A study on some contrasts between vietnamese and american cultural values = (nghiên cứu những điểm khác biệt trong những giá trị văn hóa của người việt và người mỹ)

VINH UNIVERSITY FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT - - BÙI THỊ HOÀI THƯƠNG A STUDY ON SOME CONTRASTS BETWEEN VIETNAMESE AND AMERICAN CULTURAL VALUES (NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHỮNG ĐIỂM KHÁC BIỆT TRONG NHỮNG GIÁ TRỊ VĂN HÓA CỦA NGƯỜI VIỆT VÀ NGƯỜI MỸ ) GRADUATION THESIS Field: American Studies Vinh – 2012 i VINH UNIVERSITY FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT - - A STUDY ON SOME CONTRASTS BETWEEN VIETNAMESE AND AMERICAN CULTURAL VALUES (NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHỮNG ĐIỂM KHÁC BIỆT TRONG NHỮNG GIÁ TRỊ VĂN HÓA CỦA NGƯỜI VIỆT VÀ NGƯỜI MỸ ) GRADUATION THESIS Field: American Studies Supervisor: Le Thi Thuy Ha M.A Student : Bui Thi Hoai Thuong Class : 49B1 – English Student’s number: 0857512045 Vinh - 2012 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to express my deep thanks to directorial board of the Foreign Language Department which awarded opportunity for me to this thesis At the same time, I would also like to express my indebtedness to Ma Le Thi Thuy Ha, my supervisor, who has given me a lot of significant advices as well as critical comments on my study In fact, my thesis could not have been completed without her enthusiastic guiding Next, my profound thanks also go to all my teachers who have helped me very much and given me many useful lessons during my learning process at Vinh university, especially, MA Nguyen Thi Van Lam, MA Nguyen Thi Lan Phuong and Nguyen Thi Bich Hien Last but not least, I would certainly never forget the warmly encouragement of my best friends and all of members in my family whose unconditional love and inspiration have contributed to the completeness of the thesis iii Table of contentS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i Table of contentS iv PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Reasons for the study Aims of the study Scope of the study Method of the study Design of the study PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACHGROUND 1.1 Culture 1.1.1 Definition of culture 1.1.2 Functions of culture 1.1.3 Elements of culture 1.2 American culture 1.2.1 Overview 1.2.2 American social organization 10 1.2.3 American customs and traditions 11 1.2.4 American language 14 1.2.4 American religion 15 1.2.5 American form of government 17 1.2.6 American economic systems 18 1.3 Vietnamese culture 20 1.3.1 Overview 20 1.3.2 Vietnamese social organization 21 1.3.3 Vietnamese customs and traditions 23 1.3.4 Vietnamese language 25 iv 1.3.5 Vietnamese religion 26 1.3.6 Vietnamese form of government 28 1.3.7 Vietnamese economic systems 29 CHAPTER II: SOME CONTRASTS BETWEEN VIETNAMESE AND AMERICAN CULTURE VALUES PATTERNS 31 2.1 Culture value patterns 31 2.1.1 Cultural value patterns 31 2.1.2 Functions of cultural values 31 2.1.3 Dimensions of cultural values 32 2.2 Some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values patterns 32 2.2.1 Control of nature and the environment 32 2.2.2 Moralistic orientation 33 2.2.3 Time orientation 38 2.2.4 Action orientation and “being” orientation 42 2.2.5 Materialism and spiritualism 43 CHAPTER III: SOME ADVICES FOR VIETNAMESE IN CONTACT WITH AMERICAN 46 3.1 Punctuality 46 3.2 Individualism 48 3.3 Directness 49 3.4 Practicality 50 PART C: CONCLUSION 51 Recapitulation and implication 51 Suggestions for further study 51 REFERENCE 52 v PART A: INTRODUCTION Reasons for the study Nowadays, in a developing society, contact and exchange information are the essential needs They play a crucial part in our daily life, in all aspects from economy, politics, and culture to education, science, technology, etc To accomplish these needs, people need to communicate with others Communication, therefore, is considered a critical issue in all fields of human interaction However, there are many problems arisen during communication between people from different countries, especially in relation to cultural differences As a result, it is necessary to aware of the cultural participant’s background knowledge in order to interpret another person’s actions, or in other words, to communicate successfully and appropriately For Vietnam, a country are trying to speed up the country economy, and to improve living standard for people, particularly after joining in World Trading Organization, the information exchange in communication becomes more important So which solutions are the best for Vietnam to pass through the difficulties in communication with foreigners? Learning and using English fluently, is that enough? The answer is not enough Besides learning English, as mentioning above, to communicate effectively, we have to learn to know and understand culture of those counties In this paper, we will learn about American culture for two following reasons First of all, the culture of the United States is a Western culture originally influenced by European cultures which is very different with Vietnamese culture – an Eastern culture Study on American culture, we acquire not only knowledge of culture and people in America but also a basic grounding in culture of Western countries Morover, as we know, America has a great affect on the other countries all over the world and certainly including Vietnam It is clear that America is being on the way to become one of the largest partners of Vietnam in the present flexible and dynamic market-orientated economy That is reason why learning about American culture is really important for us However, it is impossible for us to deeply cover every aspect in the culture because culture itself is very various Therefore, in this paper we only emphasize on culture values of people, namely “A study on some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values.” Aims of the study The aims of this study are: - To give a background knowledge of culture, American culture and Vietnamese culture, from there to understand more about culture of each country - To show some differences between Vietnamese and American cultural values - To give some suggestions for Vietnamese to avoid cultural shock in contact with Americans Scope of the study - The study only focus on several salient cultural values with out covering all of the American and Vietnamese cultural onces - The study tries to find some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values Method of the study - The study refers to both home and foreign publications to set up the theoretical background - The main method of study is analysis and contrasting - The considerations, remarks, comment as well as conclusion in the study are based largely on the analysis of the data with due reference to publication Design of the study The thesis includes three main parts: Part A: Introduction This part is divided into: The reason of the study Aims of the study Scope of the Study Method of the Study Design of the study Part B: Development Chapter I: Theoretical background Chapter II: Some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values Chapter III: Some advices for Vietnamese in contacts with American PartC: Conclusion PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACHGROUND 1.1 Culture 1.1.1 Definition of culture Culture has many definitions, and it affects everything people in their society because of their ideas, values, attitudes, and normative or expected patterns of behavior Culture is not genetically inherited, and cannot exist on its own, but is always shared by members of a society In American heritage dictionary, culture is defined as “the totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and other products of human work and thoughts”, at the same time, as “intellectual and artistic activity, and the works produced by it.” Similarly, in dictionary of English Language and culture (Longman, 1992), culture is described as “the customs, beliefs, art, music and all the other products of human thought made by a particular group of people at a particular time.” Besides, According to anthropologists, the term “culture” is used to refer to the universal human capacity to classify, codify and communicate their experiences symbolically Meanwhile, for sociologists define culture as total of generally organized way of life, including values, norms, institutions, and artifacts Culture is a complex concept, and no single definition of it has achieved consensus in the literature But in short, culture is the product of human beings which is created and developed in the relationship between human beings and society But the culture itself involved in the creation of man, and maintain the stability and social order It is transmitted from generation to generation through the socialization process and developed in the course of action and interaction of human society It is an effective means to express and expose the characteristics of a nation as well as its smaller communities Therefore, to learn best about a certain community, you must understand well its culture 1.1.2 Functions of culture Culture has been fulfilling a number of functions which may be divided into two parts One is functions for the individual and other is functions for the group 1.1.2.1 For individual Culture distinguishes man from animal It is the culture that makes the human animal a man It regulates his conduct and prepares him for a group life Without culture he would have been forced to find his own way which would have meant a loss of energy Culture provides solution for complicated situations It provides man a set of behavior for difficult situations In the absence of culture man would have been baffled even at the simplest situations Culture not only defines but also determines what we eat and drink, when to sleep, when to laugh etc Culture provides traditional interpretation to certain situations Through culture man gets traditional interpretations for many situations according to which he determines his behavior For example, if a cat crosses his way he postpones the journey Culture shapes personality No child can develop human qualities in the absence of cultural environment Culture prepares man for group life It is culture that provides opportunities for the development of personality and sets limits on its growth (Ajay Bhatt Sociology What are the important functions of culture Retried April 20,2012, from http://www.preservearticles.com/201101173456/importantfunctions-of-culture.html) 1.1.2.2 For the group Culture keeps social relationship intact It has importance not only for men but also for the group It prepares man for group life Group life would have been poor, nasty, and short if there had been no cultural regulations Group solidarity rests on the foundation of culture Additionally, Americans tend to discuss, solve or finish their work at once with aim to obtain their goals in the quickest time Meanwhile, Vietnamese are, often, more wordy and redundant For instance, in the introduction to open a discussion, Vietnamese party would give the list of members of the both sides Afterwards, the leader of the meeting should