Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study aims to investigate the identity of Chinese businesspeople in a South African context. This is to determine whether their knowledge of and application of the traditional Confucian concepts of ‘guanxi’ (relationships) and ‘mianzi’ (face) offer that community any tangible benefits to negotiating and maintaining business relationships. While much has been written of the group’s early history, more could be done to determine their contribution toward South African society today. Bilateral trade with China and domestic job creation are just two areas where more research could develop our mutual understanding, given our unique relationship with China. South Africa is the only African country to invest in China and is also home to the largest and longest standing Chinese community in Africa. A self-administered questionnaire was disseminated to previously identified groups of Chines businesspeople located within the metropolitan Cape Town area. The purpose was to collect data that would provide practical assistance to inform local South African business people on how to tailor their approach to interact in commercial enterprises with their Chinese counterparts. The prospect was that better understanding of Chinese culture and historical traditions may prove a meaningful tool to bolster intercultural relationships. This could then lead to enhanced business relationships and a better understanding of this misunderstood and marginalised community. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie beoog om die identiteit van Sjinese besigheidsmense binne ’n Suid-Afrikaanse konteks te ondersoek. Dit is om te bepaal of hulle kennis asook die toepassing van hulle tradisionele Konfusiaanse konsepte van ‘guanxi’ (verhoudings) en ‘mianzi’ (aansien) hulle gemeenskap enige tasbare voordele ten op sigte van die onderhandeling en instandhouding van besigheidsverhoudings bekom. Terwyl daar alreeds redelike skrywe omtrent hierdie groep se vroeë geskiedenis bestaan, kan daar baie meer gedoen word om vas te stel wat hulle bydrae tot vandag se Suid-Afrikaanse gemeenskap is. Bilaterale handel met Sjina en plaaslike werkskepping is slegs twee areas waar verdere navorsing wedersydse begrip kan bevorder, siende ons unieke verhouding met Sjina. Suid-Afrika is die enigste land in Afrika om in Sjina te investeer en is ook die tuiste van die grootste asook die mees lank bestaande Sjinese gemeenskap in Afrika. ’n Selftoegediende vraelys was versprei onder voorafgeïdentifiseerde groepe van Sjinese besigheidsmense wat in die Kaapstadse metropool gevestig is. Die doel was om data te versamel wat doelmatige bystand kan lewer vir die Suid-Afrikaanse besigheidsgemeenskap om hulle ’n pasgemaakte benadering tot interaksie met handelsondernemings met hulle Sjinese eweknieë te kan gee. Die vooruitsig was dat beter kennis van die Sjinese kultuur en hulle historiese tradisies ’n betekenisvolle instrument sal wees wat interkulturele verhoudings sal versterk. Dit kan dan aanleiding gee tot verbeterde besigheidsverhoudings en ’n beter begrip van hierdie misverstane asook gemarginaliseerde gemeenskap.

Thesis (MSc)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Differences between the therapist and the client such as differing genders, social classes, races, cultures and languages, inevitably influence the therapeutic situation. This research assignment reviews the literature available concerning multicultural counselling. the variables which therapists contend with in a multicultural therapeutic situation and the state of multicultural therapy in South Africa. The main body of this assignment focuses on the training experiences. as well as the countertransfcrential experiences. of therapists from a minority group with specific attention given to South African Chinese therapists. Also included are helpful ways of addressing the potential difficulties that arise in a therapeutic relationship where the culture or race of the therapist and client differ. In closing, this assignment asks what gaps exist in the literature with regard to South African Chinese therapists and what further research would be required to fill these gaps. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Verskille tussen die terapeut en die kliënt. soos verskillende geslagte. sosiale klasse. rasse. kulture en tale. beïnvloed die terapeutiese situasie onvermydelik. Hierdie navorsingsopdrag hersien die literatuur wat beskikbaar is ten opsigte van multikulturele voorligting. die veranderlikes waarmee terapeute te doen kry in 'n multikulturele terapeutiese situasie en die toestand van multikulturele terapie in Suid- Afrika. Die vernaamste deel van hierdie opdrag fokus op die opleidingservarings. asook die teenoordragervarings. van terapeute wat van 'n minderheidsgroep afkomstig is, met spesiale aandag aan Suid-Afrikaanse Chinese terapeute geskenk. Ook ingesluit is nuttige maniere om die potensiele struikelblokke wat in 'n terapeutiese verhouding ontstaan. waar die kultuur of ras van die terapeut en kliënt verskil. aan te spreek. Om afte sluit. hierdie opdrag bevraagteken die leemtes wat voorkom in cl ie Iiteratuur met betrekk ing tot Su id-A Crikaanse Ch inesc terapeute en watter verdere navorsi ng sal benodig word om hierdie leemtes te vul.

