Newsletter (Issue 1)

We are thrilled to announce and congratulate our faculty members on receiving the General Reseach Fund (GRF) and Early Career Scheme (ECS) awards in the 2026/27 Funding Exercise!

• General Reseach Fund (GRF): Prof. Alex PREDA
• Early Career Scheme (ECS): Prof. Plamen Ivanov AKALIYSKI

This achievement reflects the dedication and hard work of our award recipients throughout the application process. We would also like to thank everyone who contributed to and supported the preparation of the proposals. Congratulations to all our awardees once again!

Congratulations to Dr. Lulu LI on receiving Honourable Mention for the Best Paper Award 2025 from the Hong Kong Sociological Association (HKSA), for her co-authored article ”Downward geographical mobility and upward social mobility: Women’s return migration and entrepreneurship in China’s small cities and remote counties“.

Her article explores how women’s return migration can be motivated by complex goals and expectations, ranging from perceived economic opportunities to noneconomic needs. It challenges the core-to-periphery stereotypical narrative in migration study.

Congratulations to Prof. Frankie WONG on receiving Best Oral Presentation Award from the Singapore Conference on Ageing and Health 2026, for his presentation titled "Who needs digital designs for older people? Ageism and agency in technology use".

The article examines how “age-friendly” digital designs can unintentionally reinforce ageism by treating older adults as a homogeneous group defined mainly by chronological age. It finds that functional challenges may vary among individuals. The age cohort and techno-social culture could shape the digital habits of individuals more than age itself.

The study argues digital designs should better integrate into an accessibility-based inclusive design framework that addresses functionally-related challenges. Also, they suggested that digital literacy should be promoted in ways that suit the demographic backgrounds and techno-social culture of older adults, fitting into their already-established habits in handling technologies.

Huge congratulations to Prof. CHIU Tuen Yi Jenny on receiving the Teaching Excellence Awards Scheme 2025/26 from the University on 27 April 2026.

These well-deserved honours recognise the outstanding dedication to teaching and their innovative approaches in the classroom. The passion for education continues to make a lasting impact on both students and colleagues. Let’s celebrate this remarkable achievement together and look forward to even more inspiring contributions from our teaching community.

How do we define academic freedom in an increasingly diverse and pluralistic world?

The seminar series is an activity regularly organized by the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at Lingnan University. International and local scholars are invited to present their latest research to the community.

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Benjamin MULVEY from the University of Glasgow to discuss "Theorising Academic Freedom in a Plural World."

As non-Western systems increasingly shape global knowledge production, Dr. Mulvey will examine the limits of cultural relativism. Drawing on thinkers like Said, Sen, and Benhabib, he will explore how we can apply academic freedom in a context-sensitive way while preserving the essential conditions for meaningful dialogue, dissent, and public reasoning.

The seminar series is an activity regularly organized by the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at Lingnan University. International and local scholars are invited to present their latest research to the community.

In this session, Prof. Salvatore BABONES from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Sydney, will deliver a seminar titled "Assessment as Instruction: Best Practice for the AI Age".

The Department of Sociology and Social Policy, Lingnan University, is pleased to present a new seminar in its regular seminar series. In this session, Prof. Lucille Lok Sun NGAN (Department of Social Science, The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong) will deliver a talk.

Studies of affluent East Asian migrants often emphasise their pragmatism but overlook how they negotiate the paradoxes they encounter when settling or resettling in host countries. Drawing on in-depth interviews from several projects with 57 middle- and upper middle class Hong Kong migrants at three life stages—older parents (60+), middle aged returnees, and international students—in Australia and Canada, I show that their experiences are marked by conflicting sentiments amid downward career paths, curtailed social lives, challenging family transitions, and divergent lifestyle aspirations. In response, these three groups construct a shared narrative of achievement that simultaneously acknowledges the limitations of their social mobility, difficulties in forming friendships, the emotional strains of geographical separation from stay-behind parents, and mismatches between anticipated and lived lifestyles. This narrative helps mitigate distress as participants navigate pressures to fulfil specific social roles and life-stage goals. I argue that making sense of the migration experiences of well-resourced migrants from Hong Kong requires a perspective that goes beyond economics to encompass social, familial, and lifestyle ramifications. I also underscore the value of a life-course perspective for understanding how relatively privileged migrants construct their migration experiences and for informing more comprehensive support systems attuned to their multifaceted experiences.

