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Confucianism and teachers’ conceptions of gratitude in China
Author(s)
Date Issued
2024
Citation
Jackson, L., Harrison, M. G., Ying, J., & Yan, F. (14 Apr 2024). Confucianism and teachers’ conceptions of gratitude in China. 2024 American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, US.
Type
Conference Paper
Abstract
Gratitude has recently received increasing attention as a virtue worth cultivating in schools. However, previous research has often been based on experiences in western societies, while moral values and moral cultivation are understood in different ways across cultural contexts. This exploratory qualitative study examines teachers’ conceptions of gratitude and their experiences of cultivating gratitude in schools in mainland China. Based on semi-structured interviews, the findings highlight Chinese teachers’ culturally distinctive conceptions of gratitude and its cultivation, namely its role in developing relationships and maintaining social harmony, and the importance of acts of reciprocity. This study develops a more substantive cross-cultural understanding of the nature of gratitude and practices of moral cultivation in schools.
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