Editing Guanxi (section)

==Description and usage==
''Guanxi'' refers to connections among individuals involving implicit expectations of loyalty, obligation, and mutual commitment.<ref name=":12">{{Cite book |last=Leutert |first=Wendy |title=China's State-Owned Enterprises: Leadership, Reform, and Internationalization |date=2024 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-1-009-48654-5 |edition= |series=Business and Public Policy Series |location=Cambridge}}</ref>{{Rp|page=26}} The concept includes both formal and informal on-going relationships.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|page=26}} These relationships include both peer relationships and hierarchal relationships.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|page=26}}

===In a personal context===
''Guanxi'' also refers to the benefits gained from social connections and usually extends from extended family, school friends, workmates and members of standard clubs or organizations. It is customary for Chinese people to cultivate an intricate web of ''guanxi'' relationships, which may expand in a huge number of directions, and includes lifelong relationships. Staying in contact with members of your network is not necessary to bind reciprocal obligations. Reciprocal favors are the key factor to maintaining one's ''guanxi'' web. At the same time failure to reciprocate is considered an unforgivable offense (that is, the more one asks of someone, the more one owes them). ''Guanxi'' can perpetuate a never-ending cycle of favors.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ostrowski|first=Pierre|title=It's all Chinese to Me: an overview of culture & etiquette in China|year=2009|publisher=Tuttle|isbn=978-0-8048-4079-8|pages=48–49|author2=Gwen Penner}}</ref>

The term is not generally used to describe interpersonal relationships within a family, although ''guanxi'' obligations can sometimes be described in terms of an extended family. Essentially, familial relations are the core of one's interpersonal relations, while the various non-familial interpersonal relations are modifications or extensions of familial relations.<ref name=":0" /> Chinese culture's emphasis on familial relations informs ''guanxi'' as well, making it such that both familial relations and non-familial interpersonal relations are grounded by similar behavioral norms.<ref name=":2">Hsuing, Bingyuan. “Guanxi: Personal connections in Chinese society.” ''Journal of Bioeconomics'' 15.1 (2013): 17–40. Print.</ref> An individual may view and interact with other individuals in a way that is similar to their viewing of and interactions with family members; through ''guanxi'', a relationship between two friends can be likened by each friend to being a pseudo elder sibling–younger sibling relationship, with each friend acting accordingly based on that relationship (the friend who sees himself as the "younger sibling" will show more deference to the friend who is the "older sibling"). ''Guanxi'' is also based on concepts like loyalty, dedication, reciprocity, and trust, which help to develop non-familial interpersonal relations, while mirroring the concept of [[filial piety]], which is used to ground familial relations.

Ultimately, the relationships formed by ''guanxi'' are personal and not transferable.<ref name=":0">{{Citation
  | last = Fan
  | first = Y
  | title = Questioning Guanxi: Definition, classification and implications
  | newspaper = International Business Review
  | date = December 11, 2007}}
</ref>

===In a business context===
In China, a country where business relations are highly socially embedded, ''guanxi'' plays a central role in the shaping and development of day-to-day business transactions by allowing inter-business relationships and relationships between businesses and the government to grow as individuals representing these organizations work with one another. Specifically, in a business context, ''guanxi'' occurs through individual interactions first before being applied on a corporate level (e.g., one member of a business may perform a favor for a member of another business because they have interpersonal ties, which helps to facilitate the relationship between the two businesses involved in this interaction).<ref name=":4">Flora F. Gu, Kineta Hung, David K. Tse. “When Does Guanxi Matter? Issues of Capitalization and Its Dark Sides.” ''Journal of Marketing'' 72.4 (2008): 12–28. Print.</ref> ''Guanxi'' also acts as an essential informal governance mechanism, helping leverage Chinese organizations on social and economic platforms. In places in China where institutions, like the structuring of local governments and government policies, may make business interactions less efficient to facilitate, ''guanxi'' can serve as a way for businesses to circumvent such institutions by having their members cultivate their interpersonal ties.<ref name=":4" />