The Department of Sociology and Social Policy, Lingnan University, is pleased to present a new seminar in its regular seminar series. In this session, Prof. LU Shiyu (Department of Social Work and Social Administration, The University of Hong Kong) will deliver a talk.

Amid rapid population ageing and rising demands on formal care systems, timebanking has re-emerged as a promising form of social innovation that mobilises community assets, strengthens reciprocity, and complements conventional social care services. This talk examines how timebanking can enhance the sustainability of community based social care settings by facilitating productive ageing (e.g., volunteering), expanding collective caring capacities, and enriching older adults’ access to alternative life chances and everyday care fulfillment. Drawing on the author’s conceptual framework of social capital for healthy ageing, the presentation highlights the potential for timebanking to shift the paradigm from a deficit oriented model of ageing to one that recognises and activates older adults’ capabilities. The presentation will also discuss the sustainability of timebanking in Hong Kong and outline potential future directions for advancing this form of social innovation within the local care landscape.

Our seminar series is a regular academic platform bringing together international and local scholars to share cutting-edge research with the academic community.

In this session, we are pleased to welcome two distinguished speakers:

- Prof. Andreas HADJAR (University of Fribourg)
“Societal Characteristics and Inequalities in Subjective Wellbeing along Different Axes”

- Prof. Mohsen JOSHANLOO (Keimyung University)
“Beyond Happiness: Eudaimonic and Wealth-Adjusted Perspectives on Global Well-Being”

The Department of Sociology and Social Policy, Lingnan University, is pleased to present a new seminar in its regular seminar series. In this session, Prof. SONG Jing (Gender Studies Programme, The Chinese University of Hong Kong) will deliver a talk.

Drawing on survey and interview data from rural China, this talk examines how urbanization and resettlement housing reshape family property arrangements. While male-dominated property systems are largely reproduced, the findings reveal nuanced interplays of gender, generation, and family structure, highlighting both continuity and change in rural gender inequality.

Join us for a thought-provoking talk by Dr. Tony Huiquan ZHANG (University of Macau) exploring how different types of women leaders—substantive vs symbolic—shape public perceptions of women’s leadership potential.

Drawing on large-scale archival data and power dynamics theory, this study introduces the substantive leadership effect—showing that women in real decision-making roles can significantly shift perceptions of female leadership capacity. Dr. Zhang also reveals key gender differences in these perception shifts, providing insights into how representation can reshape political trust and expectations.

Join us for a compelling presentation by Prof. JIN Lei (CUHK) hosted by the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at Lingnan University.

The talk explores how Chinese physicians navigate institutional reforms through varied strategies—ignoring, coerced compliance, superficial adoption (decoupling), and full engagement—and what these responses reveal about professional autonomy in complex healthcare settings.

Join us for an insightful seminar about how research on civilizational security and social cohesion tacitly fuels the return of “civilizations” to geopolitical forecasting!

Speaker: Dr. Greg LEWICKI (Vice President, International Society for the Comparative Study of Civilizations)

Drawing on his work in civilizational foresight, Dr. Lewicki will explore how civilizational identities — including culture, religion, and political traditions — shape international behavior and geopolitical outcomes. The session also introduces the comparative civilizational turn as a new, interdisciplinary lens for global forecasting.

Professor OLIVOS has recently published the article "‘Like a Fish in the Water’: Subjective Well-Being and the Alignment of Perceptions of Democracy With Political Structures" in Sociological Forum. Focusing on perceptions of democracy, this study examines how discrepancies between personal perceptions and two dimensions of political structures shape subjective well-being (SWB). Using data from the EVS–WVS 2017–2022 across 85 countries, the research team shows that alignment between personal perceptions of democracy and collective societal representations is associated with higher SWB. This article is part of Dr. Olivos GRF project "Institutional logics and subjective well-being across nations."

Women's and men's equal participation in work, education, and politics rests upon widespread public support for gender equality. While notable increases in support for gender equality over the past decades have been celebrated, existing evidence is limited by a predominant focus on Western societies. Utilizing data from the World Values Survey and European Values Study covering 78 countries that represent >86% of the global population, we examine how population-level support for gender equality in the public sphere changed between 1995 and 2022, both globally and across different cultural and socioeconomic contexts. Our results indicate that, although public support for gender equality increased in most countries, it stagnated in the global population as a whole. Moreover, there has been a pronounced and increasing divergence across countries, particularly between Western and non-Western societies. We attribute part of the stagnation in global public support for gender equality to demographically induced compositional effects. Namely, we find that (i) changes in the national composition of the global population have constrained increases in global public support for gender equality; (ii) fertility is higher in countries where average support for gender equality is lower; and (iii) fertility is higher and occurs earlier among women with less egalitarian views. Given that parents typically transmit their gender-related views to their children, higher and earlier fertility among persons with less egalitarian views has likely constrained global growth in gender egalitarianism. We call for a closer examination of how demographic processes influence global trends in gender egalitarianism.

In this new open access paper in Climatic Change, Dr Ginbert Permejo CUATON (Research Assistant Professor) and his Filipino and Australian colleagues critically compared nature-based solutions (mangrove forests) and grey infrastructure (seawall) as climate adaptation schemes in the Global South. Their analysis reveals that while seawalls were perceived to provide higher protection and durability, they were also associated with higher rates of internal displacement and financial costs. In contrast, community members positively viewed mangroves' ecosystem services on top of providing feelings of safety in times of weather extremes. Ultimately, the paper provides evidence that nature-based solutions offer a more equitable and cost-effective pathway to resilience by delivering superior natural capital and community stewardship at a fraction of the investment required for grey infrastructure.

Dr Cuaton and his colleagues are grateful to the Sydney Environment Institute of the University of Sydney, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Eastern Visayas State University in the Philippines for funding and supporting this research. This study contributes to our teaching and research interests on Environmental Sociology (human societies-environment relations) at the Department of Sociology and Social Policy Lingnan University.

This paper, led by Dr Ginbert Permejo CUATON, critically examines how climate-related planned relocation constitutes domicide- the deliberate destruction of homes beyond the material/ infrastructural sense. Based on fieldwork data in the Philippines, they developed a conceptual framework to understand how domicide unfolds gradually through disruptions to material-economic, socio-communal, ecological-geographic, and identity-cultural dimensions, driven by institutional logics prioritising physical safety and economic development while neglecting the relational and place-based characteristics of home.

Key takeaways:

• Post-disaster spatial designations and urban restructuring rendered coastal settlements uninhabitable and reoriented access to land and livelihoods, illustrating how domicide operates collectively and is enabled by the urgency of disaster response.
• While participatory mechanisms and tenure security can mitigate some harms, planned relocation often produces losses beyond physical displacement, including economic hardship, cultural rupture, and social fragmentation.
• Domicide is not merely an unintended consequence but an inherent risk of adaptation policies when they overlook the full spectrum of what constitutes home, emphasising the need to recognise and address these interconnected risks to foster just and meaningful climate futures.

This paper is in collaboration with Dr Justin SEE (The University of Melbourne) and Dr Scott WEBSTER (The University of Sydney), and forms part of the Department of Sociology and Social Policy's research interests on Environmental Sociology and Environmental and Social Policy.

A new systematic review used an intersectional analytical framework to map the intersectional drivers of stigma in neglected tropical diseases across multiple countries, linking structural discrimination to poorer access and outcomes — and calling for equity-focused, intersectional policies and community-led interventions. Essential reading for policymakers, practitioners, funders, and global health advocates.

