A Comparative Study Of The School Mottoes Of Famous Universities In China And America From The Perspective Of Cultural Dimensions

This paper employs qualitative research method,using the mottoes of famous universities in China and the United States as an entry point to discuss the differences between Chinese and American cultures from a cross-cultural perspective.The author selected and compared the mottoes of the top 40 Chinese and American universities in the ranking of world universities.This paper combines Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory,namely long-term and short-term orientation,the distance of power,masculinity and feminism,uncertainty avoidance,as well as individualism and collectivism,self-indulgence and restraint.From six aspects including the school mottoes' attitude towards authority,high-frequency vocabulary,collective inclination,gender inclination,focus and audience.This paper analyzes to study the relevant content of 80 college mottoes in depth.Based on the relevant literature at home and abroad,this paper comparatively analyzes the differences between Chinese and American cultures and their specific manifestations of the school mottoes in terms of cultural values,and analyzes the underlying reasons behind the phenomenon.There is a more reverent attitude towards the authority in China,while the United States is relatively more daring to question the authority;Chinese culture has a higher degree of avoidance of uncertainties than the United States;Chinese culture puts the collective interest first,while Americans focus on the pursuit of personal or family happiness;From the school mottoes,both Chinese and American cultures are male cultures;Chinese people are used to making long-term plans,with a long-term view in mind,Americans advocate playing in time and do not pay attention to long-term planning;Chinese culture emphasizes self-denial and self-restraint,and relatively speaking,the United States pursues physical and mental freedom even more.These differences are mainly due to the factors such as the history,the national conditions,and the original intention of the school in China and the United States.This paper starts with the school mottoes of China and the United States and compares the differences in cultural concepts between the two countries.It helps to understand the differences between Chinese and American concepts from a cross-culture perspective and provides a new perspective for the future research on this subject.