OMG your hair looks so cute! One thing young Chinese love about American culture

American culture has lost its appeal in China in recent years. Hollywood movies and Apple iPhones are on the outs. Taylor Swift is popular but gets marked down for never touring in China. But one aspect of American culture that is making inroads in some circles: Flowery compliments.

Across China, groups are forming — both online and in real life — to seek and offer praise and encouragement and appreciation, often to and from total strangers. That’s a practice common across the United States but completely foreign in China and other parts of East Asia, where showing humbleness by…