Thus, ''guanxi'' is important in two domains: [[social ties]] with managers of suppliers, buyers, competitors, and other business intermediaries; and social ties with government officials at various national government-regulated agencies. Given its extensive influential power in the shaping of business operations, many see ''guanxi'' as a crucial source of [[social capital]] and a strategic tool for business success.<ref name=":2" /> Thanks to a good knowledge of ''guanxi'', companies obtain secret information, increase their knowledge about precise government regulations, and receive privileged access to stocks and resources. Knowing this, some economists have warned that Western countries and others that trade regularly with China should improve their "[[Cultural Competency|cultural competency]]" in regards to practices such as ''guanxi''. In doing so, such countries can avoid financial fallout caused by a lack of awareness regarding the way practices like ''guanxi'' operate.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://montrealgazette.com/mobile/business/fp-business/Links+with+China+bring+long+term+pain+study/7203689/story.html|title = Dancing with the Dragon: Canadian Investment in China and Chinese Investment in Canada|date = September 2012|last = Smart|first = Josephine}}</ref>

The nature of ''guanxi'', however, can also form the basis of [[patronage|patron–client relations]]. As a result, it creates challenges for businesses whose members are obligated to repay favors to members of other businesses when they cannot sufficiently do so. In following these obligations, businesses may also be forced to act in ways detrimental to their future, and start to over-rely on each other. Members within a business may also start to more frequently discuss information that all members knew prior, rather than try and discuss information only known by select members. If the ties fail between two businesses within an overall network built through ''guanxi'', the other ties comprising the overall network have a chance of failing as well.<ref name=":4" /> A ''guanxi'' network may also violate [[bureaucratic]] norms, leading to [[corporate corruption]].<ref>{{Cite journal|title = The changing Chinese culture and business behavior: The perspective of intertwinement between guanxi and corruption|date = 2008-02-02|last = Luo|first = Yadong|doi=10.1016/j.ibusrev.2008.02.002|volume=17|issue = 2|journal=International Business Review|pages=188–193}}</ref>

Note that the aforementioned organizational flaws ''guanxi'' creates can be diminished by having more efficient institutions (like [[open market]] systems that are regulated by formal organizational procedures while promoting [[Market competition|competition]] and innovation) in place to help facilitate business interactions more effectually.<ref name=":4" />

In East Asian societies, the boundary between business and social lives can sometimes be ambiguous as people tend to rely heavily on their closer relations and friends. This can result in [[nepotism]] in the workforce being created through ''guanxi'', as it is common for authoritative figures to draw from family and close ties to fill employment opportunities, instead of assessing talent and suitability. This practice often prevents the most suitably qualified person from being employed for the position.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Jun|first=Lin|author2=Steven X. Si|title=Can guanxi be a problem? Contexts, ties, and some unfavorable consequences of social capital in China|journal=Asia Pacific Journal of Management|year=2010|volume=27|issue=3}}</ref> However, ''guanxi'' only becomes nepotism when individuals start to value their interpersonal relationships as ways to accomplish their goals over the relationships themselves.<ref name=":5">Verhezen, Peter. "''Guanxi'': Networks or Nepotism?: ''The dark side of business networks''." ''Europe-Asia Dialogue on Business Spirituality''. Ed. Laszlo Zsolnai. Antwerpen: Garant, 2008. 89–106. Print.</ref> When interpersonal relationships are seen in this light, then, it is usually the case that individuals are not viewing their cultivation of prospective business relationships without [[bias]]. In addition, ''guanxi'' and nepotism are distinct in that the former is inherently a social transaction (considering the emphasis on the actual act of building relationships) and not purely based in financial transactions, while the latter is explicitly based in financial transactions and has a higher chance of resulting in legal consequences.<ref name=":5" /> However, [[cronyism]] is less obvious and can lead to low-risk [[sycophancy]] and empire-building [[bureaucracy]] within the internal politics of an organisation.

