Perception is part of human nature. Human beings began to perceive the world from the moment they were born. Chen and Starosta (1998) state that human perception is a process of perceiving the world using the human brain. This process is firmly influenced by a person's primary culture, meaning that people interpret the meaning of others' behavior based on their cultural backgrounds and personal experiences. Scollon and Scollon (2001) assert that based on their perceptions, people make assumptions about others and then choose the appropriate communication style in order to reduce confusion and avoid miscommunication. Therefore, I agree that people "make important assumptions about what kind of person the other person is and what kind of person (they) would like us to think of them as", regardless in their country of origin or in a foreign country (Scollon and Scollon, 2001, p35). Making assumptions appears to be a natural process, unconsciously influenced by the individual's cultural background and native language during primary and secondary socialization. However, when people communicate with people from different cultures, they need to think carefully about the assumptions they have made, as stereotypes related to their original language and culture could have negative consequences. So, we must learn to let go of stereotypes and be an effective communicator. China is a country with great power distance in which age, occupation and economic position are important markers of different statuses (Hofsted, cited in Chen and Starosta, 1998; Hofsted, cited in Linzey, 2011). China has been deeply influenced by Confucian philosophy, which requires Chinese people to show respect to other members of society and lead them to clearly distinguish between in-group and out-group members...... middle of the article ......e appropriate assumptions to avoid communication errors. Meanwhile, people also intend for other people to think about them. People want to use acceptable assumptions to gain understanding from others in order to achieve their communication goals. When communicating with people from different cultures, people tend to interpret the language and behavior of others using a generalized culture. Generalized culture, which represents the beliefs of the majority within a culture, helps people form appropriate assumptions about that culture. However, ignoring individual differences can lead to stereotyping, which could lead to prejudice of different intensities, such as misunderstanding, discrimination and mass killing. Therefore, people must abandon stereotypes and build a multicultural perspective by accepting and learning from other cultures in order to achieve effective communication..