An Introduction to Chinese Philosophy

Abstract

This comprehensive introductory textbook to early Chinese philosophy covers a range of philosophical traditions which arose during the Spring and Autumn (722–476 BCE) and Warring States (475–221 BCE) periods in China, including Confucianism, Mohism, Daoism, and Legalism. It considers concepts, themes and argumentative methods of early Chinese philosophy and follows the development of some ideas in subsequent periods, including the introduction of Buddhism into China. The book examines key issues and debates in early Chinese philosophy, cross-influences between its traditions and interpretations by scholars up to the present day. The discussion draws upon both primary texts and secondary sources, and there are suggestions for further reading. This will be an invaluable guide for all who are interested in the foundations of Chinese philosophy and its richness and continuing relevance.

Cultural influences in acquiescent response: A study of trainer evaluation biases

“…Moreover, our results also show that those trainees who are less Confucianism‐influenced did not show higher acquiescent tendency as a function of their integrating style, however those trainees who were more Confucianism‐influenced did. The relationships reported here are consistent with the view that individual behavioral responses cannot be separated from the culture in which they are embedded (Lai, ). These findings could be explained by looking into the central values, namely harmony and hierarchy, emphasized by Confucianism.…”

“…The influence of culture on individual beliefs, perceptions, and behaviors have been widely discussed, particularity, in cross‐cultural research (e.g., Cai & Fink, ; den Brok et al, ; Oetzel & Ting‐Toomey, ). Exploring the moderating effect of culture in organizational research has become regularities (De Luque & Sommer, ), as individual behaviors are culturally inextricable (Lai, ), workforce are increasingly diverse and organizations are ever more global (Morris, Leung, Ames, & Lickel, ). The strong role of culture in moderating employee reactions to work related perceptions is discussed in such works as Chow (), and Probst and Lawler ().…”

“…Confucian work dynamism values usually includes respect for one's superiors, thriftiness, persistence, a sense of shame, reciprocal courtesy, steadiness, prestige and respect for tradition (Francesco, ; Tsang, ). Harmonious relationships in the social structure are of utmost value resided in Confucian philosophy (Lai, ; Leung & Brew, ). Ip () notes that in Confucian thought, the pursuit and maintenance of harmony are basic and major goals in one's social life.…”

Taocriticism in an Essay on Man

“…In Osho's (1980) words, "Tao simply means the ultimate principle that binds the whole existence together" (p.3). Karyn L. Lai (2008) understands Tao in terms of "a metaphysical concept, as a deeper, underlying primordial reality" (p.156). Therefore, ancient Chinese philosophies, especially Taoism, are very universally applicable.…”

The Global Conference on Business, Hospitality, and Tourism Research: Volume 1

“…Furthermore, buying gift is not limited to buying for others. Research suggests that self-gifting is as important as gift-giving (Lai, 2017). While most studies investigate the gift buying attitudes of tourists they look into the travel habits between the home countries and the destination countries (Keown, 1989;Reisinger and Waryszak, 1994;Jin, Moscardo, and Murphy, 2017) However, the late 20th and 21st century saw the increased relocation of people from their home countries to other countries for the purposes of work, education or family ties (Poston Jr, Mao, and Yu, 1994;Feng and Page, 2000;Zhao, 2003;Choudaha, 2017).…”