The present study estimates the global validity of existing constructs and serves as the basis for the development of the Self-Reported Study Habits for International Students (SR-SHI) used to identify at-risk students in international programs. One-year classroom observations, recollection of study habits though interviews with high performing students show that they are mainly from low-context and individualistic countries while most low performing students come from high-context and collectivistic countries.Among other aspects, high performing students give opinions based on reading material and class content, use the expression "I think", ask questions in class, are on time, ask for feedback regarding assignments, take notes in class and while studying, look for the professor after class, seat at the front of the classroom and attend every class, study in silence and alone at regular times along the whole semester, read the material about two weeks before the exam, review notes before the exam, talk about the content with other students. On the other hand, low performing students remind quite the whole semester, miss at least three classes per semester, are normally late, sit at the back of the classroom, don't take notes in class and never look for the professor after class-hours. It seems that specific training programs at the start and during the semester as well as training on cultural intelligence were identified are necessary.Keywords: academic performance, high/low-context countries, high-performing students, low-context country, multicultural classroom, study habits Statement of ProblemPerhaps the greatest challenge of faculty teaching in multicultural classrooms in college is to devise teaching methodologies that help all students to learn and understand the subjects under discussion. This researcher sustains that all things being equal, what remains different in a multicultural classroom is the cultural background (and the implied habits) of students and teachers. Class observations and interview with high-performing students showed that most high and low performing students have some habits in common. Hence, it is considered important to know what habits college students have and, in case of low-performing students, which of those habits need to be changed in order to improve performance. The importance of improving habits lays in their relationship with attitudes, which are deemed important for achieving high academic performance.A great deal of research provides evidence that study habits and study attitudes are both significant variables, which determine the academic performance of students. Yet, in spite of the perceived importance of study habits and study attitudes to academic achievement, it seems that education institution still pay little attention to understanding these factors (Baquiran, 2011).Classroom observations show that under the same conditions, namely same professor, same subject, same teaching system, same administration, same enrollment criteria, same time of the day ...

The present research provides data showing what aspects professionals in the USA and China may consider important in conducting successful cross-cultural interactions. Although the issue at hand has beenstudied previously, the inclusion of professionals as a sample is unusual, hence this study can be used as a basis for other studies which manipulate features of the inter-cultural professional and see how he/she is regarded and treated. The assumptions leading to this investigation were that Chinese professionals would differ from those from the USA in considering education as well as appearance to be more important than aspects related to attitude, which were thought to be more important for USA professionals. Results show that more Chinese professionals give greaterimportance to more aspects related to appearance than to education and attitude while professionals from the USA rated more aspects related to education and attitude as very important.Except for Sociability, English level and age, which were considered very important, Chinese respondents consider all other aspects important, while respondents from the USA have more diverse opinions (See table 2 and table 3). The Chinese respondents considered 100% of the total criteria important or very important. More respondents from the USA than from China considered more aspects to be very important. Professionals from the USA were more diverse in their opinionof the level of importance of each variable, but at the same time they show to be more cohesive as a group than the Chinese. It is important to notethat most of the variables forming the final criteria were provided by professionals from the USA, and that such criteria was more widely embraced by the Chinese as important or very important than by those from the USA.

<p>This investigation takes an explanatory approach to Chinese paradoxical behavior and sheds light upon one the most recent findings regarding, what I called, the “togetherness-separation” paradox of the Chinese society. It includes data collected in Mainland China between 2010 and 2012 from Chinese and non-Chinese professionals working in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Beijing in different fields including international trade, sourcing, logistics, compliance, quality control, supply chain consultancy, diplomacy and education. Respondents were presented with twenty-six aspects, divided in three categories, seemingly affecting cross-cultural interactions at work including Attitude (determined by values): Friendliness, being active and positive, responsibility, good demeanor, sociability, willingness to learn, flexibility, sense of humor and being humble; Education and skills (determined by education systems): Academic background, foreign language capability, mother tong, creativity, school attended, credentials, interests, communication skills, good command of English and intellectual curiosity; and Physical aspects (determined by race and clothing): Age, general appearance, gender, height, skin color, clothing, and health appearance.</p>The differences between Chinese and Non-Chinese managers found in this investigation, are explained based on literature review as well as on an in-depth interviews with Porf. RongYao Chen expert in Chinese organizational cultural and Porf. of Business Administration at Donghua University, Shanghai campus. Cluster analysis shows that non-Chinese professional share a common mindset regarding what they consider most and least important to carry out working cross-cultural interactions, while the Chinese professionals, as a group, show to be dispersed.

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This paper stresses the importance of culture in understanding and, perhaps more accurately, predicting economic development. It's intended to initiate, or re-initiate, the discussion of culture as the core of economic development, stability and growth.My interest in the discussion of the economy is from a behavioral perspective, taking behavior as an outcome of culture, a factor that remains neglected in most economic literature explaining or forecasting the economy. It seems to me that because the existent literature in economics remains incomplete in terms of culture, predicting the success or failure of any economic model, applied within different cultural settings, may be inaccurate. Hence, the fundamental assumption presented in this document is that different regions in the world develop different economic levels due to cultural differences. I take example in East Asia in general and China in particular to explain cultural factors that have contributed to the economic development in the region.The following discussion has been divided into five parts, as follows: First, an introduction to the main arguments. Second, a short discussion of the definition of culture developed by several scholars in the past. Elaborating on those earlier definitions, I propose a definition that may best suit the economic issue at hand. Third, a review of some of the most important economists and their key arguments, upon which I elaborate from a cultural perspective. Fourth, a discussion of East-Asian countries and China's economic development from a cultural perspective. Fifth, my conclusions and a proposed model that includes culture as a factor in the decision-making process when choosing an economic strategy and its corresponding models.