Two Sides And Sincerity

This study begins with the psychological problem of the dual character of Chinese and is a deep description of Chinese concept of the self from the hermeneutical view.The problem of the dual character is one in indigenous psychology, which is raised in the context of the discussion about the methodology on indigenous research. When it is discussed, the problem of authenticity is inescapable for the research context, the dual character and authenticity are two related concepts with which we describe the self-identity. So beginning with the problem of the dual character, the researcher has to deal with a complex problem including some sub-problems, and the complex problem is intertwined with the issues on methodology.This paper describes the Chinese dual character on three levels: there seem to be some distance between the public self and the private self on the individual level, the "gong wo"("da wo", big self) and the "si wo"("xiao wo", small self) on the level of "cha-xu pattern"(differentiate pattern), the "xian wo"(expressive self) and the "yin wo"(inexpressive self) on the level of " ". These three levels appear in the context in turns: on the latter level, the contents on the former level should be absorbed. Because the "guan xi" (interpersonal relation) centers the Chinese concept of the self, the dual character of Chinese can not be described on the individual level. When the level of "cha-xu pattern" (differentiate pattern) is entered, the perspective is expanded from individuals to social relations. However, the distinction between "gong" and "si" could not be determined only by the categories of social relations, it will be determined only if emotions and motivations are considered in certain situations. On the level of " situation-centered", the public/private dimension of individuals and the big/small dimension of the categories of social relation are considered together. This is an inter-subjective level, only on which can we enter into the course of emotional communication, and discuss the relation between the dual character and authenticity.The limitation of positivism must be exceeded in order to interpret the course of emotional communication. The paper discusses the methodology of social sciences, beginning with the dialogue between a psychologist, K. Gergen, and a social theorist, C. Taylor. They diverge at the crossroads, that is, when one gives up the positivist view and chooses the inter-subjective perspective, whether or not should he discusses the inner problems about emotions and motivations. The paper reviews the "thick description" of an anthropologist, C. Geertz, and the "verstehen" of a socialist, M. Weber, and argues that one should interpret the meaning of emotions and motivations when we describe human actions. The hermeneutical deep description is a method to describe the inner psychological course from the inter-subjective perspective. It is useful to describe a rich, dynamic self concept with inner "depth".The paper reviews research on western individualist authenticity, and designs a dialogical approach to describe the construction of authentic emotions of Chinese. It argues, the fact that the "guan xi" (interpersonal relation)centers the Chinese concept of the self does not mean that Chinese have not inner, authentic emotions. There is inherent relation between the two Chinese words, "qing" (emotion) and "zhen"(truth); the thought of "yin" purifies Chinese emotions; the inner "depth" of Chinese is constructed around the "guan xi" (interpersonal relation). The paper describes the dynamic dual character: the expressions of emotions are detoured in situationsbetween "xian wo" (expressive self) and "yin wo" (inexpressive self) to construct harmonic "guan xi"(interpersonal relation)s; the authentic emotions of the "guan-xi self'(self of interpersonal relation) are constructed as well as harmonic "guan xi" (interpersonal relation).