Relationship between Cultural Philosophy and Work Values in Chinese Employees

Abstract

In China, culture is considered to be an important aspect of the personal and professional life of the people. As a result, different cultural philosophies are also incorporated in Chinese organizations which impact their both organizational and work values. However, not much focus has been given to cultural philosophies in this regard in the past literature, therefore, the main aim of this study is to determine the relationship between cultural philosophy. For this purpose, qualitative research was considered, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight Chinese employees. The collected edited transcription is then codified via NVivo and thematic analysis was performed. The results obtained from the study showed that different cultural philosophies such as Guanxi and Confucianism are mainly embedded in Chinese organizations, emphasizing harmony, collectivism, teamwork, and effective leadership strategies. However, the concept of work-life balance is still new in Chinese organizations; while work ethics are strong and effective in Chinese organizations and they also promote morality and social responsibilities. Thus, it has been recommended that Chinese organizations should align organizational values with work values via traditional and cultural philosophies to ensure an effective working environment for the employees.