Cross-Cultural Negotiations: China, the West, and Conflict

This report provides a comprehensive comparison of Chinese and Western negotiation styles, highlighting the significant cultural differences that impact international business interactions. It delves into the contrasting approaches to negotiation, emphasizing the Chinese focus on long-term relationships, hierarchical structures, and indirect communication, versus the Western emphasis on contractual agreements and direct communication. The report examines non-verbal cues, such as eye contact and body language, and how their interpretations differ between the two cultures. It further explores conflict resolution mechanisms, including mediation and arbitration, and the role of international mitigators in navigating these cross-cultural challenges. The analysis also addresses the distinct ways in which China and the West manage conflicts during negotiations, considering factors like thinking patterns, language, and cultural context. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of understanding these cultural nuances for successful international business dealings. The report is contributed by a student to be published on the website Desklib. Desklib is a platform which provides all the necessary AI based study tools for students.

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RUNNING HEAD: NEGOTIATIONS AND CULTURE 1
INTRODUCTION
Noteworthy, Chinese economic contribution to the world cannot be ignored. China is
considered among the top largest economies in the world. There is no doubt as to the cultural
differences between China and the rest of the world thus the importance of exploring the
similarities and differences between the western and Chinese conduct of negotiation, Non-verbal
cues and how international mitigation conflicts are being managed by the parties in their own
way. There is an importance role for mitigators in conflict resolution of negotiations and various
approaches to negotiations between China and western cultures.
COMPARISON BETWEEN CHINESE BUSINESS NEGOTIATION AND DOMESTIC
NEGOTIATION.
For the Chinese, negotiations are a dynamic and ongoing procedure that focusses on
practicality and context of issues. Unlike the Western context which seems to focus on
contractual absolutes (NCBC, 2010).The Chinese consider the American as impulsive and keen
on immediate gains whereas the Americans consider the Chinese inefficient, vague and other
stereotyping which might end up stalling international trade relations(Buttery & Leung,1998)
Unlike the Americans, the Chinese negotiations style is quite slower and interpersonal thus the
need for potential foreign investors to accommodate the Chinese way of negotiations. According
to Agkunes et al, Chinese business culture is premised on three components; national state
influence on culture, Confucianism which is basically a moral inclination, valuation of
relationships and stratagems.
According to Hofstede, the Chinese and American cultural dimensions play a significant
part in their negotiation tactics. For Chinese negotiations, long run orientation percentage is

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higher as compared to the American orientation in the long run. Also during negotiations,
China’s power distance is higher than that of the United States of America (“The shape of
Chinese..,2016).In the U.S.A, most companies send representatives such as sales executives as
contrasted with the hierarchical and seniority societal tendencies of the Chinese. Primarily, the
American Chinese negotiation styles differ on four major fronts. Persuasions approaches,
agreement terms, exchange of information and non –task sounding(Yangfang,2017).Majorly,
Chinese negotiations are entered into with the aim of establishing a long-term working
relationship as compared to the Western culture of negotiations.
In Chinese information, flow along a hierarchical standing, authority, and seniority unlike
the American system which solely focusses on authority .In terms of negotiations, the American
approach comes off as aggressive as compared to China’s.(Do,2015).
COMPARISON BETWEEN WESTERN AND CHINESE NON VERBAL
COMMUNICATION DURING CHINESE NEGOTIATIONS.
Undeniably, there are different meanings to the non-verbal cues between Eastern and
Western Countries thus the need to explore the dynamics for better business relations(‘’The
shaping of Chinese n.d.)For the Western negotiators, eye contact is a good thing. It illustrates
concentration and good will. However, the same cannot be said for the Chinese population, to
them, avoidance of eye contact is the utmost show of respect (Akgunes et.al, 1998).For the
Chinese, constant eye contact with negotiators, is unwarranted and is seen as a stare rather than a
show of interest or goodwill (UCSBC, 2010)This simple but crucial nonverbal clue should be
noted by both western and Chinese negotiators to avoid misunderstandings.

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Predominantly, the Chinese projection of negative views is illustrated through a leaned-
back body posture and more eye contact. For the Canadian counterpart, an illustration of
negative views is followed by gaze aversion (Azad and Adair, 2011).Following a survey on the
nonverbal communication between Chinese and Canadian participants, it was concluded that for
the Canadians, a show of dominance is projected through negative body posture and movement
as compared with positive postures and movements. The same negative posture and body
movement were likely to be adopted by the Chinese participants under the survey .For a show of
dominance, Canadians are likely to sit upright. However, for the Chinese, upright sitting is proof
of submission.
Also, for the Chinese societal expectations, the most used feature in non-verbal
communication is the eyes. However, for most American or western cultures, the most used
nonverbal cue is the mouth (Sites at Penn, n.d).For the Western lost, especially the Americans,
facial expressions are communicated through the smiles and frowns by the mouth. These facts go
to show how different the Eastern and Western cultures project their nonverbal cue. Another
critical nonverbal cue is the use of the finger on the mouth as a hush or silences body language.
Whilst this finger movement is approved among many western circles, the Chines regard this
figure movement with disdain and disapproval thus the need for western negotiators to avoid it.
Primarily, non –verbal communication comprise of Kinesiology, paralanguage and
environmental language. Chinese culture makes its negotiators to adopt a high context culture as
contrasted with the American, whose cultural approach is low context (Yangfung, 2017).For
Chinese negotiators, the emphasis lies in the context, physical or social. Chinese nonverbal cues
are considered modest and restrained. The western nonverbal cues are guided by the content
rather than how it was delivered. Simply, American negotiator actions are direct thus

