often ignored, communication has to be made more explici
