The Birth and Growth of Academic Sociology in Hong Kong

The Birth and Growth of Academic Sociology in Hong Kong Sociology as an academic discipline was given birth by scholars from China and the West in the 1950s. As Hong Kong is a liberal society which has been undergoing rapid industrialization and experiencing intensive interplay between Chinese and Western cultural influences, sociology teaching and research have kept growing in the last two decades. There has been an increasing number of professional sociologists teaching in the various academic institutions, offering both undergraduate and post-graduate programs of studies. In research, both the number and the scope of projects have been increasing, although synthetic work of theoretical significance is sorely needed. There has been a shift from qualitative field research to quantitative survey studies, but recent years have seen a gradual revival of field research for generating insights about Chinese culture and social behavior. Academic sociology in Hong Kong has also kept localizing. Despite the influence of American and British sociology, Hong Kong sociologists generally share the ambition to plant sociology on the Chinese soil, making it both relevant to the development of Chinese society and useful to the advancement of world sociology. To this end, Hong Kong sociologists have developed close collaboration with Chinese sociologists elsewhere. They have also begun to strengthen their ties with other Asia-Pacific sociologists, as the future of Hong Kong lies heavily in its relationships with nearby Asia-Pacific countries.