商务英语毕业论文 (2).doc

商务英语毕业论文商务英语毕业论文从建立商务关系的角度对比中美商礼仪院（系）名 称：外 语 系专 业 名 称：英 语AcknowledgementsFirst, I must express the heartiest gratitude to my supervisor, Professor XXXX. Her patient help makes it possible for me to write the paper under this topic. I am extremely grateful to her persistent guidance and correction along the writing process. Without her help, I cannot finish the thesis completely.Secondly, my gratitude goes to the Foreign Languages Department ofXXXX, which has provided a good study environment through my college years. The teachers here are always ready to give hearty help and care. I have learned from them not only knowledge of English, but also the strict and earnest study spirit.Moreover, my special thanks are due to my friends and classmates. They have been urging me in the process and our communication has brought me unexpected help with the thesis.Last but not least, I want to thank my parents who have been kindly encouraging me along the writing process. I feel indebted to their wholehearted spiritual and economical support for my higher education. AbstractWith the development of economic globalization, the Sino-US commerce activity becomes more and more frequent day by day. The good utilization of business protocols can not only help the enterprise initiate a good business relationships, but also make a perfect foundation for the furthermore business negotiations. Therefore, it has become an important research task to make a comparison of Sino-US business protocols from the perspective of initiating business relationships. This paper makes a comparison of Sino-Us business protocols from the perspective of initiating business relationships. By using the cultural values to analyze the reasons of some Sino-Us business protocols differences from the perspective of appointment seeking, greeting behavior and giving gifts, this paper gives some pieces of advice to the Sino-Us business negotiators so that they can adjust the business protocol utilization strategy in time, and finally initiate a good business relationship. The research of this paper has its practical significance, hoping that this will be helpful to the Sino-Us business negotiators.Key words: values; intercultural communication; business protocols; initiating business relationships摘 要随着经济全球化的发展，中美之间的商务往来日益频繁。成功运用商务礼仪不但可以帮助企业建立良好商务关系，而且可以为企业和公司进行进一步的商务谈判打下良好的基础。因此，从建立商务关系的角度对比中美商务礼仪已成为了一项重要的研究课题。本文通过从建立商务关系的角度对比中美商务礼仪，用价值观理论分析了中美商务礼仪在寻求会晤、问候方式、赠送礼物等方面存在差异的原因，进而针对中美商务谈判者分别给出了建议，以便及时调整商务礼仪运用的策略，最终建立良好的商务关系。本文的研究有一定的现实意义，希望能对中美商务谈判人员有所帮助。关键词：价值观;跨文化交际;商务礼仪；建立商务关系ContentsI. Introduction1II. Culture and Value32.1 The Definition of Culture and Intercultural Communication32.2 Cultural Values42.2.1 Individualism versus Collectivism42.2.2 High Power Distance versus Low Power Distance62.2.3 High- versus Low-context Communication72.2.4 Polychronic Time Orientation versus Monochronic Time Orientation8III. Comparison of Sino-US Business Protocols Used to Initiate Business Relationships103.1 The Pre-negotiation Phase: Initiating Business Relationships103.2 The Comparison of Sino-US Business Protocols According to Different Cultural Values113.2.1 The Comparison of Appointment Seeking Protocol113.2.2 The Comparison of Greeting Behavior Protocol173.2.3 The Comparison of Gift Giving Protocol193.3 Suggestions to Effective Use of Business Protocol to Initiate Business Relationships Better213.3.1 Suggestions for Chinese Negotiators213.3.2 Suggestions for American Negotiators22IV. Conclusion23Works Cited24 哈尔滨工程大学本科生毕业论文I. IntroductionEach country has its own history and culture. There are a lot of differences in the habit of conducts and the ceremony, especially between China and the USA-the biggest developing country and the top developed country. With the continuous enlargement of these two giants communication in the field of economy and culture, to understand the different business protocols between Chinese and American has become a must to build business cooperation. A good application of the different business protocols between Chinese and American can make the business cooperation go well; otherwise, the participants will have a poor impression on each other because they regard them as impolite. Over the past, people usually own the failure of the business cooperation to these four elements - the economic element, the social element, the political element and the religious element. These four traditional reasons can well explain the failure of the mid-term part of the business cooperation -the negotiation process, while they are useless to explain the failure of the early partthe initiating business relationships process. This paper aims to make a comparison between Chinese and American business protocol from the perspective of initiating business relationships by using some theory of cultural values so as to promote the Sino-US business cooperation.Through a comparison between Chinese and American business protocol from the perspective of cultural values, this paper attempts to serve as a useful reference for the further research on the comparison between Chinese and American business protocol and give some advisements on how to make good use of business protocols so as to initiate business relationships more easily.This paper will be divided into four parts: (1) Introduction (Researching Background, Researching Significance, Researching method and structure of the paper of background ) ; (2) Comparison of Chinese and American values（Collectivism and Individualism， Power influence and Respect for Hierarchy and Equality，Polychronic Time Orientation and Monochronic Time Orientation); (3) Comparison of Chinese and American Business Protocols from the Perspective of Initiating Business Relationships( Appointment Seeking， Greeting Behavior and Gift giving) and given advisement to make good use of business protocols so as to