Chinese Studies Commons^™

How To Be The Perfect Asian Wife!, Sophia Hill

Art and Art History Honors Projects

“How to be the Perfect Asian Wife” critiques exploitative power systems that assault female bodies of color in intersectional ways. This work explores strategies of healing and resistance through inserting one’s own narrative of flourishing rather than surviving, while reflecting violent realities. Three large drawings mimic pervasive advertisement language and presentation reflecting the oppressive strategies used to contain women of color. Created with charcoal, watercolor, and ink, these 'advertisements' contrast with an interactive rice bag filled with comics of my everyday experiences. These documentations compel viewers to reflect on their own participation in systems of power.

Seeing Witchcraft, Bernhard Udelhoven

Journal of Global Catholicism

When Christians in Zambia struggle with witchcraft, they also struggle with African cultural and religious concepts that deal with life’s ambiguities and that require discernment. It is not by working against the cultural and religious heritage, but by working with it, as far as possible, that the pastor can identify the broken relationships towards which many witchcraft discourses point. However, before we place the concepts of witchcraft into the realm of superstition (as are the trends of mission Christianity) or the demonic (as are the trends of charismatic Christianity), the Church has the duty to look at the concepts, stay …

Allocutio: Articulating The Task For The Future Of African Catholicism, Mary Sylvia Nwachukwu

Journal of Global Catholicism

This essay charts how Catholicism can become more indigenously African and respond better to African needs and concerns.

The Chinese Cultural Influence On Filipino Cuisine, Brandon Chase Lantrip

Master's Theses

This paper illustrates the impact of the Chinese cultural influence upon the Philippines with the primary focus being on Filipino cuisine. It examines how the Chinese cultural influence not only contributed to the development of Filipino cuisine, but how Chinese culture has also influenced the everyday life and culture of the Philippines through language and customary practices for over a millennium. The first section of the paper analyzes the cultural connection between China and the Philippines. The second section illustrates the Chinese language influence and it’s effect upon Filipino cuisine and culture. The third section explores the contested origins of …

Motivations And Obstacles On The Long Walk To Integration: Determinants Of Six Cape Town Chinese Immigrants’ Political Participation, Yawen Tsao

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Political participation is a fundamental component of democracy. But the level of immigrants’ political participation is generally lower than for people who are perceived as natives. This paper identifies the determinants of six Chinese immigrants’ political participation in Cape Town, part of a group that has a long history of political integration but is still often seen as passive and apolitical. It argues and tests the effect of five main determinants related to the length of residence, interaction with the local Chinese association, socioeconomic background, language ability and prior political experience, and social perceptions. Data comes from interviews conducted with …

Contested Moral Issues In Contemporary African Catholicism: Theological Proposals For A Hermeneutics Of Multiplicity And Inclusion, Stan Chu Ilo

Journal of Global Catholicism

Drawing upon the broad work of Vatican II and Pope Francis’ Evangelicum Gaudium the article proposes how a hermeneutic of multiplicity and inclusion could help hold in balance the tension between tradition and innovation, universal principles and specific contextual application for Catholicism in Africa. Among the issues addressed are cultural relativism, natural law theory, and polygamy.

Patterned Fluidity Of Chinese Ethnic Identity: Networks, Time, And Place, Cynthia Baiqing Zhang

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

This study tests the salience/prominence of Chinese ethnic identity by applying identity theory, social identity theory, and social network analysis. Using survey data of Chinese graduate students in two universities in the United States, I show how Chinese ethnic identity salience varies with the percentage of Chinese in an individual’s ego network revolving around him or her. In addition, among newcomers to the United States, as the percentage Chinese in ego networks increases, the decline of Chinese identity salience/prominence declines, but for old timers in the United States, as the percentage Chinese increases, the decline of Chinese identity salience/prominence is …

Impacts Of Migration On Mosuo Cultural Identity: A Case Study Of The Mosuo People In Lijiang, Isabel Ullmann

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

China is currently in the midst of the largest labor migration in human history and yet we know very little about the cultural impact on the migrants themselves. For many ethnic minorities, like the Mosuo, who have been isolated from urban, if not Han, influence for much of their history, this migration is sure to result in some cultural disruption. As a matrilineal culture defined by large extended families traced by the matriline, a distinct, non-exclusive sexual-reproductive system, a housing layout that reflects religious beliefs and social structure, and a fluid interplay of the local ddaba religion and Tibetan Buddhism, …

