Curious about the Western world vs the Eastern world?
Culture differences are a very hot topic in business as well as at holiday parties.
Today we bring a guest writer, Lim Chuwei from Hong Kong, to share about this East/West debate. Let’s dive in!
Western culture (as specified in the cultural map above) is defined by the following:
- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are some common religions practiced in the Western world.
- The population in Western countries is more liberal than those in the East. The Westerners are more open and blunt. For example, topics like sex or birth of a child are openly discussed in Western culture, whereas in the East, these topics are still taboo.
- People from the West are more open to expressing their feelings. If they are angry, they vent it out. But, people in the east may hold it in for tact and good manners.
- Also, one’s own choice is given preference over the family’s. A person from the West is more flexible and free to make decisions on his own, unlike those in the East.
- Arranged marriages are not at all common in the West for they believe in love as the basis for marriage.
It has been said that East and West can never meet up. They differ in history, religion, political system and so on. Differences are also clearly seen in the Eastern and Western ways in dealing with education.
Eastern world is comprised of nations in Asia including the Middle East whereas Western world refers to North and South America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. East and West may have myriad differences based on culture and education. These differences can be noted for the most part in people’s behavior and attitudes.
The major difference between eastern and western culture is that people in the east are more conservative and traditional than the general population in the west.
Let’s have a clear view on the difference between east and west in terms of culture…
Eastern Culture
Eastern Culture (refer to the culture map above) has these characteristics listed below:
- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Shenism, Taoism, and Islam are some common religions practiced in the Eastern world.
- The population in Eastern countries is more traditional than people in the West when we consider their clothing, rituals, and so on. For example, Indians pay respect to their elders or parents by touching their feet. East Asians bow as a gesture of welcoming guests, apologizing and expressing thank you.
- People in the East are commonly inflexible in their beliefs and ideologies. They do not easily compromise nor question the long practiced customs and traditions.
- In Eastern countries, elders are considered as the leaders of the home and children often refer their choices to them and obey what they say. Important decisions related to the children’s future are normally made by the elders. And, when parents grow old, the kids are likely to take care of them.
- Arranged marriages are common in the Eastern countries. They are normally arranged by the parents of the couple or other elders. They believe in the concept that love comes after marriage.
Now I wonder what you are thinking?
Western Culture
Difference Between East And West In Terms Of Education…
Image Source : http://www.teflone.com
Is education in the East superior to education in the West? So, let’s explore the future in education…
Creativity vs. Hard Work
Western educational systems focus on the ideas of creativity. Obviously, the system being a system means that numerous things are bound, but still, it normally does its best to elevate individual approaches to deal with various students.
In Eastern education, however, it is all about hard work and struggle. Nothing is difficult if you practice hard. Consequently, kids are given lots of homework and are instructed to buckle down. That is the reason why most Asian students, more often than not, are better performers academically than their peers when they get into the more casual Western educational institutions.
Participation vs. Reception
Western education moves further and facilitate a more interactive training procedure where students are encouraged to participate actively. They are urged to think critically, to make inquiries and engage in fruitful debates with their instructors.
Though in the East, students are the beneficiaries. They submit to the authority of teachers and the method itself is far less interactive.
Special Needs: Inclusion vs. Separation
Western education makes incredible efforts to integrate kids with special needs into the general mass of students. It is considered a major right to be educated together with other kids.
In the East, we normally see a more exclusive approach where kids with special needs are quite often taught separately from the rest. It isn’t thought to be unfair, just logical
Conclusion: East vs West
So, this is all about how different from each other, the culture and education systems of the East and the West, are. We can’t firmly determine which of the cultural or education systems of Eastern countries or Western countries is better. What is more important is how people of both cultures respect and accept each other’s values and educational system.
This Discussion In Video
Check out this blog post in video format, our co-host Lyka shares differences between East and West here:
Looking For An Easy New Culture?
We want to hear from you. You have heard our ideas, now you can take the poll and share which you think is better between Eastern or Western culture.
Click on the view results to see what others say about this poll
Which Culture Is Better – East or West?
Over the years this article has been online, readers have asked us for an “easy new culture”. This is something that hits the core foundation of Global From Asia. Since our inception in 2013, we have been working hard to level the playing field for online business owners to do business and earn a living no matter what cultural background they come from.
We recommend studying our new infographic, and then downloading our PDF version of the post so that you too can become a culture master – which will help us all get to the next level.
