Introduction

The implications of the ongoing and often rapid change in China deserve elaboration, because there is more involved than is at first apparent. A real problem arises, however, if American and Chinese societies hold different underlying assumptions concerning the relative roles of stability and change. Contemporary China presents a completely different picture. The problem is particularly serious in China where rapidly changing social and economic conditions require an equally rapid change in the rules to be applied. In addition to problems stemming from inadequate knowledge or from differences in conceptual approach or underlying assumptions, the lack of identical terms in the languages can cause confusion and misunderstanding. The Chinese have a very appropriate term to describe short surveys of the type attempted: "looking at flowers from a galloping horse.".