This thesis aims to investigate the influential causes of culture shocks experienced by Chinese business
expatriates, and meanwhile to reveal their difficulties in the cross-cultural adaptation in international business
contexts. The research was conducted on the base of a semi-structured interview and an on-line survey among 80
Chinese business expatriates who came from a wide range of corporations and organizations. Through a
quantitative-and-qualitative analysis, eight major influential causes of culture shock were identified, namely,
business communication, language, individualism, collectivism, power distance, time orientation, religion, and
tradition. The study also found that all Chinese expatriates encountered some cultural shocks in international
business context and were greatly affected by communication, language, religious and traditional issues. The
study further revealed three major difficulties in the cross-cultural adaptation: poor adaptability of business
communication, language barriers and heavy pressure from work duties. Finally, based on the findings, several
effective measures for a better cross-cultural adaptation were proposed.