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Including the Views of the Public in a Survey of Poverty and Social Exclusion in Hong Kong: Findings from Focus Group Research

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Abstract

There has been growing research interest into poverty and social exclusion in Hong Kong over the past 30 years. However, the development of surveys in this field continues to be primarily ‘top-down’ or ‘expert-led’. ‘Bottom-up’ or ‘lay’ perspectives, utilising the views of ordinary members of the public, are rarely incorporated. This article discusses the use of consensual focus group methods to advance the theory and practice of poverty and social exclusion measurement in Hong Kong. By adapting the UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Study 2012 to the Hong Kong context, the article reports on public perceptions of the necessities of life and understanding of social exclusion. The study found a strong social consensus about what items and activities constitute an acceptable standard of living in Hong Kong. Furthermore, whilst social exclusion was an unfamiliar concept, participants were able identify and explain experiences such as discrimination (affecting new arrivals), geographical isolation, a culture of long-working hours and poor access to health services as key elements.

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Notes

  1. Because of time constraints, single adults [FG4] and pensioners [FG5 and FG7] did not discuss all items related to necessities of life for children; and both FG2 and FG6 sessions did not cover the section on ‘social exclusion’.

  2. Tables 3 and 4 provide details of the final list of items and activities included in the survey the second stage. On the whole the advisory group accepted the lists of necessities produced by the lay participants although changes were made to clarify meaning and avoid ambiguity for some. Where there was disagreement between ‘lay’ and ‘expert’ views, this has been noted in the article.

  3. The ‘Ageing in Place’ aims to allow older people to remain living in the community in which they are familiar for as long as they wish given that there is available formal and informal care and support services in the community (Chui 2008).

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)/Research Grants Council (RGC) Joint Research Scheme (RES-000-22-4400) and ESRC Grant (RES-060-25-0052).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Policy, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

    Maggie Lau & Lea Lai

  2. School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol, 8 Priory Road, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 ITZ, UK

    David Gordon & Christina Pantazis

  3. NIHR Biomedical Research Unit in Nutrition, Diet & Lifestyle Level 3, University Hospitals Bristol Education Centre, Upper Maudlin Street, Bristol, BS2 8AE, UK

    Eileen Sutton

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  1. Maggie Lau
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  2. David Gordon
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  3. Christina Pantazis
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  4. Eileen Sutton
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  5. Lea Lai
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Correspondence to Maggie Lau.

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Lau, M., Gordon, D., Pantazis, C. et al. Including the Views of the Public in a Survey of Poverty and Social Exclusion in Hong Kong: Findings from Focus Group Research. Soc Indic Res 124, 383–400 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0802-8

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