Share The New Cultural Differences Infographic
To help spread the word about these cultural differences, our graphic design team created a special infographic to visually compare.
Now it is your turn – share this infographic on your pinterest or social media and show the world you are knowledgeable and aware of today’s burning cultural differences. Together we can make a difference.
How to share?
You can copy this html code and paste on your website. Or download the culture infographic here and upload to a site of your choice.
What About Business Differences?
We have a follow up article discussing the business differences we have noticed between Eastern and Western cultures.
Like the article? Don’t forget to like and share! If you have any suggestions for us about the cultural differences you notice, please share with us in the comments section below!
About the Author:
Lim Chuwei is creative blog writer & director at ChampionTutor. ChampionTutor is Singapore’s leading online stop for all education needs with more than 10 yrs of experience in home tutor service & recently launched the tuition services as ChampionTutor Online Hong Kong for the students, parents and teachers of Hong Kong. Lim Chuwei has been in this industry for the last 15 years and has vast knowledge of major learning application.
Bring together East and West
Want to Attend an Event That Brings East and West Together
While this blog post is talking about the differences of Eastern and Western culture- we should set our differences aside and come together. The best way to do this is in person, at an event. With the internet growing in popularity day after day – we are losing that valuable facetime with other people. So each year this very blog, Global From Asia, puts a conference together – Cross Border Summit bringing together top business leaders in East and West in one room. Check out our Cross Border Summit event page for more details and the next upcoming event.
56 Comments on “The Differences Between East And West In Terms Of Culture And Education”
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The article is good showing the difference but, as I have read somewhere, West is rational and East is sentimental. Our decision is very often based on the continuity for the past, we can say, it is tradition-based, whereas they are rational, they are practical. We are hard to accept changes just our of fear of our rigid tradition.
I agree with you. Western culture they dont think with their hearts. We do.
I agree with you. Western culture they dont think with their hearts. The understanding of life and nature of the Westerners is based on science, they try to understand in specific terms of reality, the second aspect of Western culture that is different from Eastern culture is a lifestyle. Firstly, in the Eastern culture people live with their extended family. This means they live with their grandparents and children in the same house. They share their experiences and problem with others as well as have dinner and lunch together.
We are hard to accept changes just our of fear of our rigid tradition. Culture differs from one country to another and from one region to another. No culture can be the same. This essay will discuss the differences and similarities between Eastern and Western cultures. The article is good showing the difference but, as I have read somewhere,
The culture in Chinese is far better than Indians who are fascinated by west. Today China and other east countries are so bounded with their Families, In India the children are getting more Liberal following West, while Chinese are advanced and still believe in their culture. Indians should learn from them.
LOL, Tarun you couldn’t be more right. The Chinese worship white people. They are proud they are Chinese (the party is making sure they do), but have 0 knowledge about their own culture and country.
Lol we do know lots about our own culture and country and we don’t worship white people. Just in case you don’t know, some Hong Kong people hated being Chinese. That’s how the Hong Kong Independence movement rose. But as most people love their own country, culture, and nationality, so as I.
Yep thats right I’m also Chinese I agree with Yan
Thank you for explaining very well to an American in the USA…I was born and raised in a very small town and am half American Indian and half white… after getting my education and moving to Los Angeles California, and meeting and seeing and getting to know all the different cultures, I would agree with how you explained yourself. Once again thank you.
ep thats right I’m also Chinese I agree with Yan. While those residing in the Eastern world also look forward to holidays, the luxury of getting one relies strongly on workplace approvals, the nature of people, and the mindset of society. It is often years before individuals take a lengthy break in these nations. Possibly it’s about the trudging and relentless outlook in the East. But as most people love their own country, culture, and nationality, so as I.
The understanding of life and nature of the Westerners is based on science, they try to understand in specific terms of reality, whereas the Easterners understanding is based on some total of experiences,essentially abstract and philosophic.
Any assertion about what “western people” believe or how people from the “east” behave is bound to be grossly inaccurate. This article is greatly misleading as to the differences between people based on their geographic location. First, there is strong evidence that some “western” cultural groups are more similar to those in the “east” than they are to groups closer to them (e.g., Fins are culturally more similar to the Japanese than there are to the Danes). Second, there are huge differences among cultural norms and attitudes within western countries as well as within eastern ones. That is, there are huge cultural differences within the US or Germany or Canada, etc., as well as within China or India. etc., and so any attempt to sum up everyone into a single stereotype is bound to be way off the mark. Did you know, for example, that the local language spoken in Shanghai is about as close to the local language spoken in Beijing as German is to English? To put forward simple, stereotypes, and caricatures is not helpful in the study of culture. Cultural norms and behaviors are far more complex, nuanced, and changing than this author conveys and this article actually does a disservice to anyone who wants to understand cultural differences.
