How important is the factor of being a Hong Kongnese in their everyday social relationships inside a residential complex : In what way do Hong Kongnese in residential complexes in Guangzhou interact with locals in their everyday life
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2012-02
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en
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In this research I started by explaining the interactions between different cultures and how
the situation for the Hong Kongnese was after they were a colony of the British Empire. By moving to
another city, they would experience a new society, which would lead to a flux of social dimensions.
This is, thus, movement of people, identity and culture. Two of the most influential scholars in this
field were Geert Hofstede and Shalom Schwartz. Hofstede’s and Schwartz’s work focuses on different
cultural dimensions. Hofstede argues that his work can only be seen in context with history. It is this
history which distinguishes the Hong Kongnese from the Guangzhounese. The British occupation is
the reason behind this. Although Hong Kong has a history before 1841, when it was handed over to
the British, all the relevant parts that have shaped Hong Kong in present time can be dated back to
colonialism (Abbas, 2002). ‘Another point to note is that while 98 percent of the population is ethnic
Chinese, history (both colonial history and history of the mainland) has seen to it that the Hong Kong
Chinese are now culturally and politically quite distinct from mainlanders’ (Abbas, 2002, p. 2).
Schwartz’s his work focuses on seven different values, while Hofstede framework has five notions .
There are several differences between both concepts. First Hofstede derived his framework
empirically, while Schwartz’s framework is derived theoretically. Hofstede’s data was collected in
twenty-three countries while Schwartz’s data was collected in thirty-eight countries. Table x shows
the notions which both researchers have in common and on which they disagree.
Hofstede’s framework is based on five notions, of which I use four; these are power distance
index (PDI), individualism (IDV), uncertainty avoidance index (UAI), and long term orientation (LTO).
PDI relates to the extent to which less powerfull members of a society accept and expect power to be
distributed unequally. IDV relates to the degree how individuals are intigrated into a group. UAI
relates to a society’s tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity. LTO relates to issues that deal with
virtue regardless of the truth. Several limitations were pointed out. Firstly, Hofstede’s dimensions are
based upon the idea of national culture, while over the last decade several scholars made a case for
globalisation and glocalisation. Secondly, gated communties are abundant in Chinese society. In
general, gated communities decrease interaction with neighbours and the neighbourhood.
Furthermore, this can create social segregation (Le Goix, 2005; Vesselinov, 2008).
In chapter three, I handed out some basic information from the survey. Sixty percent of the
researched population was male, while forty percent was female. Forty percent of the population
was between twenty-five and forty-five. Furthermore, the questions of length of Guangzhou
residency, and their reason for living there have been answered.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen