A positive relation between altruistic orientation and family social environment was found in a sample of 287 Chinese children in Hong Kong. High altruistic orientation was strongly associated with cohesive and harmonious family environment in which there were small amounts of openly expressed anger, aggression and conflict among family members. Altruistic orientation was also high in families which emphasized on intellectual and cultural activities. The relations of other family environmental characteristics to altruistic orientation were also investigated. The findings were interpreted in terms of the characteristics of the Chinese culture.