Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.
This is a qualitative data collection. The research used online survey and face-to-face interviews of British Chinese respondents. A survey by the Guardian in early 2005 revealed the low level of integration among Chinese people, who reportedly felt the least British among all minority groups in Britain. The issue is usually overlooked in relation to a group which appears to be well integrated and successful in higher education. In addressing the cultural and political marginality of the British Chinese, this study explores the emergence of British Chinese web sites and their potential to enhance the social inclusion and political participation of British Chinese people. The project sought to explore these new forms of participation such as discussion forums and online petitions. The ability of online communication to connect a dispersed population is particularly significant for the British Chinese, as unlike many other minority ethnic populations, they are highly scattered throughout Britain, with no local authority area having more than 2% of its residents as Chinese. This research addressed two key questions: How are ethnic identities shaped by the communicative practices and social networks developed in these internet forums? Does contributing to these British Chinese sites enable new forms of participation and offer evidence of an emergent ‘second-generation’ civil society? The key findings of the study suggest that 1) For many British Chinese users, access to the social networks (online and offline) and information resources on these sites provided a key means of meeting other British Born Chinese people (BBC). 2) These British Chinese internet sites facilitated reflection on experiences of racism, minority status, and belonging, and provided an empathetic arena to reflect on the issues raised by living in a multicultural context. 3) The varied exchanges on these web sites reveal how users are grappling with the disjuncture between the simplistic ideal of ‘integration’ and the complex reality behind the seemingly unproblematic lives of well ‘integrated’ minority Britons. 4) Participation on these internet sites is creating the infrastructure to constitute an emergent British Chinese civil society, and is drawing a hitherto underrepresented group into the public domain. Various political initiatives have been mobilized via these web sites, both online and offline. 5) The content and communications stimulated by these British Chinese internet sites have not overcome a lack of understanding of, and engagement with, the formal political process among the British Chinese. Further information about the project may be found on the British Chinese On-line Identities: Participation and Inclusion ESRC award web page.
Main Topics:
Topics covered in the interviews include Chinese culture and traditions, ethnicity, communication, internet usage, discrimination, family and educational background, identity, integration, networking, political attitudes and participation, social capital, employment, multiculturalism and stereotypes.
Online survey
Face-to-face interview
Self-completion
