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SOSC 103D Social Inequality in HK. Lecture 8: Hong Kong Dream . Social Mobility in Hong Kong. Recapture the Main Findings: Open and Mobile High mobility rate (net rate = 53.6%) Change of economic and occupational structure Structural mobility rate = 23.1%
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SOSC 103DSocial Inequality in HK Lecture 8: Hong Kong Dream
Social Mobility in Hong Kong Recapture the Main Findings: • Open and Mobile • High mobility rate (net rate = 53.6%) • Change of economic and occupational structure • Structural mobility rate = 23.1% • An expansion of professional, managerial and administrative posts (class I and II) • A vast shrinkage of the small shop-owners (and self-employed artisans) L8: 04.10.06
Hong Kong Dream • Social belief: • Abundant opportunities for upward mobility • One’s efforts and abilities are keys of success • A product of collective mobility experience • Implications: • Optimistic & Social Stability L8: 04.10.06
Inequality in Social Mobility Mobility Chance: • This is a question about the equality of opportunity • Given the available opportunities, do people from different backgrounds have an equal chance of improving their social position? L8: 04.10.06
Outflow statistics • Where have people (the sons) gone? L8: 04.10.06
Upper and upper-middle class: • Self-recruitment(45.2%) • The fathers are able to ensure their sons to stay in the advantaged social positions. • The children of these managers and professionals are very likely to remain in the social position as their fathers • Working class: • Retention (49.6%) • The fathers are unable to push their sons to leave the disadvantaged social positions. • The children of manual labour (skilled to unskilled labour) are very unlikely to leave the working class. L8: 04.10.06
Inflow statistics • Where are these people (the sons) from? L8: 04.10.06
Upper and upper-middle class: • Heterogeneous • Most of those who are now in advantaged positions are newcomers. • People who are in high social positions actually come from different class origins. • Working class: • Homogeneous • About half of those who are now in disadvantaged positions are actually born in disadvantaged families. • Great majority of them have fathers from either working class or lower-middle class. L8: 04.10.06
Q: Is your present job just a means for earning a living, or does it mean much more to you than that? L8: 04.10.06
Q: Some people say that if the boss is to make a profit, he has to exploit his worker. Do you agree? L8: 04.10.06
Hong Kong Dream?! • Main Observations: Alongside the openness, there is also some rigidity • Alongside the optimistic view, are there stress and frustrations? How about nowadays Hong Kong? L8: 04.10.06
Readings: Wong, T & Lui, T.L. (1992) Reinstating Class: a Structural and Development Study of Hong Kong Society. Occasional Paper no.10. Hong Kong: Social Sciences Research Center, HKU. P.48-81 L8: 04.10.06