Comparing political discourse in Facebook groups and forums: ambivalence, social accountability, and political participation.

Tsang, Stephanie Jean."September 2011."Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011.Includes bibliographical references (p. 137-151).Abstracts in English and Chinese; appendix includes Chinese.Chapter Chapter 1: --- Introduction --- p.1Chapter Chapter 2: --- Theoretical Background --- p.12Deliberative and Participatory Democracies --- p.12Interpersonal Discussion --- p.25Online Political Engagement --- p.36Chapter Chapter 3: --- Framework --- p.45Chapter Chapter 4: --- Design and Methods --- p.64Chapter Chapter 5: --- Analysis and Results --- p.76Results - Content Analysis --- p.76Results - Survey --- p.82Chapter Chapter 6: --- Discussions --- p.97Chapter Chapter 7: --- Limitations and Future Studies --- p.114Chapter Chapter 8: --- Appendices --- p.118Appendix A --- p.118Appendix B --- p.120Chapter Chapter 9: --- References --- p.13

The concept of legitimacy in educational policy-making : alternative explanations of two policy episodes in Hong Kong

The Thesis seeks to explain the policy-making process using a legitimacy notion as an alternative to various kinds of rational models. Legitimacy here takes its broadest sense as the recognised or accepted norm or belief that something is appropriate.\ud Based on two ethnographic case studies of policy-making "episodes" in Hong Kong education, the writer argues that policy-actors, in this case policy-advisory bodies, do not necessarily act according to a "means-end" rational model, or interact with one another because of conflicts in interests or power; but that each advisory body has developed within itself some sub-culture which identifies certain legitimacy to making policies.\ud In the first Episode, a policy body on higher education was forced to reject an overall policy proposal which was based on manpower forecasting; or else the body's legitimacy generated from "expert judgement" might be undermined. In the second Episode, an OECD panel caused difficulties because it adopted a "participatory approach" which tended to upset the conventional legitimacy in policy-making. Along similar lines, the writer attempts to explain more briefly a number of dramatic junctures during the two Episodes using the legitimacy explanation as a parallel to the rational model of policy-making.\ud The writer infers that conflicts occur when certain actor is forced to submit to a different kind of legitimacy. The actors have to strive hard to maintain their original legitimacy, or else they may lose their status in making policies. In so doing, the subject under attention is less the policy output than the policy process. The issue again is not so much a matter of the power to make policies, but the way policies are to be made. Overall, it is the process, and not the product, of policy-making that legitimates or de-legitimates the actor. \u

A Legal and Economic Assessment of European Takeover Regulation. CEPS Paperbacks. December 2012

Takeovers are one-off events, altering control and strategy within an organisation. But the chances of becoming the target of a bid, even where remote, daily influence corporate decision-making. Takeover rules are therefore central to company law and the balance of power among managers, shareholders and stakeholders alike. This study analyses the corporate governance drivers underpinning takeover bid regulations and assesses the implementation of the EU Directive on takeover bids and compares it with the legal framework of nine other major jurisdictions, including the US. It finds that similar rules have different effects depending on company-level and country-level characteristics and considers the use of modular legislation and optional provisions to cater for them

Human Development in East and Southeast Asian Economies: 1990-2010

This report reviews patterns and trends in human development (HD) in East and Southeast Asia (ESA) since 1990, analyzes causes and consequences of this development, highlighting both structural and institutional factors, and identifies the basic principles for durable enhancements in HD. The basic arguments are that most ESA economies have experienced rapid socioeconomic structural changes through industrialization and urbanization in the last two decades. From a HD perspective, these processes offer enormous room for expanding people's capabilities. However, to successfully seize such opportunities, appropriate institutions and public policies are needed, and so is public participation in policy making and implementation. Public policies are also important for equitable distribution of the expanded opportunities, which in turn contribute to the legitimacy of institutions and social cohesion. And while industrialization does often cause more environmental pollution, technological advances also offer the means to reduce such pollution, so long as appropriate environmental policies are implemented to ensure the use of such cleaner technologies. Subject to such appropriate public policies, in net terms industrialization and urbanization should expand people's capabilities and ensure sustainable HD. Six principles are critical to a successful HD strategy-agricultural and rural development to facilitate structural transformation and to increase employment; human capital accumulation to promote continued economic and income growth; inclusive urbanization to reduce dualism and enhance social integration; cleaner industrialization to ensure sustainability; people's participation and empowerment to improve decision making and governance; closer regional and international cooperation to ensure a better future for all on our fragile planet.Human Development, Structural Factors, Public Policy, East and Southeast Asia

