Is Your Stratagem Showing? the U.S. Lack of Understanding Chinese Characteristics in Information Warfare

China conducts information warfare in a different way than the United States. While there have several studies by American or Western authors on China's information operations, many times they are devoid of a discussion on stratagems, a concept which makes China's information warfare program truly Chinese. It is important for Americans and other Westerners to understand stratagems since they make Chinese information warfare more easily understood. This paper used a literature review methodology in order to learn what information is available in open-source documentation and what information has been discussed in American media. There is information discussed in several avenues in American scholarly journals, but little is said about the concept of stratagems. Without an understanding of stratagems, American and Western scholars, researchers, and military leaders risk seeing Chinese information warfare as a mirror image of Western information warfare and losing any potential information war confrontation. This concept of stratagems is difficult to understand in the United States because it is not common in the American lexicon. The purpose of this paper is to provide historical information about the 36 stratagems from ancient China, still used in today's political and military realms, and how they can be adapted to today's information warfare. With an understanding of information warfare with Chinese characteristics, Americans and Westerners will have a better grasp of Chinese information warfare theory and practice.