International business is much more complicated than domestic business because countries differ in many ways. Countries have different political systems economic systems. Cultural practices can vary dramatically from country to country, as the education and skill level of the population, and countries are at different stages of economic development. Moreover, development of multinational strategies involves consideration of threats, opportunities, key success factors, and strategy options and issues that do not appear when the analysis is restricted to operations within a single country. In particular, the evaluation of a market must take into account the political and economic risks associated with individual countries. Thus the external analysis becomes much more demanding. South Africa's trade and industrial policy has moved away from a highly protected, inward-looking economy towards an internationally competitive system that is able to capitalize on its comparative advantages. Enhancement of the competitiveness of industries on the domestic and international markets has consequently become a prime focus of the country's industrial policy. International trade in textiles and clothing is conducted on an immense scale. Textile and clothing producers were responsible for 9.3 per cent of world exports of manufacturers in 2001. Barriers to entry for new firms and exporters are low, and consequently the degree of international competition is intense. Competitive advantage is very difficult to sustain for long periods of time. Newcomers speedily challenge successful exporters of basic products, and they must redirect their activities towards the production of higher value-added textiles and clothing in order to survive and prosper. As a world's fifth largest trading power, China economy expands promptly through their expert skills on technology, management, and labour-intensive products. Today, China represents between 5 to 10% of global output, their export market will continue to grow rapidly, and not only for their labour intensive products, but also for the higher technology goods and services that are an increasing proportion of China's output as it climbs up the production ladder. Textile industry represents a main role towards China's economy. However, due to the fast-moving pace of globalisation, it has increased the maturity on the product-life cycle of the industry. Multi-national organizations from China have a choice to extend their global reach, due to the government export incentive programme, the maturity companies can diversify their firms to emerging market in order to exploit their technological advantages and invest internationally . If firm's primary goal is to maximize their shareholder's value, then they and probably the economy are better off if they invest where they can earn the best return. As they do so, change in the global macro-environment further confounds the choices inherent in building a strategic organization. Some understanding of the organization's external and internal environment always drives strategy, as an international organizational better choice. In the most general sense, the long-run monetary benefits of doing business in South Africa are a function of the size of the textile and clothing market, the present wealth (purchasing power) of consumers in the market, and the likely future wealth of consumers. Also the Chinese's multi national companies can have the opportunity to gain export market in USA, Canada, Europe and other trade countries in South Africa. In order to achieve economic growth and competitiveness in South Africa, it is recommend that the several issues cutting across the textile industrial sector need to be addressed through knowledge transfer, training, investment and management. Develop innovative technologies to strengthen the competitiveness. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

The small Chinese community in South Africa has played an important part in the economic and political life of South Africa. From 1660 to 1912, it reflected the experiences of migrant Chinese who left the mainland during and after centuries of isolation. This thesis therefore examines the Chinese in South Africa in the context of a growing historiography of the overseas Chinese, noting particularly the comparisons with other colonial societies, such as the United States of America and Australia. It is also concerned with tracing the history of the free Chinese at the Cape in the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, before engaging in a more detailed discussion of the period of indentured Chinese labour on the Witwatersrand gold mines in the early twentieth century. Although the political economy of indenture has been copiously dealt with in recent historical research, the focus here is more on the social and cultural dimensions of Chinese labour, including aspects such as privacy, sexuality and living conditions in the compound system. This cultural history is interpreted against the background of political and legislative developments in South Africa leading to the formation of the Union in 1910. One of the main arguments of the thesis is that the indentured labour scheme had profound repercussions for the racial status of the free Chinese in the late colonial period. The different experiences of the Chinese in the Cape and the Transvaal are given special attention to illustrate regional patterns of social stratification, and explain the vicissitudes of race relations in South Africa up to 1912. In the Cape it led to subjection under the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1904, while in the Transvaal it resulted in political involvement in the initial phases of Mahatma Gandhi's "satyagraha". Cultural exclusivity and minority status are at the heart of this· analysis and are indices of how the Chinese were brought under the yoke of segregation, which anticipated the oppression of apartheid after 1948. / History / D. Litt. et Phil. (History)

With South Africa attaining democratic status in 1994 and the establishment of diplomatic relations with the People‟s Republic of China a “new wave” of Chinese migration into the country began (Park, 2009). Although the Chinese migrants and their business enterprises are visible on the streets of Durban's city centre and surrounding towns, their lives seem shrouded with secrecy. This study was therefore conducted with the aim of understanding the social and economic lives of the Chinese traders living and working in the city of Durban. Interviews and participant observation methods were utilised in order to obtain qualitative data. The analysis of the data indicates that the main priority of traders is to grow their business in order to prosper; therefore their social and economic activities revolve round the activity of trading. Although crime and language barriers deter Chinese migrants from being more active within South African society, their "Chinese shops‟ serve as spaces where they negotiate relationships with diverse people, including their workers and customers. Social, distribution and supply networks are also found to be imperative in order for migrants to effectively conduct their business. It was also noted that social networks, knowledge of the English language, positive experiences in the host country and length of time spent in the country contributes to traders adapting to South Africa. This study also indicates that the future of Chinese migrants in South Africa hinges on the micro and macro conditions of the host country, traders overcoming language barriers as well as maintenance of social networks that provide support to the migrant trader. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

The small Chinese community in South Africa has played an important part in the economic and political life of South Africa. From 1660 to 1912, it reflected the experiences of migrant Chinese who left the mainland during and after centuries of isolation. This thesis therefore examines the Chinese in South Africa in the context of a growing historiography of the overseas Chinese, noting particularly the comparisons with other colonial societies, such as the United States of America and Australia. It is also concerned with tracing the history of the free Chinese at the Cape in the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, before engaging in a more detailed discussion of the period of indentured Chinese labour on the Witwatersrand gold mines in the early twentieth century. Although the political economy of indenture has been copiously dealt with in recent historical research, the focus here is more on the social and cultural dimensions of Chinese labour, including aspects such as privacy, sexuality and living conditions in the compound system. This cultural history is interpreted against the background of political and legislative developments in South Africa leading to the formation of the Union in 1910. One of the main arguments of the thesis is that the indentured labour scheme had profound repercussions for the racial status of the free Chinese in the late colonial period. The different experiences of the Chinese in the Cape and the Transvaal are given special attention to illustrate regional patterns of social stratification, and explain the vicissitudes of race relations in South Africa up to 1912. In the Cape it led to subjection under the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1904, while in the Transvaal it resulted in political involvement in the initial phases of Mahatma Gandhi's "satyagraha". Cultural exclusivity and minority status are at the heart of this· analysis and are indices of how the Chinese were brought under the yoke of segregation, which anticipated the oppression of apartheid after 1948. / History / D. Litt. et Phil. (History)

Chinese presence in Africa has been rapidly increasing in the past few years and has been speculated to be mainly due to China seeking Africa’s political alliance and access to Africa’s natural resources and growing consumer markets. The growing presence of Chinese organisations in Africa, however, has not been without its challenges. In particular, Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) in search of consumer markets in Africa have been cited as facing human resource (HR) challenges which may affect their organisational performance. In this regard, literature on human resource management has already established the important role of organisational culture, HR practices and organisational commitment in enabling organisations to achieve superior organisational performance. Given the fact that there is currently little research knowledge of Chinese presence in Africa at the organisational level, this research aimed to contribute empirical knowledge to the growing body of research in this area. Specifically, the main purpose of this research was to examine how the organisational culture of a Chinese MNC’s South African subsidiary has shaped the nature of its high commitment work system (HCWS) and to assess the consequences thereof on organisational commitment. In alignment with the phenomenological paradigm, the research applied a descriptive and explanatory case study methodology in order to generate rich, qualitative data which was required for in-depth descriptions and to uncover the underlying interactions of the researched phenomena at the subsidiary. The selected case for the research was, therefore, a Chinese MNC operating in the personal computer (PC) industry, which had expanded its operations to South Africa in order to reach Africa’s growing consumer markets. In particular, the South African subsidiary served as a PC sales and distribution organisation for the Chinese MNC. There were about 40 employees at the subsidiary who were all South African employees. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with twelve employees from different job functions and across different job levels. Data collection was guided by the theoretical frameworks by Cameron and Freeman (1991) for organisational culture and Xiao and Bjorkman (2006) for the HCWS and organisational commitment. The data collected from interviews was then analysed through a qualitative, content analysis process. The findings of the research thus pointed to the market culture as the dominant organisational culture type at the South African subsidiary of the Chinese MNC; characteristics of the adhocracy and clan cultures were also discovered. The externally oriented market culture was found to be the most relevant for the high performance and market leadership aspirations of the subsidiary. The market culture also appears to be the most appropriate organisational culture that would enable the subsidiary to deal with the competitive nature of the PC industry. Furthermore, it was found that certain cultural values emphasised by the Confucian and Ubuntu value systems could have had a part to play in the formation of the subsidiary’s organisational culture. The market culture was also found to have had the greatest influence in shaping the primarily performance oriented HCWS practices. Of the investigated HR practices at the subsidiary, all were found to be consistent with HCWS practices, with the exception of ownership practices and the performance appraisal system. Finally, although there were generally high levels of organisational commitment reported at the subsidiary, other job and organisational context factors besides the HCWS practices were found to be the major contributors to those feelings of organisational commitment. By investigating the organisational culture, HCWS and organisational commitment of a Chinese MNC in South Africa, this research has added to the body of knowledge concerning the growing presence of Chinese organisations in Africa. Based on the empirical findings of this study, several recommendations have been made in an attempt to assist the Chinese MNC manage the organisational commitment of its South African employees towards superior organisational performance.