Hong Kong's changing opportunity structures: Political concerns and sociological observations

It is suggested that the earlier developmental drive of the newly industrialized economies (NIEs) has been exhausted and a fall of economic growth rate and the maturation of the economy have reversed the trend of a loosening of the social structure and an increase in opportunity for mobility. Informed by the 2006 Social Mobility Survey, this chapter examines the above questions in the light of empirical findings. It is contended that there is no sign of a drastic decline in the openness of Hong Kong's social structure. The sources of growing anxiety seem to fall not in a decrease of opportunity available for mobility but in the unevenness of new opportunities shaped by Hong Kong's socio-economic integration with China. This chapter discusses of growing concerns in East Asian economies, of a major shift in the social structure as a result of economic restructuring triggered by the Asian Financial Crisis. Copyright © 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.