當費孝通與梁漱溟討論中國與西方的差異時，關係主義被認為是標誌中國文化的最重要特徵。但是人類學民族誌的研究卻指出以角色關係來決定互動的方式也是初民社會的主要運作原則。另一方面，在理解人類社會的演變時，不少西方學者認為超越角色的相對性關係是進入現代性的重要指標。因此，當他們以關係主義來區別中國與西方的不同時，費孝通與梁漱溟反將中國置於西方所認定的演化初階。我們可以不接受這種西方觀點。有趣的是先秦諸子卻也有著類似的線性史觀，認為必須超越「親親」的關係主義，才能在人口眾多的複雜社會建立起有效的社會秩序。關係主義的必然後果是以負面的態度對待與自己沒有關係的陌生人。本文以此說明為何現代西方與先秦諸子皆認為關係主義是必須要超越的對象，指出以負面態度對待陌生人將無法在大規模社會建立起有效的社會秩序。陌生人之間該如何相處是複雜社會必須面對的問題，而現代西方與古代中國各自提出了不同的回應方式。本文比較了兩者之間的差別，討論了他們在結構上各自產生的後遺症；並從後遺症的角度推測兩者在面對全球性整合時呈現出現的優劣。

In their eagerness to find a sharp contrast between China and the West, Fei Xiaotong and Lian Shuming contended social relationalism or guanxi to be the very fabric of Chinese society. This article argues against this thesis not so much by denying the existence of social relationalism as by questioning its appropriateness in understanding China as a complex society. I point out that the most important structural problem for every complex society is to establish social order among strangers, people who are not personally related. This is substantiated by the Chinese social theories of the Warring-States period more than two thousand years ago. Most of them claimed the calculation of kinship distance from one’s self was the cause of social chaos. To solve the problem of strangers, they proposed a ladder model that evaluated people by an absolute standard of merit. The relative positions on the ladder provide coordination for social interaction. This article also compares the ladder model with the dualistic model most prominent in the modern West.