A Brief History of the Cultural/Socio-Cultural Group
Chinese immigrants were first introduced as railroad builders in the American West. Due to an increased influx of Chinese immigrants, the Chinese Exclusion Act was issued in 1882 (Chinese Immigration and the Chinese Exclusion Acts, n.d.). It suspended the immigration of Chinese laborers for ten years and was only abolished by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1943 (Repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act, 1943, n.d.).
Values
Chinese values include collectiveness, subtleness, respect for the opinions of others, submission to authority, respect for the elderly, meekness, and patriarchic family structure (Moran, Moran, & Abramson, 2011). These values usually collide with the craving for individualism and equality in the case of American Chinese.
Worldview
“The pursuit of peace, amity and harmony is an integral part of the Chinese character which runs deep in the blood of the Chinese people” (Varrall, 2015, para. 23).
Language and Communication Patterns
Chinese is one of the oldest written languages the patterns of which are based on structures and intonations. Chinese are very particular about the roles interlocutors play in the communication process (for example, the communication between a teacher and a student warrants certain “proper” behavior from each of the participants). However, American Chinese tend to implement American patterns of communication.
Art and Other Expressive Forms
The history of Chinese art started around 1500 AD. Ever since learning about Buddhism during the rule of the Han Dynasty, the Chinese experience a huge influence on Buddhist art styles on their paintings, literature, and music. The Mongol invasions were also a great driving force behind Chinese art, namely painting. Under the Ming Dynasty, the art styles and influences underwent reconstruction and revision with still-life painting becoming the most wide-spread trend.
Norms and Rules
Traditional Chinese norms and rules are those of a collectivist society that teaches dependence on relatives, friends, and colleagues/schoolmates. They usually morph into something more individualistic in American society.
Lifestyle Characteristics
The lifestyle of the Chinese is revolving around family values. The family is considered to be the most basic unit of society and a means to achieve success and acceptance.
Relationship Patterns
Three social groups mentioned above decide your behavior. It does not apply to the Chinese who was born and raised in America, however.
Common Rituals
Chinese common rituals, apart from usual events like weddings and funerals, include festivals (Chinese New Year, Lantern Festival, Qingming Festival, etc.), specific rules of etiquette (greeting people is by bowing, not finishing your portion of food as not to show disrespect towards your host, etc.), and superstitions (do not read books at work because the Chinese word for “book” also means “loss”; do not offer an umbrella to your friend as it signifies parting ways, etc.).
Degree of Assimilation or Marginalization from Mainstream Society
The results of Chinese assimilation in America are rather positive, mostly because many Chinese immigrants converted to Christianity.
Health Behaviors and Practices
American Chinese are more aware of the state of their health and various bad influences and often do not need additional health education or other health promotion work. They have better access to the health-preserving facilities and practices than the actual Chinese. China has “a large health care demand gap” because of its aging population, rapid urbanization, increasing consumer wealth, fast-spreading diseases, and “the advancement of universal health care insurance” (Nofri, 2015).
It mostly uses primary care infrastructure consisting of health centers and stations. The condition of medical care is especially dire in the rural regions, as expected. The situation was attempted to be changed through several reforms on the insurance policies, the supply of affordable basic drugs, the quality of public healthcare in rural regions, although the results are still far from exceeding the American level of medical care.
References
Chinese Immigration and the Chinese Exclusion Acts. (n.d.). Web.
Moran, R., Harris, P., & Moran, S. (2011). Managing Cultural Differences. Burlington, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Nofri, E. M. (2015). The Chinese Healthcare System: How It Works And Future Trends. Web.
Repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act, 1943. (n.d.) Web.
Varrall, M. (2016). Chinese Worldviews and China’s Foreign Policy. Web.