Educational course "Ethnopsychology" department of oriental studies, faculty of humanities, NSU: block "Ethno-psychological characteristics of the Chinese"

As a response to the constant expansion of cross-ethnic interactions in the modern world and the primary significance of familiarity with psychology of other nations for future oriental specialists, this block was developed as part of 032100.62: «Oriental and African studies» in 2013-2014 for bachelor students of the Oriental studies department of the Faculty of Humanities. It continues the basic course «Introduction to the specialty» and serves as an indispensable basis for the disciplines of the following years. The main goals of the course «Ethnopsychology» are: to clarify the area of problems studied by the discipline and ethno-psychological aspects of intercultural communication; to familiarize students with the topics of ethnic identification and self-consciousness; to teach practical application of knowledge of ethno-cultural processes. The course features lectures and seminars and has five parts: I. The subject of ethnic psychology: main stages of development; II. Major trends of modern ethnopsychology; III. Methods and procedures in ethnopsychology; IV. Ethnos and ethnicity. These four parts lay the theoretical basis covering the history of the science, its terminology and approaches. Parts III and IV prepare students for mastering the final, practical part. V. Ethno-psychological temper of the Buddhist civilization. General ethnopsychological characteristics of the Asian nations and comparative analysis. The seminar is divided into three blocks corresponding with three countries: China, Korea, and Japan. As it was the Chinese civilization that was a cultural model and a religious donor for surrounding states, the China block is the first out of the three and itself contains ten topics to be covered. Traditional Chinese approach to national mentality studies. Students make comparisons to Western methods and look into such peculiarities as collectivism, spiritual work, etc. to note that the Western psychology of the individual cannot be mechanically transferred onto the Chinese ground. 2. Exposition of the Chinese ethnic psychology in the Chinese and foreign historiography. The Chinese mentality. Stereotypes of perception of «the others». Messianic role of China as a center of the human civilization. Stratagem as a specific concept of the Chinese mentality and Chinese business ethics. Pragmatism and crafty plans and schemes as an art, a type of behaviour, and the source of the Chinese flexibility. Ethno-psychological characteristics of the Chinese childhood culture. Religious syncretism of the Chinese and the priority of the Confucian Virtues. The East as «the culture of shame» versus the West as «the culture of guilt». The concept of face as image and reputation. Chinese worldview. The concepts of space and time, the concrete and the abstract, and the influence of the hieroglyphics. Features of the Chinese humour and aesthetic perception. Ethno-psychological characteristic of the Chinese diaspora. During seminars students obtain an idea of the major psychological characters of the Chinese nation, formative stages of their ethic identity and ethnic stereotypes, as well as learn to compose a comprehensive psychological portrait of a certain ethnos.