Symposium on “Youth and Social Change”

In the past 30 years, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China all experienced great economic and social transition. After rapid economic development, the Chinese societies experienced the gradual transformation of economic structure, the rapid popularization of elementary education and the expansion of tertiary education. These structural changes have had far-reaching impacts on the social mobility opportunities. At the same time, the development of globalization and the internet brought the young generation who were born and grew up in 1980s with unique experience on access to information, mode of information exchange and formation of values that are different from other generations. Over the past couple of years, the post-80s generation, being a “unique” group, has been frequently under the spot light of media and public discussion in the three societies. However, there is a lack of detailed data collection and rigorous empirical research on this age group in social science studies. For this purpose, Center for Applied Social and Economic Research, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Central Policy Unit, the HKSAR Government jointly organized the "Youth and Social Change" symposium, inviting senior social science scholars from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China with the focus on social conditions and difficulties faced by the contemporary young generation, to publicize relevant research results and discuss the possibilities of future cooperation in comparative studies.

Topics and speakers presented in the symposium are as follows:



Post-80s Generation in China
Professor LI Chun-ling
Institute of Sociology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Silent Revolution: Social Diversity of Higher Education in Mainland China and Hong Kong
Professor James LEE
Dean of Humanities and Social Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Hong Kong’s Post-80s Generation: Profiles and Predicaments
Professor WU Xiao-gang
Division of Social Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Single Child in China: “Little Emperors” or New Citizens?
Professor FENG Xiao-tian
Department of Sociology, Nanjing University

The Growth Trajectory of Taiwanese Youth: Family and School Context
Professor YI Chin-chun
Institute of Sociology, Academia Sinica

The Source of Youth Discontent: Upward Mobility or Seeking Post-materialist Values?
Professor Stephen CHIU
Director, The Public Policy Research Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Understanding our Young Generation
Professor Paul YIP Siu-fai, Department of Social Work and Social Administration, The University of Hong Kong

For more information about this symposium, please go to:

http://www.cpu.gov.hk/english/conference_20101217.htm


過去三十年香港、台灣和中國大陸均經歷了巨大的經濟與社會變遷。繼經濟騰飛之後，兩岸三地的華人社會經歷了產業結構的逐步轉型、基礎教育的迅速普及和高等教育的不斷擴張。這些結構性的變化對社會流動機會的影響尤為深遠。同時，在全球化和互聯網的發展下，使得1980年代出生和成長起來的年輕一代，在信息的獲取，交流模式的選擇和價值觀的形成方面，都具有與其他世代不同而獨特的經歷。 “80後”作為一個“獨特”的群體，經常出現在兩岸三地的媒體上和公眾討論中。然而，社會科學對這個年齡群體的詳實的數據蒐集和嚴格的實証研究還相當缺乏。為此，香港科技大學應用社會經濟研究中心和香港特區政府中央政策組共同舉辦“青年與社會變遷”專題研討會，邀請兩岸三地的資深社會學者就當代年輕人的狀況和面臨的困境，發表相關研究成果，並探討未來進行比較研究的可能性。

以下為研討會中發表的講題及其講者：

內地的80後世代
中國社會科學院社會學研究所李春玲教授

無聲的革命：内地和香港大學生的社會來源研究
香港科技大學人文社會科學院院長、講座教授李中清教授

香港的80後世代：其形貎及境況
香港科技大學應用社會經濟研究中心主任吳曉剛教授

中國獨生子女：「小皇帝」還是新公民﹖
南京大學社會學系系主任風笑天教授

台灣青少年的成長歷程：家庭與學校的影響
台灣中央研究院社會學研究所伊慶春教授

青年人的不滿情緒：渴望流動還是追求非物質價值?
香港中文大學公共政策研究中心主任趙永佳教授

了解我們的年青一代
香港大學社會工作及社會行政學系教授葉兆輝教授

如欲獲得更多有關資訊 , 請瀏覽以下網址:

http://www.cpu.gov.hk/tc/conference_20101217.htm