Evaluation Of A Community-Based Positive Youth Development Program For Adolescents With Greater Psychosocial Needs: Views Of The Program Participants, Daniel T. L. Shek, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Moon Y. M. Law, Zoe Zhao

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The present study attempted to investigate the perceptions of Chinese secondary school students with greater psychosocial needs of the Tier 2 Program in the community-based phase of P.A.T.H.S. Project in Hong Kong (n=4245). Using a subjective outcome evaluation tool (Form C), the results revealed that a great majority of the students held positive attitudes toward the program, implementers and the effectiveness of the program. Also, the three domains of the program (“program quality”, “implementer quality” and “program effectiveness”) were significantly associated with each other. In line with previous findings, both program content and program implementer quality were significant predictors of …

Evaluation Of A Community-Based Positive Youth Development Program In Hong Kong: Views Of Program Implementers, Daniel T. L. Shek, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Xiaoqin Zhu

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Using a subjective outcome evaluation method, the current study investigated program implementers’ perceptions of the Tier 1 Program of the community-based P.A.T.H.S. Project in Hong Kong. After completion of the program, 599 program implementers completed a valid and reliable scale (i.e. Form B) to give their ratings on program content, their own performance, and perceived program effectiveness. As expected, most program implementers perceived the program in a favorable way by giving very positive ratings on the three aspects measured in Form B. Grade differences on the ratings were observed, with implementers teaching the senior curriculum held more positive views on …

Subjective Outcome Evaluation Of The Community-Based P.A.T.H.S. Project: Views Of Program Implementers, Daniel T. L. Shek, Janet T. Y. Leung, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Jing Wu

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The present study adopted subjective outcome evaluation to examine program effectiveness from the views of implementers (N=375) who implemented the community-based Tier 2 Program of the Project P.A.T.H.S. in Hong Kong. The results revealed that most of the program implementers were satisfied with the program content, their own performance, and program benefits. In agreement with previous studies, the satisfaction ratings of both program content and implementer performance positively predicted perceived program benefits. Regarding the influences of different program delivery approaches, programs with the “interest-enhancement” (INT) element received a more positive evaluation from implementers than did the programs without that element. …

Nature And Human Flourishing In The Laws Of Manu And The Daodejing, Qijing Zheng

Honors Theses

By comparing the interpretation of dharma in the ancient Indian Laws of Manu (Manusmṛti) with the concepts of dao in the Chinese classic, Daodejing, this thesis discusses that, despite the plausible perception that the former represents despotic, hierarchical governance while the latter promotes freedom (and even anarchy), the two texts in fact share a similar envision of human flourishing through the following of one's nature, as well as a foundational belief that both laws and political ideals emerge from nature.

Individual Differences In Intentional And Unintentional Exposure To Online Pornography Among Hong Kong Chinese Adolescents, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Daniel T. L. Shek, Catie C. W. Lai

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The current study aimed to test how gender and religion affect unintentional and intentional exposure to online pornography in Chinese adolescents. A total of 1401 secondary school students (age range from 11 to 16 years) participated in the study. Findings from multivariate analyses show that males reported higher levels of unintentional and intentional exposure to online pornography than females. Significant differences were found in adolescents’ religiosity, with students who had religious beliefs reporting a lower level of unintentional exposure to online pornography than their counterparts without religious beliefs. In terms of intentional exposure to online pornography, adolescents were more likely …

Individual And Family Protective Factors Of Intentional And Unintentional Consumption Of Online Pornography In Hong Kong, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Daniel T. L. Shek, Catie C. W. Lai

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The purpose of the current study was to explore how positive youth development and family functioning were related to unintentional and intentional exposure to online pornography in Chinese adolescents. A total of 1401 secondary school students (mean age=12.43) participated in the study. Findings suggested that positive youth development and family functioning were associated with lower exposure to online pornography. In particular, higher levels of spirituality, social competence, mutuality and communication were associated with lower levels of both types of exposure to online pornography. Discussion focuses on the importance of promoting positive youth development and family functioning as protective factors against …

Qualitative Evaluation Of A Service Leadership Subject In A Chinese Context, Daniel T. L. Shek, Jing Wu, Li Lin, Emma X. P. Pu