initiating business relationships easily; (4) Conclusion.24II. Culture and Value2.1 The Definition of Culture and Intercultural CommunicationCulture consists of those deep, common, unstated experiences which members of a given culture share, which they communicate without knowing, and which form the backdrop against which all other events are judged (Hall). It is a complex frame of reference that consists of patterns of traditions, beliefs, values, norms, symbols, and meanings that are shared to varying degrees by interacting members of a community. And values are the core of culture. Intercultural communication in its most basic form refers to an academic field of study and research. It seeks to understand how people from different countries and cultures behave, communicate and perceive the world around them. The findings of such academic research are then applied to real life situations such as how to create cultural synergy between people from different cultures within a business or how psychologists understand their patients. The definition of intercultural communication must also include strands of the field that contribute to it such asanthropology, cultural studies, psychology and communication. 2.2 Cultural Values Culture is the unique character of a social group. It encompasses the values and norms shared by members of that group (胡文仲 67). It is the economic, social, political, and religious institutions that direct and control current group members and socialize new members (Lytle et. al., 167-214). All of these elements of culture can affect social interactions such as negotiations. In examining the influence of culture on negotiation, this chapter will discuss the role of some basic cultural values in negotiations: (1) individualism versus collectivism, (2) high power distance versus low power distance, (3) high-context versus low-context communications, and (4) Polychronic Time Orientation versus Monochronic Time Orientation2.2.1 Individualism versus CollectivismIndividualism-collectivism is the major dimension of cultural variability used to explain cross-cultural differences and similarities in communication across cultures (Gudykunst, 55). Individualism versus collectivism refers to the extent to which a society treats individuals as autonomous, or as embedded in their social groups (Schwartz, 91). In individualistic cultures, norms and institutions promote the autonomy of the individual. Individual accomplishments are rewarded and revered by economic and social institutions, and legal institutions protect individual rights. In collectivist cultures, norms and institutions promote interdependence of individuals through emphasis on social obligations. Sacrifice of personal needs for the greater good is rewarded, and legal institutions place the greater good of the collective above rights of the individual. There is no doubt that individualism is highly prized in the United States. Individual achievements, sovereignty, and freedom are the virtues that are most glorified and canonized. It is not surprising that this same value dominates American business practicesincluding how they negotiate. Team negotiations are unlikely for most The Americans, unless of course the “negotiation is very complex” (Acuff, 226).Chinese culture is a rather typical collectivist culture, which places emphasis on in-group solidarity, loyalty, and strong perceived interdependence among individuals. Relationships are based on mutual self-interest and dependent on the success of the group that is perceived as a harmonious group. Therefore, emphasis on the establishment of relationship in social life is mirrored when Chinese negotiate with their American counterparts.2.2.2 High Power Distance versus Low Power DistanceHigh power distance versus low power distance refers to the extent to which a cultures social structure is flat (low power distance) versus differentiated into ranks (high power distance) (关世杰 129). In high power distance societies, interpersonal relationships are vertical and social status implies social power. Social superiors are granted power and privilege. Social inferiors are obligated to defer to social superiors and comply with their requests. In low power distance societies, interpersonal relations are typically horizontal, conducted between presumed equals. When a personal confrontation is required between two persons of different high power distance levels, there is an implicit tendency to establish an atmosphere of equality.Negotiators from low power distance and high power distance societies have rather different views of the bases of power in negotiations (Brett & Okumura, 500). Consistent with the transitory notion of social structure that is characteristic of low power distance societies, power in negotiations in low power distance cultures tends to be evaluated with respect to the situation under negotiation and the alternatives if no agreement can be reached. Every negotiator has a BATNA (best alternative to negotiated agreement) (Brett, 303). Research shows that negotiators from high power distance cultures are more likely than negotiators from low power distance cultures to endorse as normative and to use all types of power in negotiation: status, BATNA, and persuasion.2.2.3 High- versus Low-context CommunicationHigh-versus low-context communication refers to the degree to which within culture communications are indirect versus direct (贾玉新 72). In high-context cultures little information is in the message itself. Instead, the context of the communication stimulates preexisting knowledge in the receiver. In high-context cultures meaning is inferred rather than directly interpreted from the communication. In low-context cultures information is contained in explicit messages, and meaning is conveyed without nuance and is context free. Communication in low-context cultures is