This article moves beyond the usual focus on migrant parents and left-behind children to examine the triadic relations among grandparenting migrants, their adult children, and grandchildren. It shows how transnational care is shaped by multigenerational negotiations, emotional labour, and shifting power relations, and how grandparents continue to support their adult children while also contesting parenting practices. The article deepens understanding of emotional transnationalism by highlighting the intergenerational ambivalence that emerges in family life across borders.

Dr. OLIVOS' study, in collaboration with Dr. Yusuf OLDAC (EduHK), shows declining collaboration and leadership with the EU, rising partnerships and funding links with China, and growing unfunded collaborations across Asia and North Africa. These early post-Brexit trends signal a major reconfiguration of the UK’s global research network.

Ever wondered what it’s really like to be a food delivery rider or a paid caregiver in Hong Kong? Prof. AU-YEUNG Tat Chor just published a fascinating study in the Journal of Asian Public Policy, and it’s a must-read if you care about work, welfare, and precarity.

What he looked at:

How Hong Kong’s “welfare capitalism” – weak social protection, flexible labour laws, and policy-driven demand – shapes platform work (hello Foodpanda, Deliveroo, private care apps).

Key findings (spoiler: it’s tough out there):

• No unemployment benefits → some workers turn to platforms, but then can’t access welfare or injury compensation because of their precarious status.
• Weak labour protection + gov’t “light touch” on false self-employment = risks pushed onto workers, lower costs for platforms.
• Care marketization & public health policies boosted demand for private care & delivery services – basically, the state helped create the platform market.

Why it matters:

The study shows how the welfare state isn’t absent – it actively shapes platform work, making workers more vulnerable while giving platforms power. Real-life evidence from an Asian context (not just US/EU stories).

If you’re a rider, caregiver, researcher, or just someone ordering takeout 3x a week… this hits close to home.

Our new open-access paper in Community, Work & Family, co-authored by Dr Kwaku Abrefa Busia and Ama Frimpomaa Oware (Department of Social Work, University of Ghana) draws attention to the rise of multiple jobholding and hybrid entrepreneurship and policy lag in addressing the unique concerns of many workers outside standard employment. Traditional policies (including organisational policies) fail these workers due to the entrenchment of a single job paradigm. We propose inclusive policy reforms—redefining employment, strengthening safety nets, and supporting diverse career paths— that align with today’s plural and diversified labour economy.

Family isn’t always about blood…

This paper, based on a study from Zimbabwe shows how faith and spirituality help care leavers redefine family. Here's what the study highlights:

• Church support can be a viable alternative for the biological family in times of crisis and when the family is absent.
• Faith in God can anchor care-experienced individuals through life’s storms.
• Care leaver voices matter in shaping inclusive policies.

Huge congratulations to Sociology graduate MA Jingwan for receiving the prestigious 2025 President’s Award! While achieving the highest Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 3.87 in the Class of 2025 is a formidable achievement, Jingwan's university journey was never purely about the pursuit of grades. We are incredibly proud of her exceptional academic success and the refreshingly grounded attitude she maintains toward this impressive accolade.

We are pleased to share that Chen Ying, Skylar (Sociology, Year 3) has received the Poster Award at the Hong Kong Sociological Association (HKSA) 26th Annual Conference! Her award-winning poster, “From Street Gangs to Syndicates: A Multidimensional Hierarchical Typology of Organized Criminal Groups in Mainland China and Hong Kong”, was presented at this year’s conference hosted by the Department of Sociology, Hong Kong Baptist University, which brought together over 180 participants from 36 institutions worldwide.

Congratulations to LI Hui-sin (Sociology, Year 1) for receiving the WeCan Scholarship 2025! This scheme provides four years of funding to support her university studies. As an awardee, she will join the Project WeCan alumni network and actively participate in community service to make meaningful contributions to society.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club held its Scholarships and Fellowships Award Presentation Ceremony and High Table Dinner on 28 April. In recognition of their academic performance and dedication to service, Matthew CHAN Nok-fung (Sociology, Year 2) was one of the students who were awarded The Hong Kong Jockey Club Compassionate Leader Scholarship.