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Adopting a qualitative methodology, views of the students on a subject on service leadership were examined. Students taking the subject (n=153) were invited to use descriptors and metaphors to describe their experiences about the subject. Regarding the descriptors given by the students, most of them were positive in nature. Similar positive findings were obtained for the metaphors. The findings are generally consistent with those studies using the same methodology reported in the literature. In conjunction with other evaluation findings, the present findings suggest that students had positive experiences about taking the subject and regarded the subject to be able to …

Actually, Let’S Not Talk About Sex: The Value-Laden Sex Education Received By China’S Young Women, Allyson Tsu

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

El Rol De Los Supermercados Chinos En La Integración Social De La Población China En Buenos Aires / The Role Of Chinese Supermarkets In The Social Integration Of The Chinese Population In Buenos Aires, Dana Marrero

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Aunque la inmigración china es algo relativamente nuevo en la historia de Argentina, las personas de aquel país han tenido una presencia fuerte en la sociedad de Buenos Aires, la ciudad Capital. En gran parte, esto es debido al nicho económico en el que muchos de los trabajadores chinos se han concentrado: los supermercados. Los pequeños mercados de barrio manejados por dueños chinos son tan comunes que a menudo los porteños simplemente dicen frases como “voy al chino” para referirse a estos comercios. Y con razón: en el 2011, aproximadamente el 35% de todos los mercados de Argentina pertenecía a …

The Construction Of Touristic Modernity In Xizhou, Katherine E. Benton

Student Publications

Tim Oakes’ (1998) concept of touristic modernity accurately describes how the Chinese national discourse surrounding tourism, as both a tool for economic growth and nation-building, has shaped what the local reality has become for many towns and villages in the peripheral regions of China, especially those with large populations of ethnic minorities. Specifically in the Dali Bai Autonomous Region, foreign tourism followed by nostalgia-fueled domestic tourism has transformed Dali into a commercialized tourist destination, which has begun to spill out to other towns around the lake such as Xizhou. Touristic modernity is not, however, a singular homogenous force that culturally …

Evolving Patterns: Conflicting Perceptions Of Cultural Preservation And The State Of Batik’S Cultural Inheritance Among Women Artisans In Guizhou, China, Katherine B. Uram

Lawrence University Honors Projects

My exploration features Miao batik-making in Guizhou Province and explores several sets of overlapping questions. The first set focuses on the status of the craft of Miao batik-making and the perceptions of its future. Is batik-making a dying art form? To what extent is Batik-making a thriving cultural practice today, or do Miao in China (and other ethnic groups involved in batik-making) perceive an inheritance crisis? My next focus is on the role of institutions and the tourism industry. If taught less and less in the domestic sphere (traditions passed from mother to daughter), what role do public domains such …

The Price Of Cosmopolitanism: Globalization, Class Structure, And Language Endangerment In Shanghai, Fang Xu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Over the last two decades, Shanghai has experienced an unprecedented transformation, as China’s economic globalization and urban expansion have increased rapidly. Looking beyond statistics and architectural spectacles, I examine a seemingly personal choice in Shanghai, speaking Putonghua Mandarin, the official language, or the Shanghai dialect. This study contextualizes the contested urban linguistic space, and illustrates the political, social, and cultural conditions in this China’s globalizing city.

Through archival research, fifty in-depth interviews, two hundred and fifty survey questionnaires, and ethnographic fieldwork in Shanghai in the fall and winter of 2013, I document the impact of three sets of state policies …

Instead Of Silence: Chinese Nicaraguans And The Formation Of Identity Across Two Cultures, Lisa Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project studies the ways in which Chinese Nicaraguans have developed their identity while living in a country that is not their motherland. It investigates the divided history and experiences between the Chinese Nicaraguans that lived in the Atlantic coast and those that lived in the Pacific side. Also, it researches how the experiences of Taiwanese immigrants differed from those of the Chinese Nicaraguans who came from mainland China. By examining interviews done with Chinese Nicaraguans today, the essay will compile the long and unknown history of the Chinese Nicaraguans, as well as their many experiences of belonging and displacement …

The Chinese Housing Registration System (Hukou): Bridge Or Wall?, Andrew Kryshak

Political Science Theses and Capstones

In 1958 the Chinese government created the hukou housing registration system to control the migration of Chinese citizens from rural to urban areas. A person’s hukou has major implications on their lives; it controls food rations, medical benefits, quality of education, as well as movement within the country. I look to answer the question of whether the hukou can be seen as a bridge with which individuals achieve socially, or is it better seen as a wall that prevents social advancement. This has been a question that researchers have been looking into for many years but there has been no …