''Guanxi'' has a bigger impact on leader-subordinate relations in [[State-owned enterprises of China|China's state-owned enterprises]] (SOEs) than in private enterprises.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|page=146}} This is because evaluation systems in SOEs are generally more subjective than in private enterprises.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|page=146}}

===In a political context  ===
For relationship-based networks such as ''guanxi'', reputation plays an important role in shaping interpersonal and political relations. As a result, the government is still the most important stakeholder, despite China's recent efforts to minimise government involvement. Key government officials wield the authority to choose political associates and allies, approve projects, allocate resources, and distribute finances. Thus, it is especially crucial for international companies to develop harmonious personal relationships with government officials. In addition to holding major legislative power, the [[Government of China|Chinese government]] owns vital resources including land, banks, and major media networks and wields major influence over other stakeholders. Thus, it is important to maintain good relations with the central government in order for a business to maintain ''guanxi''.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = "Gūanxi ", government and corporate reputation in China: Lessons for international companies|last = Ying|first = Fan|date = 2007|journal = Marketing Intelligence & Planning|doi = 10.1108/02634500710774969|volume=25|issue = 5|pages=499–510|url = http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/1287}}</ref> However, the issue of ''guanxi'' as a form of [[government corruption]] has been raised into question over recent years.{{When|date=February 2020}} This is often the case when businesspeople interpret ''guanxi''<nowiki/>'s reciprocal obligations as unethical gift-giving in exchange for government approval. The line drawn between ethical and unethical reciprocal obligation is unclear, but China is currently looking into understanding the structural problems inherent in the ''guanxi'' system.<ref name="Harding 2014">{{Cite journal|url = http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic/?shr=t&csi=142678&sr=TITLE(%22Corruption%20or%20guanxi?%20Differentiating%20between%20the%20legitimate,%20unethical,%20and%20corrupt%20activities%20of%20Chinese%20government%20officials%22)%20and%20date%20is%202014|last = Harding|first = Jacob| title=Corruption or ''Guanxi''? Differentiating Between the Legitimate, Unethical, and Corrupt Activities of Chinese Government Officials |date = 2014|journal = UCLA Pacific Basin Law Journal| volume=31 | issue=2 | doi=10.5070/P8312025178 |doi-access = free}}</ref>

=== In a diasporic context ===
''Guanxi'' can be used as a school of thought that influences how ethnic Chinese think of and view society. The Chinese in the diaspora are more likely to adhere and connect to the group of people with shared background.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Yan |first1=Miu Chung |last2=Wong |first2=Karen Lok Yi |last3=Lai |first3=Daniel |date=2019-10-02 |title=Subethnic interpersonal dynamic in diasporic community: a study on Chinese immigrants in Vancouver |journal=Asian Ethnicity |language=en |volume=20 |issue=4 |pages=451–468 |doi=10.1080/14631369.2019.1613885 |issn=1463-1369|doi-access=free |hdl=10397/81298 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Moreover, diasporic communities might possess ties with individuals in their home country. Guanxi allows the diaspora to maintain their networks and foster close relations with people in their home country and form a subethnic enclave within society. Guanxi could also influence how the diaspora assimilates into the host country, and how the diaspora deals with racism in society. Groups that could be studied are  Chinese-Americans, Chinese-Indonesians who have faced prejudice in their host countries. Marred by the [[Los Angeles Chinese massacre of 1871|LA massacre in 1871]], [[1992 Los Angeles riots|''Saigu'' in 1992]], the [[Internment of Japanese Americans|Japanese American internment during World War II]], and the idea of the "Hindu Invasion",<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Erika |title=The Making of Asian America: A History |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2016 |pages=161–163}}</ref><ref>Lockley, Fred (2011-07-19). "Fred Lockley, "The Hindu Invasion: A New Immigration Problem" (1907)". ''Pacific Monthly''. Retrieved 2023-11-24.</ref> the Asian Americans already in the United States faced discrimination from the wider American society. They had to find solutions based on trial and error, looking for legal, political, and social ways to find their place in society.<ref name=":02">Anne Chao and Chris Chan, “The Gees of Houston: Networking for Strength and Survival,” ''Transnational Asia'' vol. 3, no. 1 (2019)</ref>