direct the conversation by presenting the reasons and agenda for the meeting Possibly, the presentation would be followed by an introduction about something around and relating to issue which are discussed Therefore, the meeting in Vietnam are frequently considered a series of long speeches rather than relaxed conversation Besides, the friendliness and openness of Americans and the extreme ease of social relationships should be considered This casual friendliness should not be mistaken for deep or intimate friendships which are developed over a long period of time Americans live in a mobile society and tend to move frequently; they therefore tend to be able to form friendships and give up friendships much more easily and less stressfully than people in many other cultures Casual social life is especially evident in colleges and universities, because everyone is there for a relatively short period of time By contrast, in Vietnam, there are fewer casual friendships and people are much less open and friendly toward strangers But once people have become friends, it is relatively easier to develop closer relationships Specially, Vietnamese students really respect to friendship in schools and universities, they think that affection is pure and secreted 2.2.3 Time orientation With the turn of centuries, time has become to be perceived as the most valuable thing in life While some see time as a holder of endless possibilities and opportunities, others tend to fear it since it cannot be slowed down, stopped, or turned back With modernization and industrialization, we have begun to strife to control time It is seen as a potential barrier to achieving goals, since there are always deadlines to meet and frameworks to fit in This has sparked the attempts to construct and order time, seeking to find order Before the concept of clock time was introduced in the 19th century, everything was based on the 38 natural time This included everything from seasonal changes to sunsets and sunrises However, the unpredictability of nature caused fear, for it was believed to be the reason for chaos To keep a society and its members under control, collective ways of relating to the past and the future had to be established Everyone’s activities had to be synchronized to follow one general pattern This is the cause of cultures developing their own perceptions of time Before time was seen as one continuous line, it revolved around in circles because of the order of nature The first linear organization of time can be traced to the monasteries of medieval Europe Max Weber believes that monks saw a need for rationalized conduct in order to overcome the natural state It would help them overcome the dependence on impulses and the world of nature Rational action and proper time keeping would prevent people from wasting time The sole concept of “wasting time” never existed before societies began to industrialize and fast-paced lives became a virtue After one country began operation under a specific order, others had to follow This led to the globalization of the day and the concept of world time Everything became dependent on clock time, pace and tempo stressed more than ever Time was industrialized, and now was imposed and adopted by various cultures To be modern and progressive you had to be fast, in sync with the rest of the world Time has also become an abstract exchange value We now not only pay for the goods we acquire, but for all the time that was spent in the process of those goods being made and delivered Something is considered to be more valuable if someone spent a year on than if it was made in a week, even if the quality is the same Karl Marx believed that there is a need to intensify labor time in order for employees to be profitable and competitive Everything has to be put under the stress of time The new time perception allows us to rearrange past, present, and future Electric lights have allowed us to colonize the night, and now darkness is no longer a barrier to our productivity However, with the globalization of time each culture has found different ways of incorporating this concept into their own society Industry and economy play 39 a big role in creating these differences Countries that are better developed and industrialized tend to have a completely different concept of time than the third world countries Specifically, concept of time in America is different from one in Vietnam 2.2.3.1 Time – its control and human interaction Industrialization has taken a great toll on the US With an active and expanding economy time is greatly valued Americans place considerable value on punctuality Because they tend to organize their activities by means of schedules, they may seem harried, always running from one thing to the next and unable to relax and enjoy themselves Since Americans are so time conscious, the pace of life may seem very hectic Being on time is regarded as very important, and in the United State most people make an effort to arrive on time To the Americans, delivery on Monday means delivery on Monday To emphasize the point, one executive noted that when Americans say that a meeting starts at 3:15, it starts at 3:15 If they call a meeting from 3:00 to 4:00, the meeting will start at 3:00 and finish at 4:00 Americans want people to respect time If someone arrives late at a meeting, they view it as an insult or disrespectful But with business appointments, Americans are recommend arriving early, even if it is an informal meeting Generally speaking, Americans take punctuality seriously Being late can give the U.S managers the