Globalization Of Taste And Modernity: Tracing The Development Of Western Fast Food Corporations In Urban China, Anastasia Gonchar

Student Publications

Food globalization has become an important topic in the discourse on globalization. There has been a rapidly rising trend of multinational food corporations integrating and dominating foreign agro-food markets. A clear example of this trend is present in China, whose economy and food industry experienced an influx of foreign direct investment and multinational retail and restaurant branches during the country’s economic opening in the 1980s. The aim of this research is to analyze the development of food globalization through the lens of Western fast food corporations and their successful integration into the Chinese market. The research also assesses the companies’ …

Proceso Identitario: La Vinculación Entre La Autoadscripción De Jóvenes Chinos-Argentinos En Buenos Aires, Argentina Y Las Oportunidades Laborales, Experiencias Educativas Y La Conservación Del Idioma Chino, Cassiopeia Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this research is to analyze the identity processes of Chinese/Taiwanese-Argentinean young people in Buenos Aires, Argentina and connect their self-identifications with experiences and decisions related to education, careers, and cultural preservation. The narrative of Chinese and Taiwanese immigrant experience in Argentina traditionally focuses on the role of these immigrants in the supermarket sector of the economy, emphasizing conflict between the immigrant community and Argentinean natives and the isolation of the Chinese community perpetuated by the role the children of these immigrants played as translators and workers especially during the years between the 1970s and the 1990s. This …

Theravada Buddhism, Identity, And Cultural Continuity In Jinghong, Xishuangbanna, James H. Granderson

Student Publications

This ethnographic field study focuses upon the relationship between the urban Jinghong and surrounding rural Dai population of lay people, as well as a few individuals from other ethnic groups, and Theravada Buddhism. Specifically, I observed how Theravada Buddhism and Dai ethnic culture are continued through the monastic system and the lay community that supports that system. I also observed how individuals balance living modern and urban lifestyles while also incorporating Theravada Buddhism into their daily lives. Both of these involved observing the relationship between Theravada monastics in city and rural temples and common people in daily life, as well …

Theravada Buddhism And Dai Identity In Jinghong, Xishuangbanna, James Granderson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This ethnographic field project focused upon the relationship between the urban Jinghong and surrounding rural Dai population of lay people, as well as a few individuals from other ethnic groups, and Theravada Buddhism. Specifically, I observed how Buddhism manifests itself in daily urban life, the relationship between Theravada monastics in city and rural temples and common people in daily life, as well as important events wherelay people and monastics interacted with one another. This research was intended to fulfill a need to observe how Theravada Buddhism influences Dai lives on the mundane level.This involved a several week study period in …

Review Of Riding The Wind With Liezi By Ronnie Littlejohn And Jeffrey Dippmann, Ronald S. Green

Philosophy and Religious Studies

No abstract provided.

The Power Of Creativity: How Web-Based Parody Encourages Chinese Civil Participation, Amber Boczar

International ResearchScape Journal

This article investigates that relationship between e’gao (parody using web-based media) and Chinese civil participation. E’gao (恶搞 EUH-gow) uses videos, images, and text based campaigns that use humor to remove fear of political commentary and action. By detailing the development of China’s internet use, and the creation of the e’gao movement, I argue that e’gao removes the fear of participating in campaigns and movements, which criticize government policy and actions on both local and state levels, by using humor and anonymity of large online numbers. E’gao can provide a way for the common citizens to mold policy, and hold authority …

Needs Analysis And Curriculum Development Of Vocational Chinese For Ncs Students, Xiao Yan Qiu, Danping Wang, Hau Yee, Doris Lo, Ming Tak, Jackie Tsang

Practical Social and Industrial Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Participatory Democracy In The Chinese Cyber World: Case Studies From Weibo, Duyi Li

Master's Theses

This thesis discusses features of citizen communication on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform, and its relationship to participatory democracy in China. Weibo is a complex social space due to the interplay of different forces and social actors. On the one hand, Weibo provides the space for bottom-up political participation: it expands the horizontal discursive space where plural discourses coexist and interact; provides a social sphere where counter-discourses are created; a space where the culture of resistance is formed; and serves as an alternative source for information. On the other hand, the vertical political control of the state, and the …