Hong Kong adolescents' social identities and conceptualization of modernization

• Main Authors: LAM, Shui-Fong, LAU, Ivy Yee-Man, CHIU, Chi-Yue, HONG, Ying-Yi
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 1998
• Subjects: Asian Studies; Social Psychology
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/248
• Institution: Singapore Management University

The present study examines the relationship between social identity of Hong Kong adolescents and their conceptualization of modernization. A focus group and a questionnaire survey have been used to establish the relationship. Participants can be categorized into four groups according to the social identities they claimed for themselves: (1) Hongkongers, (2) Hongkongers and only secondarily Chinese, (3) Chinese and only secondarily Hongkongers, and (4) Chinese. In both studies, about 75% of the adolescents belonged to (1) and (2) and about 25% belonged to (3) and (4). The questionnaire study finds that only secondarily Chinese tend to have a Stronger sense of pride of being Hong Kong people. Relative to the groups (I) and (2), groups (3) and (4) also tend to think that mainland Chinese are inferior to Hong Kong people and that Chinese people and culture are inferior to their Western counterparts. Furthermore, all the respondents tend to agree that modernization of China require whole-hearted Westernization. There exists a close relation among their social identity, their evaluation and comparison of Western and Chinese culture, and their conceptualization of westernization and modernization.