AG, I hope to share the depth of the topic here and do not condemn or deny your facts, keeping due respect to your knowledge and opinion. I would like to share some concept here :
this is a generic cultural view of west and east. This does not go geographically, and does not talk about languages and dialects. We are looking at it from a global perspective. Let me help you understand, for example China- Beijing, ( East) and Germany ( West- Europe) have basic traditional /ethical/socio-economic differences- Germans do not live in extended families- as like other Europeans ( westerners) and Chinese ( easterners) live in extended families like any other – Indian, Japanese culture.
Europe as a whole, Canada, Australia, America ( West) believe in fast food, changing scientific explanations, new educational updates, practical living , giving individual time and respect to decisions, living alone or separately, (etc) whereas people from east strongly believe in that ever is in their scriptures , moral values and customs that are followed as a community /group. they do not oppose or question their mythology and philosophy , and believe it is true ( whether facts are there or not) and hence do not support individualistic ideology , or example- talking about sex ,gender transformation,, love, in family or socially, eating out late , having fast food, wearing short or unusual clothing in public all is treated like —- Taboo not a a part of their culture.
I would recommend you to travel and see different lifestyles and cultures . You would indeed be surprised of how deep the hidden part of the” ice berg is and yet its so vastly scattered among the same Glacier”.
Thanks! Cheers!
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some “western” cultural groups are more similar to those in the “east” than they are to. However, In the Western culture, every decision is taken by themselves and only the person is responsible for their decision. My “religion “ is in both. I believe in God Elohim. And we do believe in much of what eastern culture believes when it come to some topics.
This article clearly distinguishes the differences between the East and West in terms of culture and education system. Good read!
thanks Lyka look forward to the video 🙂
The understanding of life and nature of the Westerners is based on science, Now travelling or vacations, an aspect of Western culture that is similar to Eastern culture will be examined. Firstly, the Western world requires time to travel as an indispensable part of its life. Holidays in this portion of the globe are expected days. This article clearly distinguishes the differences between the East and West
The ex-Soviets, Russian, Ukrainians, Belorussians, etc.. behave differently from Western European people. Russian and Eastern Europeans are different to the Western European countries. Russian/Ukrainian/Belorussian women act a little like Asians. Aside from physical features, they have a lot of Asian behavioral traits.
LOL, Tarun you couldn’t be more right. The Chinese worship white people. They are proud they are Chinese (the party is making sure they do), but have 0 knowledge about their own culture and country. both Eastern and Western cultures are right in their place. Both similarities and differences between Eastern and Western culture have been discussed. The ex-Soviets, Russian, Ukrainians, Belorussians, etc..
The difference between east and west should be also as historical. If we will read about philosophy’s of india (generally it is representative if east), indian give priority to nation, beliefs and there is no attraction of Money. The belief of Daan (today’s we known as donation) is oldest in india. So people of east are more happy than west because they have no special attraction for luxury things.
Again, It should be consider that In case of comparison of east and west, we are talking about Europe and south asia as well as china, japan. There is no roll of Africa, gulf nations and america here. Because Idealogically, europe (root is Athens) and India (root of east philosophy) are main comptitator
The belief of Daan (today’s we known as donation) is oldest in india. On the other hand, the people of Western culture people believe in independence and individualism. They like freedom and take their own decision by them. They do not like to share their personal things to the family. Furthermore, in the Eastern culture grandparents are considered as the head of the home. They take most of the all-important decision with their experience and everyone in family obey their decision. Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Anatolian and steppes (mostly Germanic) cultures
Ok, you say western is focused on creativity; however north europen countries are more hard worker than south europens. We see it on the history. If we discussing it for modern times; the latest breaking point was French revolution for Europe. we should think it in big picture. First of all, even the wars became in West (between mediterranean civilizations), they transaction their cultures to each other quickly. Very long time before, the Western culture was shaped from Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Anatolian and steppes (mostly Germanic) cultures and they have mixed (not totally but mostly). As a consequence, West have same alphabet, similar religons (at least they born in same place), similar dressing, similar looking, similar cuisines (especially for mediterranean), similar architecture, … Beginning from the first civilization of the West, Sumerians, Westerns have continued remnant cultures of civilizations in their new civilizations.