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necessitating more body movement and language as contrasted with the Chinese .Despite this
different approaches, it is agreed that both cultures incorporate non-verbal communication during
their negotiations.
HOW INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATORS MANAGE CONFLICT BETWEEN
CHINESE NEGOTIATIONS
Owing to the fact that both western and Chines negotiators have a unique way of doing
business, conflicts and misunderstandings are bound to curtail such international trading
relations. However, mitigators and other measures have been put in place to contain the situation
and foster better cross-cultural trading co-existence. International mitigators have implemented
various conflict resolution mechanisms to iron out such issues. Commonly, alternative dispute
resolution mechanisms have been widely implemented to mitigate such cross-cultural conflicts.
Mediation is one of the most common methods used to sort out inter-cultural related disputes
(Pon Staff, 2016).
Primarily, the Chinese have employed, compromise, avoidance, accommodation and
competitive approaches during negotiations. For international dispute resolution, most countries
consider out of court settlement, especially China .Negotiation, mediation, and Arbitration are
commonly used to settle disputes arising from negotiations with China. Most international
mitigator s have managed to resolve conflicts that have erupted during Chinese negotiators
through negotiation, arbitration, and mediation. These out of court settlements have been
declared effective in mitigating conflicts.
The mitigators have knowledge of Chinese values and expectations thus it is easier to
build trust with the Chinese which is important in resolving conflicts and any other dealings. An

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effective international mitigation of conflicts arising from Chinese negotiations requires a respect
for the Chinese norms and traditions due to the sensitive cultural values that the Chinese have.
Secondly, the mediator through their experience of conducting mediation, arbitration and
negotiation proceedings, gives them the skill to handle this Chinese negotiation conflicts .All in
all, Chinese conflict resolution requires special skill set as compared to other western cultured
countries negotiation conflicts.
DIFFERENCES IN WESTERN VERSUS CHINESE CONFLICT DURING
NEGOTIATIONS
Due to the fact that both Western countries and China have different cultural aspects, it is
no wonder that there are disparities in the way the two cultures handle conflict and its resolution.
For China, conflict resolution processes are guided by three factors. Namely, thinking pattern,
the difference in language and context of the culture. For a country like China which has a high
context culture, its approach to resolving conflicts is indirect and not confrontationally. Chinese
based conflicts in business are attributed to violation of it cultural norms in the conduct of
business. For the Americans, conflicts are likely to stem when there is a violation of individual
norms. American conflicts are handled in a direct way owing to the low culture context.
The western way of handling conflict is likely to be confrontational owing to the personal
nature of the violation (Chen & Starosta, 2017).In addition, Western countries are likely to
resolve conflict using linear way of logic and rationale. However, from the Chinese point of
view, a non-linear thinking approach is best for solving and preventing conflicts thus proving the
difference in thinking patterns of the two cross-cultures when it comes to dispute resolution.
Such differences have made it possible for China to chart its own way of resolving the

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conflict.Particularly, relationships are an important part of the Chinese Business and social
hierarchy.
The importance of seniority is not forgotten when it comes to dispute resolution and
management of Chines business. For instance, In China and Japan, senior mediators between the
age of 78 and 92 were chosen to mediate during the Taiwanese Presidential Campaign of
1990.This seniority complex in dispute resolution stems from the Confucianism aspect of the
Chinese culture. Owing to the societal importance to China, the Chinese negotiators are likely to
avoid, compromise or accommodate situations likely to lead to conflicts as opposed to the
Western countries approach to conflict handling during negotiations. Usually, competition is the
third most popular way of resolving conflicts during negotiations in China (Ma, 2007).
Notably, Chinese cultural aspects directly impact its conflict resolution mechanisms
during negotiations. According to some authors, both China and the Western countries have
incorporated competition and compromise in solving their negotiation based problems .In
addition, there is a perception difference between the Chinese and Western negotiators based on
fundamental logical paradigms. For Chinese and American negotiators, there is a difference in
the understanding of dialect and formal logic which shapes their different approaches to
negotiations and conflicts arising during the process (Palich, Carini and Livingstone, 2002).The
Chinese and American negotiation styles are characterized by conflicting concept and entity
notions, which has made them adopt the same for conflicts handling and management.
In addition, the Chinese emphasis on contradiction varies from the American emphasis
which factors have shaped the way the two countries handle negotiations and conflicts stemming
therewith (“Dispute Resolution...n.d) Primarily, logic is widely associated with western
countries. Dialect logical approach to negotiations and conflict is more of China’s approach than

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the Western countries. Further, the Chinese conflict resolving mechanism is influenced by
Confucianism which encompasses various values. These values are peace (Guanyi) which means
cross-cultural relations, face, seniority and authority. Majorly, Chinese conflict approach is
dependent on the sense of belonging, whether the conflicting parties are part of its circle or not.
In the event of vertical group conflicts, the Chinese parties will strive to protect each other's
reputation.
For example, the Chinese use Thomas‘s Dual concern model which focusses on assertive
and cooperation components. Using the Used car, Knight and best book cases simulation ways of
negotiations,200 Chinese undergrad business students took part in all the three simulations. The
outcome was that the Chinese prefer polite ways of solving conflict rather than confrontations
(Ma, 2007).
Conclusion
Chinese culture plays an important role in negotiations and conflict resolution .Also,
there is substantial differences in non-verbal cues between China and Western cultures.
However, Chinese culture and negotiation is significantly different from the rest of the world. In
addition, international mitigators have an important role in resolving Chinese conflicts in the
negotiation process. For China, relationship orientation, societal needs and trust are very crucial
in negotiation process.

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