action oriented and solution minded. The implications of the information are laid out in further detailed communications.In the Western cultures such as US, people communicate in a low-context style and express themselves explicitly and directly. “The Americans are identified throughout the world by their plain speaking and direct style of communication” (贾玉新72). Signs of the direct style of North American negotiators is that they often avoid silence, tend to speak loudly, interrupt frequently, and often complete sentences for others. In eastern cultures like China and Japan, members communicate in a high-context style that involves more implicit messages embedded in the context. “In high-context cultures such as Japan and China, people expect the person to whom they are talking to know what is on their mind. They give the other person all the necessary information except the crucial piece” (贾玉新265).2.2.4 Polychronic Time Orientation versus Monochronic Time OrientationAmong all the dimensions of culture which have a significant but almost invisible impact on business protocols, time patterns are probably the strongest. Time-based misunderstandings in international business is a classic topic which has drawn much attention and given rise to lots of anecdotes, most of them relating to appointments, punctuality, and the diverse concepts of time-related courtesy across cultures. Cultures observe and experience time differently. Anthropologists have long insisted that how a culture thinks of time and manages it is clue to the meanings its members find in life and the supposed nature of human existence. Although people can not hold or see time, they respond to it as if it had command over their lives. Because time is such a personal phenomenon, people perceive and treat it in a manner that expresses their character. If business negotiators arrive thirty minutes late for an important appointment and offer no apology, they send a certain message about themselves. Telling someone how guilty they feel about their belated arrival also sends a message.A cultures use of time can also provide valuable clues to how members of that culture value and respond to time. In the United States, people often say, Time is money and He who hesitates is lost. A basic assumption of American-style business values is that the faster that money or goods change hands, the greater the increase in Value and the larger the profits. Time in China is a lifetime commitment, and no long-term or short-term errors will be made through hasty and hurried decisions. All Chinese know the Confucian proverb Think three times before you act. These sayings reflect the different time orientations. To the Americans, time is scare source; to the Chinese, time is just a holistic element. In a word, the Americans have a higher time sensitivity than the Chinese.III. Comparison of Sino-US Business Protocols Used to Initiate Business Relationships3.1 The Pre-negotiation Phase: Initiating Business Relationships The first phase of business negotiation can be described as establishing a business relationship or getting to know one another socially. It is often more important in intercultural business negotiations because different cultures are involved. Good relationship developed at this phase can be of great help. Because any information or issue related to the core content of negotiation is not considered.Social and informal relationships developed between negotiators at this stage can be of great value, too. Greetings and small talks about sports and climate are usually encouraged at this stage. Sometimes, small gifts are presented to enhance the relationship. Trust and confidence gained from these relationships increase the chances of agreement. Usually negotiators without trust do not get far. The purpose of the first phase is to create a friendly atmosphere, and to show credibility to conduct business with the other side.3.2 The Comparison of Sino-US Business Protocols According to Different Cultural Values3.2.1 The Comparison of Appointment Seeking ProtocolThe protocol for orchestrating an initial contact and appointment to conduct business can range from making a telephone call to using a “go-between” or an emissary. The manner in which the initial business contact is made and the amount of advance notice between the contact and appointment are key factors to consider when doing business with another culture. An example will clarify this point：Jack: I would appreciate it very much if you could arrange for me a meeting with your delegation leaders. You see, its my sincere desire to establish business relations with these corporations. Wang: Certainly. I think its also their hope to start business with you. Jack: That sounds encouraging. When do you think you could arrange the meeting? I find myself a bit too anxious for it. Wang: Dont worry. I shall certainly do it to your satisfaction. Ill first let them know of your intention. And then Ill make arrangements for you to meet each of them separately. Jack: That would be terrific. In this dialogue, there are three aspects that the Americans differ from the Chinese. Firstly, the American business negotiator speaks in a direct way, while the Chinese business negotiators words are indirectly. Secondly, the Americans have a high time sensitivity, while the Chinese have a low time sensitivity. Thirdly, the Americans make decisions individually, while the Chinese need to talk with their leaders or colleagues. Next, analysis will be made from these three aspects according to the theories in chapter two.According to different values, analysis is made as follows. Firstly, Methods of communication vary among cultures. Salacuses survey reveals that Chinese people actually do rely heavily on indirect and complex methods, while the Americans place emphasis on direct and simple methods of communication. Accord