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Confucian Culture and “Face” Dynamism in International Politics

Published:2018-06-27 Published:2018-06-27   Author:Huang Guangguo   [Small] [Middle] [Big] [More]

Riding the third wave of disciplinary progress in psychology, the goal of indigenization of psychology is to construct a “culture-inclusive theory” to represent the universal mind of human beings on the one hand and different mentalities of a particular culture on the other. The Confucian culture-inclusive theory indicates that the “self” in Confucian culture is Homo Hierarchicus in sharp contrast with the Homo Aequalis in Christian culture. Under the influence of Confucian culture, if a Chinese official wishes to rise in an existing “power hierarchy”, he/she has to strive for the rights of “big self” (da wo) through all kinds of experience and toughening. Only when he/she is able to preserve the “big-self’s” face can he/she enhance his/her “small-self’s” face and get promoted. On the other hand, if he/she cannot protect the “big-self’s” face or even damage it, the “small self” may completely lose his/he own face and may even fall from power. Only through the Confucian culture-inclusive theory can we better explain the “face politics” conducted by various levels of Chinese officials in international relations.

 

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