wrong impression Unlikely, the Vietnamese society is mainly agricultural, people’s main concern is the weather and the amount of produce collected, not the time Vietnamese people don’t value punctuality as much as it deserves This bad habit exists in many aspects of the society Students are usually late for school and always demand teachers for stretching the deadline of assignments longer People working in the office and factory never go to work on time After that, what people often do? They say sorry carelessly just because it is absolutely normal Moreover, whenever making mistakes, human constantly try to find reason justifying their faults or blame it to other one and so are Vietnamese 40 people For instance, they fabricate that their vehicles are suddenly broken down or the traffic congestion discourages them from being punctual On the other hand, almost Vietnamese people surely bear in mind that everyone will come late, so why they need to arrive on time and wait for another Additionally, in Vietnam, the perception of time is more polychromic, and stresses involvement with people and completion of transactions rather than strict compliance with meeting times In the U.S where time is monochromic, people put strong emphasis on schedules and timelines In keeping with this tendency, the respondents note that the Americans are very strict with their working schedule American managers make a clear distinction between personal and business time For them, business time is only for business They not waste their time during work hours Also, personal time is very important and Americans would rather not sacrifice their personal time in business related matters, whereas Vietnamese easily blend the two aspects of life 2.2.3.2 Future orientation and “past” orientation The American people and government are always looking toward to future to be the best they can be Many strive to have the latest in advanced technology and progressive ideas America has routinely set high standards of health care, education, economics and civil rights that many other countries copy in their cultures Valuing the future and the improvements Americans are sure the future will bring means that they devalue that past and are, to a large extent, unconscious of the present Even a happy present goes largely unnoticed because, happy as it may be, Americans have traditionally been hopeful that the future would bring even greater happiness Almost all energy is directed toward realizing that better future At best, the present condition is seen as preparatory to a latter and greater event, which will eventually culminate in something even more worthwhile Since Americans have been taught to believe that Man, and not Fate, can and should be the one who controls the environment, this has made them very good at planning and executing short-term projects This ability, in turn, has 41 caused Americans to be invited to all corners of the earth to plan and achieve the miracles that their goal-setting can produce On other hand, Vietnam is a past oriented culture This means that there is a strong value placed on tradition Homesteads, family roots and history are seen in most aspects of Vietnamese culture The strong influence of worship values is still seen Vietnamese culture Modern issues such as contraception and divorce are other example of how the country is tied to it's past, not connecting the needs of current lifestyles For example, the institution of ancestor worship, which bears witness to the influence of Confucianism on Vietnamese culture, reflects the profound desire of the Vietnamese to survive in the heart and memory of loved ones after he has gone to the world beyond Ancestor worship is shared by Vietnamese people of all faiths; except perhaps the converts to Christianity Most families have an ancestral altar placed in a prominent place in the main room of the house Things are changing for Vietnam The vast economic growth over the last decades has sparked subtle changes in the culture in a more future oriented way The technologies that have helped to push the economic prosperity are examples of a more future oriented Vietnamese culture Vietnamese rely on many of their traditional values that are rooted in Confucianism from thousands of years ago but are also moving towards a more market economy, satisfying their needs in the present 2.2.4 Action orientation and “being” orientation Americans consider activity to be a good thing; thus, the expressions "keeping busy" and "keeping on the move." Rather than simply getting together with friends to spend time together, Americans frequently will plan a particular activity so that there is a focus to the time spent with friends People in other cultures often comment on this American emphasis on "doing." Because Americans feel that they can and should control their own environment, they also feel that any problem can be analyzed, discussed, and eventually solved In some societies people can think of a national problem in terms of a hundred or more years Americans not think in such a long-range 42 fashion They want to solve problems as quickly as possible, and they have difficulty accepting the idea that some problems may not have solutions This approach to problems sometimes leads to confrontations that are shocking to people from other cultures When faced with a problem, Americans like to get the facts, talk to the necessary people, and make some plan of action If the problem is interpersonal-a problem between two people-an American is likely to talk directly to the other person about the issue, in an effort to