In the run-up to the changeover of sovereignty in 1997, Hong Kong’s future intermingles, in a number of ways, with that of China. It is therefore important to ascertain whether people in these places see eye to eye. As the driving force of China’s development, young people and their civic awareness do inpinge on the direction and orientation of the society at large. Given it vital significance, civic awareness becomes the theme of the captioned Study Series which is designed to solicit young people’s views. Since 1995, our research area expended to Shanghai and started the Comparative Youth Study Series, conducted jointly by the Youth and Juvenile Studies Institute of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS). Topics included: “Youth and Careers” and “Youth and Stress” in 1995; “Courtship and Merriage” and “Family and Fertility” in 1996.

September 22, 2017

Individual and Society

  This study, Individual and Society, with special focus on desirable social conditions, media contact, personal development and social awareness, is the first of the Study Series on civic awareness. 533 young people, aged 15 to 29, were sampled in Hong Kong, 500 were sampled in Guangzhou and 505 in Beijing. This comparative youth study provide much information to better understand young people in Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Beijing. Major findings: Young people in Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Beijing share the same desire for social stability and a sound legal systeim in respect of the most important social conditions; Over […]
December 1, 1996

Family and Fertility

  The aim of the study is to assess the views of young people in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong on family and feritily.   Major findings:   1. Young people consider the feeling of love between a couple as a main contributor to a conjugal marriage. The survey demonstrated that young people considered the feeling of love, such as “having compatible personalities” and “fidelity and affection”, between a couple as the main contributor to a conjugal marriage.   2.Young people treasure the values of freedom, independence and equality in a husband-wife relationship When asked how a couple should handle […]
October 1, 1996

Courtship and Marriage

  This study aime to study how a rapidly developing society influences young people in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong on Courtship and Marriage.   Major findings: 1. Young people and courtship Young people nowadays enjoy a high degree of freedom in choosing their marriage partners. A majority of young people in the four cities opted for “moral character, personality and temperament” as the main criteria in choosing a marriage partner. It reflected that young people paid more attention to integrity than to external factors, such as “income” and “family background” as criteria in choosing a marriage partner. 2. Young people […]
December 1, 1995

Youth and Stress

  This study is aim to study how the rapidly developing society influences young people in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong, to discover what causes them most stress and how they deal with it. Major findings: The rapid development of the four cities has certain effects on the psychological state, behaviour and values of young people. This has caused some similar response amoung Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong youth. Nonetheless, since the speed of development in the four cities is quite different, the uniqueness of each city has also been reflected in the local young people’s choices. -End-
June 1, 1995

Youth and Careers

  Until the 1980’s, employment in China was planned and administered by the state who monopolized the allocation of jobs. However, the employment policy of China has changed drastically since the implementation of the open-door policy and the economic reform. This study, sampled in Hong Kong (510 respondents), Beijing (520 respondents), Shanghai (534 respondents) and Guangzhou (499 respondents), looks into the views of the young people of the four places in four main areas: career choice, job evaluation, work attitudes and future prospects. Many questions yielded very useful findings, such as what are the young people’s preferred careers? What organizations […]
December 1, 1994

Government and Politics

  It is the fourth, and the last, of the Comparative Youth Study Series on civic education. In 1997, Hong Kong will transfer from a British colony to a Special Administrative Region under Chinese rule. It would be an interesting idea to know and understand the similarities and differences of young people’s reaction to such changes. This study will examine four main areas: political participation, political conception, government polices and civil servants. A total of 522 young people aged between 15 and 29 were successfully surveyed in Hong Kong, 499 from Guangzhou and 491 from Beijing. A very useful reference […]
October 1, 1994

Nation and Ethnicity

  It is the third of the Study Series on civic education. The present survey is aimed at tapping young people’s views on the following four aspects: ethnic identity, relationship with the country, expectations of China and one country two systems. Result of the findings are of much reference for better understanding on young people in different places. For example, in the aspect of ethnic identity, about 80 to 90 per cent of the Mainland respondents were proud of being Chinese, whereas only over half of the Hong Kong respondents also felt a sense of pride, about 35 per cent […]
July 1, 1994

Law and Ethics

  As a British Colony, Hong Kong belongs to the Common Law jurisdiction, whereas China is a socialist society and its legal system aims to further the goal of socialism. In these varying political, social and economic environments, it is pertinent to know the legal conceptions and moral standards of the young people in Beijing, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. The present study revolves around the following four aspects: moral standard, value judgment, legal conceptions and legal confidence. The comparison on the findings of the study has revealed much interesting phenomenon and thought-provoking. Major findings: Young people in Hong Kong, Guangzhou […]