Including the views of the public in a survey of poverty and social exclusion in Hong Kong : findings from focus group research

Document Type

Journal article

Source Publication

Social Indicators Research

Publication Date

11-2015

Volume

124

Issue

2

First Page

383

Last Page

400

Publisher

Springer Netherlands

Keywords

Poverty, Social exclusion, Focus groups, Consensual methods

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.

DOI

10.1007/s11205-014-0802-8

Print ISSN

03038300

E-ISSN

15730921

Publisher Statement

Copyright © Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014. Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.

Full-text Version

Publisher’s Version

Language

English

Recommended Citation

Lau, M., Gordon, D., Pantazis, C., Sutton, E., & Lai, L. (2015). Including the views of the public in a survey of poverty and social exclusion in Hong Kong: Findings from focus group research. Social Indicators Research, 124(2), 383-400. doi: 10.1007/s11205-014-0802-8

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