India was open both West and East all time in the history. Actually for me, India is the distinct line between East and West.
Nice post showing clearly differences between the East and the West culture.
I’d like to add that people from the East are more tradition-based than the West, maybe beacuse of the less impact of globalization on them.
Ok, you say western is focused on creativity; These cultures differ in many aspects such as the education system, lifestyle and they also have similarities such as language and Travelling or Vacation.AG, I hope to share the depth of the topic here and do not condemn or deny your facts, keeping due respect to your knowledge and opinion. I would like to share some concept here : this is a generic cultural view of west and east. This does not go geographically, and does not talk about languages and dialects.
what are the corporate values eastern can learn from western?
Nice post showing clearly differences between the East and the West culture. There is a lot to learn from both cultures. For hundreds of years, Eastern culture has been influenced by Western culture and vice versa. They adopt each other’s merits like the education system, lifestyle and travelling or vacation. The ex-Soviets, Russian, Ukrainians, Belorussians, etc.. behave differently from Western European people.
Do you agree with the differentiation between the west and the east?
Who is the author of the article? I would like to quote it.
Do you agree with the differentiation between the west and the east? Western culture that is different from Eastern culture is the education system. Firstly, Western systems of education focus on creative thoughts. Of course, being a system implies a lot of things are bound, but generally it does its utmost to elevate individual approaches to dealing with unique students. On the other side, in Eastern education, it’s all about hard work and fighting. Nothing is difficult if you exercise hard. what are the corporate values eastern can learn from western?
My “religion “ is in both. I believe in God Elohim. And we do believe in much of what eastern culture believes when it come to some topics. Such as dressing appropriate and respecting our elders. I’m thankful for all those who encourage me to work hard and not waste any time. Time is precious.
My “religion “ is in both. I believe in God Elohim. And we do believe in much of what eastern culture believes when it come to some topics. Therefore, kids are provided a lot of homework and taught to buckle down. That’s why most Asian learners, when they join the more informal Western academic organizations, are academically better performers than their colleagues. However, Western education is moving on and facilitating a more interactive teaching process where learners are encouraged to engage actively. They are encouraged to critically think, inquire and participate in fruitful debates with their teachers. Students in the East are the beneficiaries, they submit to the authority of the teachers and the method itself is much less interactive. I’m thankful for all those who encourage me to work hard and not waste any time. Time is precious.
You forgot to add t South America, New Zealand and Australia as Western World!!!
Western developed earlier than other parts of the world in the recent hundreds years. Middle Eastern is hundreds of years ago of Western life style, Eastern Asia is tens of years ago of western life style. About close mind, traditional, conservative, I don’t think that is the label of Eastern worlds. Which countries are advanced, which countries will be open minded. Which countries develop far behind,which countries are close mind, conservative. 1000 years ago, China was the most advanced country, that time, the whole China was very open, some female have several husband’s at the same time, female can be officers in the government. Now following the development of economy, China society also become more opening, conservation and traditions some developed to be more modern, some still keep, some already gone. I think western culture kinds of are the future of other countries, because other countries are also developing, Western countries just developed faster and earlier than other countries.
Christianity started in the Middle East. I am surprised as to why it was not mentioned in the list of Eastern religions, and only the Western one!
yah true
I would wholeheartedly agree that the differences between Eastern and Western culture are quite polar opposites. I am a cultural scholar on Chinese-related questions. I write articles on this topic quite frequently. I am glad to see others have contributed to the topic.
The culture in Chinese is far better than Indians who are fascinated by west. Today China and other east countries are so bounded with their Families, Culture differs from one country to another and from one region to another. No culture can be the same. This essay will discuss the differences and similarities between Eastern and Western cultures. Christianity started in the Middle East. I am surprised as to why it was not mentioned in the list of Eastern religions,
Western culture live in the man-made enviroment and Eastern culture live in the God-made enviroment.
That is the most ignorant comment that I’ve ever read. Not to mention, it is quite close-minded.