reach an understanding If the two people involved cannot solve the problem, they may go to a third person such as a counselor, adviser or mutual friend, who can act as an arbitrator The idea is still to confront the situation directly and try to solve the interpersonal problem This direct approach to people sometimes leads to difficulties for Americans when dealing with people who come from cultures where such directness is considered offensive or insulting "Don’t just stand there," goes a typical bit of American advice, "do something!" This expression is normally used in a crisis situation, yet, in a sense, it describes most American’s entire waking life, where action—any action—is seen to be superior to inaction For Vietnamese, as saying above, Vietnam is a past oriented culture that affect to being oriented culture They refer to spontaneous expression of human personality They stress release, indulgence of existing desire, and working for the moment Vietnamese take great delight in the simple act of conversation with family and friends They will talk for hours with their companions, for they believe that the act of “being” is once of the main goal and joys of life 2.2.5 Materialism and spiritualism Americans have a reputation of being an extremely realistic, practical and efficient people The practical consideration is likely to be given highest priority in making any important decision in the United States Americans pride themselves in not being very philosophically or theoretically oriented If Americans would even admit to having a philosophy, it would probably be that of pragmatism 43 Will it make any money? Will it "pay its own way?" What can I gain from this activity? These are the kinds of questions that Americans are likely to ask in their practical pursuit, not such questions as: Is it aesthetically pleasing? Will it be enjoyable?, or Will it advance the cause of knowledge? This practical, pragmatic orientation has caused Americans to contribute more inventions to the world than any other country in human history The love of "practicality" has also caused Americans to view some professions more favorably than others Management and economics, for example, are much more popular in the United States than philosophy or anthropology, law and medicine more valued than the arts Another way in which this favoring of the practical makes itself felt in the United States, is a belittling of "emotional" and "subjective" evaluations in favor of "rational" and "objective" assessments Americans try to avoid being too sentimental in making their decisions They judge every situation "on its merits." The popular American "trail-and-error" approach to problem solving also reflects the practical The approach suggests listing several possible solutions to any given problem, then trying them out, one-by-one, to see which is most effective In Vietnam, people value the spiritual life The spirituality of Vietnamese culture is its inward and introspective nature Vietnamese culture believes the self as the centre of the universe, with its roots in absolute moral laws For an Vietnamese, the life of man is a part of life in a moral universe, which envelops him And man's duty therefore, is the apprehension of human moral nature of the universe itself For an Vietnamese, knowledge of the moral structure of the universe is the real knowledge It means a probe into the layers of falsity and illusion, which surround the self Love, virtue and peace are the central truths of human personality For a Vietnamese, material wealth, even intelligence and reason, personality, will and imagination are always secondary As Ho Chi Minh president said “talent without virtue is useless” A Vietnamese regards material wealth and 44 intelligence as dangerous in the absence of spirituality Religion and philosophy are instruments for developing an awareness of the self as well as the universe The self and the universe are mirrors, which reflect the life, will, consciousness and idea That why the Vietnamese businessmen, similarly other Asian nations, invest much time in building the positive feelings to their counterparts, on both personal and business lines 45 CHAPTER III: SOME ADVICES FOR VIETNAMESE IN CONTACT WITH AMERICAN 3.1 Punctuality Americans place a high value on punctuality If you make plans with someone, you should be there when you say you will Three to five minutes early is even better, because it shows that you are really looking forward to spending time with the other person Most people will allow five or maybe ten minutes late, but more than that is considered bad form Not showing up at all called "standing someone up" is considered very rude and, unless you have a very good reason, the other person may never want to make plans with you again In American culture, the commitment to spend time with somone is more important than anything else that might happen Americans go to great lengths to keep their commitments Even if their mother called them on the phone, they would say, "Oh, Mom, I can only talk a few minutes, because I'm meeting a friend for lunch Can I call you back when I get home?" Their mother would not take offense at this, because their pre-existing plans take precedence over all others Valid excuses for being late generally involve transportation problems, such as: being stuck in traffic, your car breaking down, unavoidably missing your bus or train, or not being able to get a cab Being late because you didn't want to miss the end of a TV show or because another friend called you on the phone is not acceptable If you realize you