Powerless or perilous? : ageing women as an emerging social force in Hong Kong

Ageing women have so often been represented in government policy rhetoric, gerontology literatures and journalistic discourse as the genderless, powerless and passive objects of welfare and services;, by and large, as a social problem that needs to be monitored and managed. Taking a cultural research approach, this thesis explores ageing women’s actual practices in Hong Kong social movements and aims to rerepresent ageing women as active social agents capable of generating multiple “tactical identities” enabling them to participate in and interact with an environment that poses concrete challenges to their participation. In filling the gap between research on social movements and in social gerontology, both massively studied areas but ones whose mutual interactions are rare, this thesis reviews the social participations of three women at their late 60s and early 70s, who have been actively involved around issues of involuntary removal in public housing, and in health care and rent issues. The research explores how ageing women have used the notions of “Old Hong Kong” and “Old residents” - a rhetoric long bound up with their life histories in Hong Kong—to create a ‘mask of ageing’ in negotiation and interaction with the authorities, with neighbours, their community and, most importantly, their children. On the other hand, by acting as mothers, as grandmothers and as the “po po” (older woman in Cantonese) living next door, ageing women in effect compose collectives and form networks in their community to support their independent mode of living. The thesis argues that a new politics of ageing which addresses the everyday realities of ageing women’s lives is essential if we are to offer an alternative interpretation of their ageing experiences

Internationalisation strategies for small and medium-sized enterprises: a study of UK and German joint ventures in the people’s republic of China

This thesis studies internationalisation strategies for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). For most SMEs internationalisation means, predominantly, exporting. Only a few SMEs are involved in foreign direct investment. However, growing pressure from globalisation increasingly means that SMEs must extend their business activities beyond sole export strategies. Internationalisation imposes an above-the-average financial and managerial resource burden upon SMEs. This is particularly true in the case of foreign direct investment which requires the highest resource commitment of all market entry strategies. Frequently, thus, SMEs cannot commit the resources necessary for success in international markets. Not without reason internationalisation, in the form of foreign direct investment, is often considered the domain of large multinational enterprises. This thesis regards the joint venture strategy as a means to overcome the resource scarcity of SMEs and so make foreign market entry in the form of a direct investment commitment feasible for these firms. Joint ventures can open doors to markets that otherwise would not be open to SMEs. The joint venture strategy can be a vehicle for SMEs to penetrate a foreign market with only a reduced financial and managerial resource commitment. The results of this investigation suggest that joint ventures are a feasible strategy for UK and German SMEs to enter the vast market of the People's Republic of China. The joint venture strategy permits SMEs to establish a market presence in the Chinese market and so better reap the benefits of the impressive economic development of the country. The UK and German joint venture entrepreneurs studied expressed overall satisfaction with their joint investment projects in China. However, the study has also detected various size-related resource scarcities which restrict the SMEs in their joint venturing efforts. Short cut planning procedures and partner selection processes are resultant from that, as well as a weak bargaining position in negotiations and less influence in the control and management ofthe investment project

Unmet goals of tracking: within-track heterogeneity of students' expectations for

Educational systems are often characterized by some form(s) of ability grouping, like tracking. Although substantial variation in the implementation of these practices exists, it is always the aim to improve teaching efficiency by creating homogeneous groups of students in terms of capabilities and performances as well as expected pathways. If students’ expected pathways (university, graduate school, or working) are in line with the goals of tracking, one might presume that these expectations are rather homogeneous within tracks and heterogeneous between tracks. In Flanders (the northern region of Belgium), the educational system consists of four tracks. Many students start out in the most prestigious, academic track. If they fail to gain the necessary credentials, they move to the less esteemed technical and vocational tracks. Therefore, the educational system has been called a 'cascade system'. We presume that this cascade system creates homogeneous expectations in the academic track, though heterogeneous expectations in the technical and vocational tracks. We use data from the International Study of City Youth (ISCY), gathered during the 2013-2014 school year from 2354 pupils of the tenth grade across 30 secondary schools in the city of Ghent, Flanders. Preliminary results suggest that the technical and vocational tracks show more heterogeneity in student’s expectations than the academic track. If tracking does not fulfill the desired goals in some tracks, tracking practices should be questioned as tracking occurs along social and ethnic lines, causing social inequality

Voice but no exit: the role of loyalty in the political participation of young middle class in Hong Kong.

