Author(s)

Tongshu Gao ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ College of Post and Telecommunication of WIT, Wuhan, 430073, Hubei, China

Corresponding Author

Tongshu Gao

ABSTRACT

This article is based on Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions and constructs a comparative analysis framework that includes dimensions such as cultural roots, intergenerational relationships, and surname culture. It systematically examines the differences in family structure and cultural logic between China and America. The study selected four core dimensions of individualism/collectivism, power distance, long-term orientation/short-term orientation, and restraint/indulgence for comparative analysis, and found that: 1) Chinese families exhibit high collectivism, high power distance, long-term orientation, and restraint characteristics. Their extended family structure emphasizes the overall interests and ethical order of the family, and intergenerational relationships form a "feedback style" symbiotic model. Surname culture reflects patrilineal kinship identity, which is deeply related to cultural genes such as Confucianism's "filial piety and brotherly love" and "family state homogeneity". 2) American families exhibit typical individualism, low power distance, short-term orientation, and indulgence characteristics, while the core family structure highlights individual independence, and intergenerational relationships present a "contractual style" The interactive mode and surname culture reflect the identity mobility of immigrant society, and its cultural roots can be traced back to Puritan ethics, Enlightenment ideas, and liberal traditions. This study innovatively introduces film and television texts such as "Family with Children" and "Modern Family" for case verification. Through cross-cultural comparisons of parent-child interaction, educational philosophy, and family decision-making, it empirically examines the mechanism by which cultural dimensions shape family structure. The ultimate framework for explaining the cultural gene determinism is proposed, which points out that in the context of globalization, the Chinese and American family models should achieve complementary development through cultural dialogue, which has important implications for promoting cross-cultural understanding and constructing new family ethics.

KEYWORDS

Hofstede's Theory of Cultural Dimensions; Family Structure in China and the United States; Cultural Identity and Adaptation between China and the United States

CITE THIS PAPER

Tongshu Gao, A Comparative Analysis of Chinese and American Family Structure Based on Hofstede's Cultural Dimension Theory. Lecture Notes on Language and Literature (2025) Vol. 8: 34-43. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/langl.2025.080506.

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