are going to be late, you should call the other person immediately, explain the situation, apologize, and ask if they would like to meet later or something else another time Not showing up for a date is considered the height of rudeness, so you better have a good reason for it Valid reasons include: death or serious illness of a close family member, being in a car accident, being sick, or not having child care due to a situation you could not have foreseen (for example, the babysitter didn't show up) If you must miss a date, call the other person immediately, explain what happened, and apologize repeatedly (about five times should do) 46 "I'm so sorry, I feel just awful about it, I hope you can forgive me, but here is what happened " Is a good way to start this conversation Understand that if you are continually late or not show up for dates, you will get a reputation as someone who does not keep your word People will consider you a liar and someone not to be trusted, and will not want to be your friend or may not want to business with you Being late or not showing up is interpreted as meaning that you never wanted to go out with the person in the first place, and will cause hard feelings Specially in doing business with Americans, you need to understand how important punctuality is to Americans, not only for appointments and meetings, but for shipments, payments, documents, etc To the Americans, delivery on Monday means delivery on Monday To emphasize the point, one executive noted that when Americans say that a meeting starts at 3:15, it starts at 3:15 If they call a meeting from 3:00 to 4:00, the meeting will start at 3:00 and finish at 4:00 U.S managers want people to respect time If someone arrives late at a meeting, they view it as an insult or disrespectful On the other hand, in Vietnam, it is common knowledge that when an appointment is set at 8:00 pm, it really means 8:30 to 9:00 pm However this happens more often in informal or personal meetings than in business But with U.S business appointments, Vietnamese recommend arriving early, even if it is an informal meeting Generally speaking, Americans take punctuality more seriously than Vietnamese Being late can give Americans the wrong impression One manager commented “and they might not even open the door for you, so forget about a second chance if you want to business.” Another executive commented on the importance of punctuality “It does not matter if it rains, if the car wheels suffered damage or whatever, they are used to getting to work on time whenever there is an appointment, so it is important to be more organized and fulfill working time accurately.” Thus Vietnamese sum up the U.S attitude toward punctuality! 47 Apart from punctuality, you need to concern to Schedules and Timelines of American In Vietnam, the perception of time is more polychromic, and stresses involvement with people and completion of transactions rather than strict compliance with meeting times In the U.S where time is monochromic, people put strong emphasis on schedules and timelines In keeping with this tendency, the respondents note that the Americans are very strict with their working schedule In sum up, the rule to remember is: show up a few minutes early or on time If you must be late, phone the other person at once and explain why Do not be late repeatedly, and never stand someone up unless you absolutely cannot avoid it if you contact with Americans 3.2 Individualism Americans generally believe that people should strive to be autonomous and self-reliant Most Americans see themselves as separate individuals, more than members of a nation, family or community They dislike being dependent on other people or having others dependent on them Some people from other countries view this attitude as "self-centeredness;" others may view it as a healthy freedom from constraints imposed by family, clan, or social class Members of a traditional society are more likely to regard their role in life as unavoidable and seldom to be questioned or changed Social and cultural factors may be viewed simply as barriers that need to be overcome in order for them to get ahead A result of this attitude is the competitiveness of American life Achievement is a dominant motivation in American culture Americans tend to want to win other people over to their way of thinking and are likely to judge other societies in terms of the United State Americans often think that other countries should follow their example and adopt their way of doing things; they tend to think that their way is the best, despite the many serious social and environmental problems in the United State Other cultures are often evaluated as better or worse than this one, rather than simply different 48 Because of that reason, when working with Americans, we need to respect to their privacy Do not meddle in their personal life In any case, you have to be voluntary and solve your work by your self, not depend on others Besides, We should make a clear distinction between personal and business time For Americans, business time is only for business They not waste their time during work hours Personal time is very important and Americans would rather not sacrifice their personal time in business related matters 3.3 Directness American directness is a major cultural difference that Vietnamese need to understand In contrast with Vietnamese culture, if Americans want something, they say directly what they need Americans often prefer that potential problems are raised and dealt with, rather than letting them simply appear as the project goes