A survey jointly conducted earlier this year by Dr. Gary Tang Kin Yat, Associate Director of the Centre for Public Policy Research at Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, and Dr. Samson Yuen Wai Hei, Associate Professor of Political Science at the Department of Government and International Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University found 30 percent of Hongkongers have no intention to emigrate, main reasons being “family and friends” and “sense of belonging to the place.”
Dr. Tang wrote about the survey in a local Chinese language newspaper Ming Pao last week, pointing out that some respondents who indicated no intention to emigrate simply want to earn more money or be with loved ones; their reasons for staying behind may not be directly linked to any emotional attachment to Hong Kong.
The research team led by Dr. Tang’s and Dr. Yuen conducted a survey earlier in 2023 on emigration intentions and reasons for staying behind in Hong Kong. Among 1,977 respondents, 44.2 percent expressed a desire to emigrate without a specific timeline, 11.1 percent intended to emigrate within five years, 14 percent within two years, and 30.8 percent had no plans to emigrate.
The research team further explored reasons for choosing to stay behind among those who indicated “no intention to emigrate.” The survey provided six options, including “family members in Hong Kong,” “friends in Hong Kong,” “established career in Hong Kong,” “material well-being in Hong Kong,” “someone in Hong Kong needed support,” and “Hong Kong is the place where I grew up.”
Respondents can select up to two options. Survey results showed that the majority of respondents chose “family and friends (options 1 & 2)” (77.7 percent), followed by “sense of belonging to the place (options 5 & 6)” (69.2 percent), while “material well-being (options 3 & 4)” ranked the lowest (30 percent).
Dr. Tang believes that material factors are relatively lower priority considerations for most individuals who stay behind in Hong Kong. Most responses included one selection each for “family and friends” and “sense of belonging to the place.”
Additionally, about 10 percent of respondents regarded “family and friends” and a “sense of belonging to the place” as the most important factors in their decision to remain in Hong Kong. Dr. Tang also referred to the classic work “Exit, Voice, and Loyalty” by economist Albert Hirschman, which suggests that when individuals are dissatisfied with an institution, they respond differently: some choose to exit, some remain loyal, and some voice their concerns.
Applying this framework to analyze the decision to emigrate, “exit” is represented by voting with one’s feet, which is emigrating, “voice” refers to political participation to improve governance, and “loyalty” implies staying behind.
Dr. Tang believes that “loyalty” in this context is intriguing because “not leaving” does not necessarily equate to loyalty. For example, some individuals who stay in their jobs may only do so temporarily due to a lack of better options. Some people may choose to stay in Hong Kong for reasons such as “earning more money” or being with their loved ones, which may not be directly related to emotional attachment to Hong Kong.
The research also found that individuals who decided to stay in Hong Kong due to family and friends were less interested in politics and current affairs, news involving court cases (mostly from the 2019 anti-extradition and pro-democracy movement), community, and ordinary people in the society. Dr. Tang suggests that family and friends are personal matters; individuals who prioritize these relationships on the top may pay less attention to the aforementioned types of news, which is normal.
On the other hand, individuals who decided to stay behind in Hong Kong due to their sense of belonging to the place paid more attention to court cases, community news, and news about ordinary people in society. It could be said that those who choose to stay behind based on their sense of belonging to Hong Kong tend to be more concerned about the local community, people, and issues related to supporting and helping others in society.
