The present paper investigates the differences in ethical perceptions between Chinese and Singaporean employees. Two contrasting predictions based on socialization theory are tested using 142 Chinese and 141 Singaporean employees as subjects. Results show that Chinese employees tend to infer a greater degree of unethical (bribery and corrupt) intent than Singaporean employees in 17 of the 25 ethical vignettes. The converse is found in only two and no significant differences are found in the rest of the vignettes. Implications for international managers and assignees and researchers in international business working on or in China are discussed.