Chan Chun Kit.Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2006.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 248-255).Abstracts in English and Chinese.Abstract --- p.iAcknowledgements --- p.vContent --- p.viList of Charts and Tables --- p.xiiChapter Chapter 1 --- Introduction: The Change of Attitude --- p.1Chapter 1.1 --- Research Background and Research Question --- p.1Chapter 1.2 --- Theoretical Framework --- p.3Chapter 1.3 --- Research Significance --- p.4Chapter 1.4 --- Plan of the Thesis --- p.7Chapter Chapter 2 --- Literature Review: Concerning Political Participation and Emigration --- p.9Chapter 2.1 --- Introduction --- p.9Chapter 2.2 --- Emigration --- p.10Chapter 2.2.1 --- Literature of Emigration --- p.10Chapter 2.2.2 --- Emigration in Hong Kong --- p.11Chapter 2.2.3 --- Lesson from the Emigration Literature --- p.15Chapter 2.3 --- Political Participation --- p.16Chapter 2.3.1 --- Meaning of Political Participation --- p.16Chapter 2.3.2 --- The Culturalist Theory --- p.19Chapter 2.3.3 --- Political Participation in Hong Kong --- p.22Chapter 2.3.4 --- Limitations of Culturalist Theory --- p.25Chapter 2.4 --- An Alternative Approach: Hirschman's theory --- p.27Chapter 2.4.1 --- Introduction to Hirschman's Theory --- p.28Chapter 2.4.2 --- Relationship between Exit and Voice --- p.29Chapter 2.4.3 --- The Idea of Loyalty --- p.30Chapter 2.4.4 --- Amendment and Critiques of Hirschman's Original Theory --- p.32Chapter 2.4.5 --- Other Literatures of Loyalty and Loyalty in Hong Kong --- p.39Chapter 2.4.6 --- The Different Role of Loyalty between Hirschman´ةs Literature and Cultualist Theory --- p.41Chapter 2.5 --- Conclusion --- p.42Chapter Chapter 3 --- Historical Review: Acting between Exit and Voice --- p.44Chapter 3.1 --- Introduction --- p.44Chapter 3.2 --- Push Factors --- p.45Chapter 3.2.1 --- Political Situation before 1997 --- p.45Chapter 3.2.2 --- Economic Situation before 1997 --- p.47Chapter 3.2.3 --- Political Situation after 1997 --- p.49Chapter 3.2.4 --- Economic Situation after 1997 --- p.52Chapter 3.2.5 --- The Overall Perception of Hong Kong Future --- p.57Chapter 3.3 --- Pull Factors --- p.59Chapter 3.3.1 --- The Difficulty for Applying a Foreign Residency --- p.60Chapter 3.3.2 --- Economic Situation before 1997 --- p.63Chapter 3.3.3 --- Economic Situation after 1997 --- p.65Chapter 3.4 --- Pattern of Political Participation and Emigration --- p.73Chapter 3.4.1 --- Pattern of Political Participation and Emigration before 1997 --- p.73Chapter 3.4.2 --- Pattern of Political Participation and Emigration after 1997 --- p.75Chapter 3.5 --- The Puzzle --- p.79Chapter 3.6 --- Conclusion --- p.81Chapter Chapter 4 --- Theory and Method: Accessing Loyalty --- p.83Chapter 4.1 --- Introduction --- p.83Chapter 4.2 --- Research Aim --- p.83Chapter 4.3 --- Putting Emigration into the Spectrum of Political Participation --- p.84Chapter 4.4 --- Subject of Study --- p.86Chapter 4.4.1 --- Middle Class Individuals as Quality Conscious Consumer --- p.86Chapter 4.4.2 --- The Definition of Middle Class --- p.88Chapter 4.5 --- Conceptualizing and Operationalizing Loyalty --- p.90Chapter 4.6 --- The Effects of Loyalty --- p.92Chapter 4.7 --- Research Approach --- p.95Chapter 4.7.1 --- Research Method - Qualitative Data Analysis --- p.95Chapter 4.7.2 --- Scope of Sample - Deviant Critical Case --- p.96Chapter 4.7.3 --- Sampling Method - Theoretical Sampling --- p.97Chapter 4.8 --- Conducting Interviews --- p.99Chapter 4.9 --- Data Analysis --- p.100Chapter 4.10 --- Conclusion --- p.101Chapter Chapter 5 --- Findings and Analysis I: Foundation of the Research: Perception after 97 --- p.103Chapter 5.1 --- Introduction --- p.103Chapter 5.2 --- Perception about the 1997-2003 Period --- p.103Chapter 5.3 --- Deteriorated Areas --- p.105Chapter 5.3.1 --- Government Performance --- p.105Chapter 5.3.2 --- Political Atmosphere --- p.107Chapter 5.3.3 --- Economic Atmosphere --- p.108Chapter 5.4 --- The Most Concerned Areas in Past Decades --- p.109Chapter 5.4.1 --- Liberty --- p.109Chapter 5.4.2 --- Rule of Law --- p.110Chapter 5.4.3 --- "The Implementation of ""One Country, Two System" --- p.113Chapter 5.5 --- The Perception of Democracy --- p.117Chapter 5.6 --- Most Recognized Issues --- p.120Chapter 5.6 --- Accessing the Research Question --- p.122Chapter 5.7 --- Conclusion --- p.122Chapter Chapter 6 --- Findings and Analysis II: Foundation of the Research: Loyalty: Emergence and level of Loyalty --- p.124Chapter 6.1 --- Introduction --- p.124Chapter 6.2 --- Loyalty to Hong Kong --- p.124Chapter 6.2.1 --- Hong Kong Loyalist --- p.125Chapter 6.2.2 --- Loyal Complainer of Hong Kong --- p.127Chapter 6.2.3 --- The Share Characteristic of “Hong Kong Loyalist´ح and “Loyal Complainer of Hong Kong´ح --- p.130Chapter 6.2.4 --- Hong Kong Disloyalist --- p.132Chapter 6.3 --- Common Belief ´ؤ The Idea of Liberty --- p.132Chapter 6.4 --- Loyalty to China --- p.133Chapter 6.4.1 --- China Loyalist --- p.134Chapter 6.4.2 --- Separated China Loyalist --- p.136Chapter 6.4.3 --- Loyal Complainer of China --- p.139Chapter 6.4.4 --- China Disloyalist --- p.141Chapter 6.5 --- Common Belief- Psychological Distance --- p.142Chapter 6.6 --- Sense of Influent Ability --- p.143Chapter 6.6.1 --- Contribution to Hong Kong --- p.144Chapter 6.6.2 --- Contribution to China --- p.146Chapter 6.6.3 --- Affecting Government's policy --- p.149Chapter 6.7 --- Expectation about Future --- p.151Chapter 6.8 --- Accessing the Research Question --- p.153Chapter 6.9 --- Conclusion --- p.154Chapter Chapter 7 --- Findings and Analysis III: Relationship between Loyalty and the July-First Demonstration --- p.157Chapter 7.1 --- Introduction --- p.157Chapter 7.2 --- Reasons for Joining The Demonstration --- p.157Chapter 7.2.1 --- The Dominating Reason --- p.158Chapter 7.2.2 --- The Sense of Hongkongese --- p.161Chapter 7.2.3 --- Loyalty of Other Organization --- p.163Chapter 7.2.3 --- Misunderstanding --- p.164Chapter 7.3 --- The Effect of Loyalty in the July-first Demonstration --- p.165Chapter 7.4 --- Other Effects of the Demonstration --- p.170Chapter 7.5 --- The Post July-first Era and Further Political Participations --- p.172Chapter 7.5.1 --- Political Situation --- p.172Chapter 7.5.2 --- Economic and Social Situations --- p.175Chapter 7.5.3 --- Satisfaction --- p.175Chapter 7.5.4 --- Further Political Actions --- p.177Chapter 7.6 --- Factor(s) for Simulating Further Demonstrations --- p.179Chapter 7.7 --- Discussion --- p.180Chapter 7.7.1 --- Loyalty and Demonstration in Hong Kong --- p.180Chapter 8.7.2 --- Liberty and Demonstration in Hong Kong --- p.182Chapter 8.7.3 --- The level of Satisfaction and the Effectiveness of Demonstration in Hong Kong --- p.184Chapter 7.8 --- Conclusion --- p.185Chapter Chapter 8 --- Findings and Analysis IV: Relationship between Loyalty and Emigration --- p.187Chapter 8.1 --- Introduction --- p.187Chapter 8.2 --- Emigration --- p.187Chapter 8.2.1 --- Intention of Leaving Hong Kong --- p.188Chapter 8.2.2 --- Reasons for Staying --- p.189Chapter 8.3 --- Intention of Settlement in China --- p.192Chapter 8.3.1 --- Reason of Having the Intention --- p.193Chapter 8.3.2 --- Reasons for Staying --- p.193Chapter 8.4 --- Cause of Reluctant Emigration --- p.196Chapter 8.5 --- The Effect of Loyalty in Emigration --- p.197Chapter 8.6 --- Discussion --- p.201Chapter 8.6.1 --- Loyalty and Emigration in Hong Kong --- p.201Chapter 8.6.2 --- The Effect of the Loyalty of China --- p.203Chapter 8.6.3 --- The Credibility of the Threat of Exit --- p.204Chapter 8.7 --- Conclusion --- p.205Chapter Chapter 9 --- "Conclusion: Re-visiting Exit, Voice and Loyalty" --- p.207Chapter 9.1 --- Introduction --- p.207Chapter 9.2 --- Summary of the Findings from the Study --- p.208Chapter 9.2.1 --- Perception about the Post-97 Situation of Hong Kong --- p.208Chapter 9.2.2 --- The Sense of Loyalty --- p.208Chapter 9.2.3 --- Relationship between Loyalty and Demonstration --- p.209Chapter 9.2.4 --- Relationship between Loyalty and Emigration --- p.210Chapter 9.3 --- Discussion of Hirschman's Theory --- p.211Chapter 9.3.1 --- Signal Product V.S. Multi-products --- p.211Chapter 9.3.2 --- Effects of Loyalty --- p.213Chapter 9.3.3 --- Single Loyalty V.S. Multi-loyalties --- p.214Chapter 9.3.4 --- "The Tension between Loyalty, Exit and Voice" --- p.216Chapter 9.4 --- The Trend of Future --- p.217Chapter 9.5 --- Political Implications --- p.219Chapter 9.5.1 --- Soft Authoritarianism and Administrative Absorption of Politics --- p.219Chapter 9.5.2 --- Liberty cannot be Infringed --- p.221Chapter 9.5.3 --- Lack of Strong Demand for Immediate Democratization --- p.221Chapter 9.5.4 --- Articulation of Public Opinion --- p.223Chapter 9.6 --- Research Limitations --- p.223Chapter 9.7 --- Suggestions for Further Researches --- p.225Chapter 9.8 --- Conclusion --- p.227Appendix --- p.229Appendix I Immigrate to Canada: Immigrating to Canada as a Skilled Worker --- p.229Appendix II Immigrate to Australia: General skilled migration program --- p.235Appendix III Immigrate to United States of America: Apply for Immigrant Status Based on Employment --- p.239Appendix IV Interview Schedule (Abridged) --- p.244Appendix V Demographic Information of Interviewees --- p.247Bibliography --- p.24

Innovation, Economic Development, and Intellectual Property in India and China

This open access book analyses intellectual property codification and innovation governance in the development of six key industries in India and China. These industries are reflective of the innovation and economic development of the two economies, or of vital importance to them: the IT Industry; the film industry; the pharmaceutical industry; plant varieties and food security; the automobile industry; and peer production and the sharing economy. The analysis extends beyond the domain of IP law, and includes economics and policy analysis. The overarching concern that cuts through all chapters is an inquiry into why certain industries have developed in one country and not in the other, including: the role that state innovation policy and/or IP policy played in such development; the nature of the state innovation policy/IP policy; and whether such policy has been causal, facilitating, crippling, co-relational, or simply irrelevant. The book asks what India and China can learn from each other, and whether there is any possibility of synergy. The book provides a real-life understanding of how IP laws interact with innovation and economic development in the six selected economic sectors in China and India. The reader can also draw lessons from the success or failure of these sectors