ب [أنتونيو] [فوندوك]

فكاهة يقترح نظرية أنّ فكاهة وضحك طرق بدائيّة من يشير أخبار جيّدة ويقبل في مجموعة. يتلقّى إحساس عاديّة فكاهة يستطيع كنت اختبرت ك يشارك رمز سرّيّة. يقول فكاهة أيضا شيء حول الشخص عبّر عن فكاهة كثقة, ذكاء ويوقّت كلّ يتطلّب لبئر يوضع ملاحظة فكه.

فكاهة يتطلّب القدرة أن يستجيب إلى أخرى في العزم وإستعماله يستطيع كنت فعّالة في يصعب مفاوضة حالات. مثلا, يشبك في فكه تفاعل حق عقب يصعب خاطبت [أجندا يتم] يتلقّى يكون يمكن عملت كإطلاق التوتر. أخيرا, فكاهة يمكن مثّلت طريق فعّالة من يدير [غنإكسي] بين يفاوض أحزاب.

عندما يأتي هو إلى صينيّ فكاهة [إين برتيكلر] أنا أحبّت أن يشارك زوج القصص. هذا أولى قلت واحدة يتلقّى يكون إلى ي بصينيّ:

[دنغ] [إكسيوبينغ], عندما كان هو حيّة, تلقّى زائرة - الرئيس أمريكيّة - الذي أحضر هبة عجيبة. هو كان هاتف من أيّ أنت استطاع دعات أيّ شخص, موتى أو حيّة, تصور رقم أو شخص حقيقيّة. جعل [دنغ] [إكسيوبينغ] ثلاثة دعوات: الأولى واحدة إلى ال [أوس] رئيس أن يشكره للهبة; الثاني دعوة إلى [ك.]. كان [إلي], واحدة من السياسيات صادقة أكثر أنّ يتلقّى في أيّ وقت يعيش في الصين (هو في سماء [أت ث تيم وف] الدعوة); الدعوة ثالثة إلى [مو] [زدونغ] (في جحيم). [لتر ون], حصل [دنغ] [إكسيوبينغ] هاتف فاتورة وكان فاجأت بما أنّ هو لم يلائم توقعاته. He called the telephone company and said that he had received a strange bill with only two calls registered. The lady said that she would go and check and soon came back to say that it was very simple really, “the call you made to Mao was a local call”

This second story, extracted from an interview with a Western director at a large firm in Nanjing, further depicts the characteristics of Chinese mentality and humor.

In a negotiation setting, my Chinese counterpart suddenly burst out, “I really like win-win situations. First I win, and then – I win again, ha ha”. The Chinese can often be quite straightforward in their behavior. They can look at you, really gazing you in the eyes and tell you the most unexpected things, just like that. In another occasion, my Chinese counterpart gazed at me and said, “The other suppliers have accepted to the terms and conditions and you have to comply, ha ha, otherwise your competitors will get the contract, ha ha”

What can we learn from these stories? To begin with, we need to dig deeper to really understand the underlying forces of the Chinese mentality. We also need to remain open minded as prejudice and taken for granted opinions can be quite deceitful.

The strategic uses of humor in the stories include:

- To make oneself appear stupid and weak
- To communicate the forbidden and unspoken
- To critique indirectly
- To mask threats

In the latter story, in the viewpoint of the Chinese, he is purely stating the obvious. His behavior is not necessarily rude, although it understandingly may be interpreted as such. He conveys his message, using humor as a tool to mention the forbidden. He might be laughing to hide his nervousness. He might be using humor as ways of releasing tension. He might not only be protecting himself, but also the Westerner’s feelings by conveying his statements indirectly. Certainly, the Chinese are well known to avoiding saying “no” straight out (rather they tend to use any of the plethora of ways of saying no indirectly).

How can we view his laughing, this seemingly rude behavior, in a different light? Many times, this behavior is about saving face. He might laugh since the matter is sensitive. He might feel uneasy and perhaps even be embarrassed, thus trying to hide this in his laughter. At the same time, his behavior might also be interpreted as an honest reminder of the power balance in the relationship, i.e. his bargaining strength.

Undoubtedly, there are several possible interpretations. In any case, try to avoid assuming the worst or the first thing that instinctively comes to mind. Remain open minded and try to really understand the underlying intentions.

Finally, how can we ourselves use humor to our advantage in our business relations? We can use it reactively and proactively:

- as an ice breaker
- to smooth and speed up the courteous phase
- as a way of fishing for information
- to say things that cannot normally be expressed (taboos, masked orders etc.)

Hence, humor not only provides a strategically effective method for argumentation, but also serves to mask true meanings and making direct statements appear indirect. Successful use of humor may also serve to express discontent, since it permits the speaker to express a problem while at the same time saving face.