Western Values in Shanghai

The position of women

Life and work style

Family structure

Personal space

• The three obediences

and four virtues

• Making sacrifice

for family

• Tolerance of their

husbands’ love affairs

• British France France

Norway Amreica America

The

• Netherlands Singapore

Legal statusEconomic statusPolitical statusEducational statusMarital statusBearing rightLove relationship

Economic statusEconomic status

Equal pay for equal work

Better career choices

Take control of home finances

Marital statusMarital status

“the man looks after the house while the woman goes out to work”

“男主内，女主外”Husbands tend to be hen-pecked

Marital statusMarital status

“the man looks after the house while the woman goes out to work”

Husbands tend to be hen-pecked

Doggerel:

新“三从” 「老婆去哪裡要跟从、老婆说的话要服从、老婆想买东西要听从」

Marital statusMarital status

“the man looks after the house while the woman goes out to work”

Husbands tend to be hen-pecked 上海新好老公标准： 1. 工资全上缴、不准藏私房、出門要汇報、

不准开小差」 2. 家事全要包，包括丈母娘她家、小孩要全

帶，包括邻居小孩」， 3. 老婆交代事情要晓得、事后要写心得、花

钱更要舍得

Love relationshipLove relationship

Women are more powerful than men in gender relationship

More enjoy the pleasure of love;

fear of marriage

Key Words: Fast-paced

Efficient

Result-oriented/ Outcome-oriented

“Customers like white collars or students always want me to be quick. They will go away if the time used to make an egg roll exceeds their expectation.”

Egg Roll Vendor:

Egg Roll Vendor:

After 9 a.m., leisurely senior citizens who just finish their morning exercise will come and I prefer serving them because they are not in hurries, thus make me free from rush.

Western value : Efficient & Outcome-oriented

The scale of the city & Population

Economic Growth & Competition

Possible Reasons Behind:

Time Management

Plan:

Transportation

Work Schedule

Weather

……

The Slow Movement

A survey reveals that over 90% of white collars in big cities of China are in sub-health status(亚健康状态 ), and this is closely related to their fast-paced life.

2005

A 65-year-old Italian

Slow Day: Monday

2010 Shanghai

Family

Traditional Family

Extended familyFather Mother

Grandfather Grandmother

Uncles& aunts Cousins

Extended family is very common in Beijing, Guangdong and the northeast area of China

Pivotal member ?

Grandparents= Authority

In Shanghai —— independence and the pursuit of life quality

Nuclear Family

Father

Mother

Children

Nuclear Family

• Derived from the West( first proposed by an American anthropologist G.P. Murdoch)

• Independent, flexible, and democratic& meet with different generations’ needs to life

Nuclear Family in Shanghai — reflects the value of independence and the pursuit of high quality of life from the West

Who is the pivot of the nuclear family ?

Every individual!

.

It develops an independent and relatively high-quality life for us.

Let's go home!

Personal SpaceDefinition: Personal space is the region surrounding a person which they regard as psychologically theirs.

Most western people values their personal space and feel discomfort, anger, or anxiety when their personal space is encroached.

Don’t ask!

• Age: it is impolite to ask people’s age directly; Particularly, for the women; Don’t tell age to anyone after 24.

• Marriage: it is improper to ask “ Are you married?”; Belongs to privacy and may cause offence.

• Salary: it is related to a person’s capability and position, which influences people’s personal face.

Compared with Westerners, Shanghainese have something in common.

According to a news report, Shanghainese regards their salary,age,marriage, even health condition as confidential privacy.

You need to sign a salary confidentiality agreement and you cannot ask others’ salary; If you don’t obey it, you will be fired.

When you first meet a Shanghainese…

• You may think they are indifferent and exclusive.• Unlike northern Chinese, who seek for a “ brotherhood” in communication, Shanghainese always hold a respectful and reserved attitudes towards unfamiliar people.• In the conversation, Shanghainese always keep distance with guests and make the concept “ You” and “I” very clear.• Although they seems grim on the outside, they are kind in heart.

The concept of Values

I. Values are ideas about what are right and wrong, desirable and undesirable, normal and abnormal, proper and improper.

II. Values vary from country to country, so, it is wrong to say which country’s value is better.

III. We should hold an inclusive attitudes to different values.

In conclusion

Shanghai, as a city of immigrants, has been influenced by other city’s people and foreigners.

Under this kind of background, Shanghai has formed an unique culture in this special city: “Shanghai Culture”, a mixture which reflects western values and the inherent values that Shanghainese hold.

Thanks for watching…