along Gesteland (1999, 273) describes the verbal directness and straightforward-speaking style of the U.S negotiator He notes that Americans sometimes not even realize that their direct style may offend people from less-direct cultures In fact, Americans may even distrust negotiators who use an indirect and ambiguous communication style Therefore, Vietnamese need to be more direct during conversations with Americans “They need to know how to go straight ahead, rather than spending much time speaking or writing.” Moreover, because Americans appreciate highly time value as well as their practicality, they tend to discuss, solve or finish their jobs at once with the aim to obtain their goals in the quickest time So, when contacting with Americans we should not waste of time on other matters which they not interest We can see, it is common for Americans to make a distinction between friends in their work or professional world and friends in their social world Although Americans are friendly with their colleagues, they usually not develop deeper relationships with them outside the office Americans also tend to be rather formal with customers, clients, and professional colleagues In a meeting for example, they may exchange brief greetings with each other but 49 then want to concentrate immediately on the business at hand Therefore they may have difficulties functioning in Vietnam where you must cultivate a social relationship with someone first before they can transact business It can be frustrating for Americans to have to develop a social relationship over some period of time before talking about more serious matters 3.4 Practicality As being said above, the final result, which Americans want to obtain, is the trade aim They only consider negotiations as problem – solving situation without focusing on establishing personal relationships or positive feelings with their partners The things make them be interested in at first are what they win during the negotiating process and which relevant outcomes they gain afterwards Thus, their “win - lose” negotiating style of Americans is understandable In United States, there are two well known sayings: “keep your eye on the ball” and “Work before pleasure” These sayings make contributions to further state the pragmaticism of the Americans Their implicit meanings are to highlight the high level of task orientation of Americans They always refer to concentrate on and finish the job immediately They dislike interruptions and distractions that have bad influences on their work or reduce their working pace Consequently, socializing and irrelevant discussion are seldom encouraged For this reason, when Vietnamese work with Americans, we need to pay attention in efficiency of the work Not only in working but also in the communication conception of Americans is pragmatic Due too their focus on efficiency and practicality, Americans often, in practice, dislike the communication style, which are circular, hedging or indirect According to Americans, those who express indirectly or circularly are likely to be viewed with suspicion, as if they are trying to hide something and lacking self confidence They expect a trustworthy person to respond directly 50 PART C: CONCLUSION Recapitulation and implication Through studying the thesis, we reaffirm that a good understanding about the culture values of each country is really useful and necessary By analysizing, we know what the culture is, how important the culture is and which the main elements to form the culture are Also in the theoretical chapter, we have learned background knowledge about the Vietnamese and American culture More specially, through the thesis, we have possessed a considerable amount of knowledge about some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values From the valuable knowledge, we will be able to avoid regrettable misunderstanding in communication between two different cultures It can be said that the knowledge of the cultural differences is really crucial when we communicate with foreigners generally, and Americans particularly In this thesis, we have also given some advices for Vietnamese to communicate with Americans effectively In general speaking, when contract with Americans we should pay attention to their punctuality, individualism, directness and practicality The author would like to receive all your comments, advices, and remarks to make the study more perfectly Suggestions for further study It is certainly that more researches will be done in the future In this study, we have focused on some contrasts in cultural values of Vietnamese and American, however, if we continue to study this topic, we would like to focus on only one of those culture values, for example, we only study on contrast in punctuality, or individuality, or other, but not all In further study, questionnaires should 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LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT - - A STUDY ON SOME CONTRASTS BETWEEN VIETNAMESE AND AMERICAN CULTURAL VALUES (NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHỮNG ĐIỂM KHÁC BIỆT TRONG NHỮNG GIÁ TRỊ VĂN H? ?A C? ?A NGƯỜI VIỆT VÀ NGƯỜI... focus on several salient cultural values with out covering all of the American and Vietnamese cultural onces - The study tries to find some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values. .. II: Some contrasts between Vietnamese and American cultural values Chapter III: Some advices for Vietnamese in contacts with American PartC: Conclusion PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL