Research Report on Face-NegotiationTheory
By Heidi Radakovich
Introduction:
The article, "The Impact of Confucianism on Interpersonal Relationships and Communication Patterns in East Asia", by June Ock Yum, deals with the different communication styles of North America and East Asia. June Ock Yum’s article discusses many of the issues of Stella Ting-Toomey’s Face Negotiation Theory.
Summary:
The two major topics discussed in the article, "The Impact of Confucianism on Interpersonal Relationships and Communication Patterns in East Asia" by June Ock Yum, are social relationships vs. individualism and confucianism.
As noted in the article, the major difference between North American and East Asian communication is the North American value of individualism and the East Asian value of social relationships. In North America, self orientation, priority to own private interests, helps to determine human action. Unlike self orientation of North America, collective orientation of East Asia dominates human action. Collective orientation is the idea that the interests of others must be taken into account before action is taken.
The political and social value system of Eastern Asia is structured around the idea of Confucianism. Confucianism’s main focus is humanism and stresses that proper human relationships and reciprocity are the basis of society. In Eastern Asia Confucianism is used throughout both the educational and governmental systems. The Five Code of Ethics of Confucianism, loyalty between king and subject, closeness between father and son, distinction in duty between husband and wife, obedience to orders between elders and youngers, and mutual faith between friends, are used in relationships. The four principles of Confuciansim are jen, i, li, and chih. Jen stands for humanism, which means warm human feelings between people. The second principle, i, means faithfulness, loyalty, or justice. The i reminds followers that the purpose of relationships is not for individual gain but rather are to benefit the common good. The third principle, li, is considered the universal way to regulate the etiquette of human behavior. The final princilple, chih, stands for wisdom.
Relationships in Eastern Asia are considered particularistic compared to the universalistic nature of North American relationships. This means that East Asians practice different patterns of communication with different people according to the person's status. In the individualistic culture of North America this way of communicating differently with people would be seen as inequality.
Reciprocity is a very important aspect of Confucianism. A relationship is either considered complementary or assymetrical and reciprocally obligatory. It is not important to keep track of what is given and what is received because everyone is indebted to others.
It is very important in Eastern Asian cultures to differentiate between the ingroup and outgroup. One must be part of a small closely knit group for a relatively long period of time according to the i principle of Confucianism. In order to succeed in a new relationship one must have the help of an intermediary. The intermediary has the job of connecting the individual with the parties through their own ingroup relationship.
In East Asian countries, personal and public relationships are not very different. Small talk is inevitable before getting down to business.
The idea of "face", the public self image that every member wants to claim for him or herself, deals with indirect and direct speech patterns. In East Asian countries where indirect speech is prominent, the primary concern is for the other person's face. However, in a more direct speech culture, such as the United States, the primary concern is for one's own face.
Analysis:
I found the article, "The Impact of Confucianism on Interpersonal Relationships and Communication Patterns in East Asia" by June Ock Yum to be in agreement with Stella Ting-Toomey's Face Negotiation Theory. The article supported Stella Ting Toomey's perspective of "face" and also offered other insights as well. I found the article interesting and easy to read.
Source:
Communication in East Asia: June Ock Yum, "The Impact of Confucianism on Interpersonal Relationships and Communication Patterns in East Asia," Communication Monographs, Vol.55, 1988, pp.374-388
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