This article good showing one aspect of Western culture that is different from Eastern culture is the education system. Firstly, Western systems of education focus on creative thoughts. Of course, being a system implies a lot of things are bound, but generally it does its utmost to elevate individual approaches to dealing with unique students. On the other side, in Eastern education, it’s all about hard work and fighting. Nothing is difficult if you exercise hard. Therefore, kids are provided a lot of homework and taught to buckle down. That’s why most Asian learners, when they join the more informal Western academic organizations, are academically better performers than their colleagues. However, Western education is moving on and facilitating a more interactive teaching process where learners are encouraged to engage actively. They are encouraged to critically think, inquire and participate in fruitful debates with their teachers. Students in the East are the beneficiaries, they submit to the authority of the teachers and the method itself is much less interactive
The culture in Chinese is far better than Indians who are fascinated by west. Today China and other east countries are so bounded with their Families,Culture differs from one country to another and from one region to another. No culture can be the same. This essay will discuss the differences and similarities between Eastern and Western cultures. These cultures differ in many aspects such as the education system, lifestyle and they also have similarities such as language and Travelling or Vacation.AG, I hope to share the depth of the topic here and do not condemn or deny your facts, keeping due respect to your knowledge and opinion. I would like to share some concept here : this is a generic cultural view of west and east. This does not go geographically, and does not talk about languages and dialects.
LOL, Tarun you couldn’t be more right. The Chinese worship white people. They are proud they are Chinese (the party is making sure they do), but have 0 knowledge about their own culture and country. both Eastern and Western cultures are right in their place. Both similarities and differences between Eastern and Western culture have been discussed. There is a lot to learn from both cultures. For hundreds of years, Eastern culture has been influenced by Western culture and vice versa. They adopt each other’s merits like the education system, lifestyle and travelling or vacation. The ex-Soviets, Russian, Ukrainians, Belorussians, etc.. behave differently from Western European people.
The understanding of life and nature of the Westerners is based on science, they try to understand in specific terms of reality, the second aspect of Western culture that is different from Eastern culture is a lifestyle. Firstly, in the Eastern culture people live with their extended family. This means they live with their grandparents and children in the same house. They share their experiences and problem with others as well as have dinner and lunch together. On the other hand, the people of Western culture people believe in independence and individualism. They like freedom and take their own decision by them. They do not like to share their personal things to the family. Furthermore, in the Eastern culture grandparents are considered as the head of the home. They take most of the all-important decision with their experience and everyone in family obey their decision. However, In the Western culture, every decision is taken by themselves and only the person is responsible for their decision. My “religion “ is in both. I believe in God Elohim. And we do believe in much of what eastern culture believes when it come to some topics.
India is not east, it is south. Japan and China are completely different.
Japan is basically non-religious. However, there is the influence of Shinto and Zen, and China is Confucian.
In Tokyo, there is Times Square everywhere.
Tokyo Roppongi,Ginza,Shinjuku Drive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtXzWvAJWko
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There’s no question that Western culture is far, far superior. There’s a reason why every major discovery, every major breakthrough, every game-changing business, every world-changing invention originated in the west. That culture of questioning, of creativity matters tremendously. — it’s the reason why Weatern culture leads the world while Eastern culture merely imitates. Sure, Asian students earn good grades, but they never seem to become real leaders, movers, and shakers out there in the real world. Sure, East Asian countries are economically prosperous —- because they’re imitating models of business and industry that originated in the West. Imitators are never going to be superior to the innovators and inventors – that’s why Eastern cultures are always going to be inferior to He West, at lest until they figure out how to prioritize creativity, questioning, and innovative thinking as Westerners do.
[Comment from 2019] I am an Eastern Asian – Korean- and a millennial. I grew up in Korea, Australia and the US and I can tell you, this article is outdated and does a poor job of describing Asian culture. The ones you mentioned – few of them – still exist and may be believed by older generations. Yet the younger generations don’t really believe or follow them. Such as how marriage is arranged by parents/elderly or that they believe love comes after marriage etc, I can tell you most youngsters in Korea think that idea is not only stupid but also weird – of course everyone in East Asia know that love is a requisite for marriage. We are not that dumb lol. I can’t speak for other Asian countries as I have no experience with them. But as for Korean culture, a good chunk of people say they plan not to get married even and the individualistic culture, of people saying who gives a fuck about what I do – mind your own business kinda attitude is pretty strong. However I agree that topics on sex etc are much less discussed in here. But if you were in Korea and nobody around you wanted to talk about that with you, it just means that they didn’t consider you as their friend. They talk about such topics with their friends, just not with parents.
a minor correction: They talk about such topics with their friends, just not with parents or strangers.
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Interestingly interesting info
so that was a biased
sorry you feel that way – in which side was it biased?