Asian students' perceptions of 'good' citizenship: The role of democratic values and attitudes to traditional culture

The concept of 'good' citizenship has been the subject of debate and discussion across the centuries. Researchers have suggested that there are different conceptions of 'good' citizenship among citizens of different countries (Denters, Gabriel, & Mariano, 2007; McBeth, Lybecker, & Garner, 2010; Theiss-Morse, 1993). This paper explores Asian students' perception of 'good' citizenship and important behaviors expected of being a 'good' adult citizen. There are two aspects of 'good' citizenship that will be explored: Conventional citizenship and social-movement-related citizenship. Using data from the International Civic and Citizenship Study (Schulz, Ainley, Fraillon, Kerr, & Losito, 2010), the paper explores the similarities and differences among students in 5 Asian societies (Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Thailand). The results of structural equation modeling (SEM) show that students' perceptions of 'good' citizenship are affected by their attitude to traditional culture and democratic values and these are mediated through students' sense of importance of becoming a 'good' adult citizen. The impact varies among the five countries. Copyright © 2014 National Academy for Educational Research.