Hildie Leung

Positive youth development, life satisfaction, and problem behaviors of adolescents in intact and non-intact families in Hong Kong

This study investigated whether Chinese adolescents living in intact and non-intact families differed in their positive development, life satisfaction, and risk behavior. A total of 3,328 Secondary 1 students responded to measures of positive youth development (such as resilience and psychosocial competencies), life satisfaction, and risk behavior (substance abuse, delinquency, Internet addiction, consumption of pornographic materials, self-harm, and behavioral intention to engage in problem behavior). Findings revealed that adolescents growing up in intact families reported higher levels of positive developmental outcomes and life satisfaction as compared with adolescents from non-intact families. Adolescents in non-intact families also reported higher levels of risk behaviors than those growing up in intact families.

Manufacturing economy vs. service economy: implications for service leadership

Abstract In the past few decades, there has been a shift from manufacturing to service economy in many places throughout the world. In Hong Kong, 95% of its GDP is made up by the service industries. Conceptually, these two economies are associated with different production characteristics, organizational structures, and desired attributes of workers and leaders. The differences between these two economies in terms of the production modes are discussed in this paper. In particular, the implications of the economy on effective leadership requirements are outlined. With specific reference to the Service Leadership model proposed by the Hong Kong Institute of Service Leadership and Management, the 12 dimensions of the service-oriented personal brand and the 25 principles of service leadership are highlighted.

How Unique is the Service Leadership Model? A Comparison with Contemporary Leadership Approaches

Abstract The growth of the service economy in the contemporary world has resulted in a different set of requirements for effective leadership as compared with the industrial era, which focused primarily on manufacturing industries. To nurture “service leaders” in the service economy, the Hong Kong Institute of Service Leadership and Management proposed the service leadership model. The key characteristics of the service leadership model are outlined in this paper. A systematic comparison was also conducted to identify the common and unique features of the service leadership model with reference to the existing leadership theories, including the trait, servant, spiritual, authentic, ethical, transformational, charismatic, and top-down leadership approaches. The limitations and future directions for research in service leadership are also presented.

Post-lecture subjective outcome evaluation of a university subject on leadership and positive youth development in Hong Kong

Abstract Post-lecture subjective outcome evaluation findings of a university subject promoting the leadership qualities and positive youth development of students at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University are reported. Students were invited to respond to a 16-item post-lecture questionnaire gauging their perceptions toward the subject, lecture, and the teachers after each of the 13 lectures. Factor analysis demonstrated that three factors were abstracted from the scale, including subject attributes, lecture attributes, and teacher attributes. Normative findings showed that students had positive perceptions on each of the dimensions throughout the lectures. Multiple regression analyses revealed that subject attributes, lecture attributes, and teacher attributes predicted global evaluation of the lecture and teacher. Based on the subjective outcome evaluation findings, the present study provides further support for the effectiveness of this subject in promoting the holistic development of the students.

Development, implementation, and evaluation of a multi-addiction prevention program for primary school students in Hong Kong: the B.E.S.T. Teen Program.

AbstractBased on the evaluation findings of the B.E.S.T. Teen Program which aimed at promoting behavioral, emotional, social, and thinking competencies in primary school students, it is argued in this paper that promotion of psychosocial competence to prevent addiction in primary school students is a promising strategy. A total of 382 Primary 5 (Grade 5) and 297 Primary 6 (Grade 6) students from five primary schools in Hong Kong participated in the program. Different evaluation strategies were adopted to evaluate the program. First, objective outcome evaluation adopting a non-equivalent group pretest–posttest experimental-control group design was conducted to examine change in the students. Second, to gauge students’ perceptions of the program, subjective outcome evaluation was conducted. The evaluation findings basically converged to tentatively suggest that young adolescents benefited from participating in the program. Implications on the development, implementation, and evaluation of addiction prevention programs for teenagers are discussed.

Sexual Behavior and Intention to Engage in Sexual Behavior Among Young Adolescents in Hong Kong: Findings Based on Four Waves of Data

This study examined the growth trajectories of sexual behavior and intention to engage in sexual behavior among young adolescents in Hong Kong across 4 years. Besides, the impact of family structure and economic disadvantage on the rate of change in adolescent sexual behavior and intention was studied, and the concurrent and longitudinal impact of family functioning and positive youth development on adolescent sexual behavior and intention was explored. Four waves of data were collected from adolescents (n = 3328 at Wave 1) in 28 secondary schools in Hong Kong. Individual growth curve models generally showed that adolescents from economically disadvantaged and non-intact families increased their sexual behavior at a faster rate than their counterparts, but they did not affect the rate of acceleration in intention to engage in sexual behavior. Multiple regression analyses revealed that family functioning and positive youth development influenced adolescent sexual behavior and intention.

Perceived Family Quality of Life, School Competence, and Academic Adjustment Among Early Adolescents in Hong Kong

Based on the responses of secondary school students recruited from 28 randomly selected schools in Hong Kong over 3 years, the relationships between perceived family functioning (i.e., family mutuality, harmony, and communication) and school competence as well as academic adjustment of young adolescents are examined in this chapter. Correlation analyses showed that family functioning dimensions at Time 1 were correlated with school competence and academic adjustment at Time 1 and Time 3. Multiple regression analyses showed that different dimensions of family functioning at Time 1 predicted different measures of school competence at Time 3. Similarly, family functioning measures at Time 1 predicted academic adjustment over time, but the perceived family functioning measures at Time 1 were unable to predict students’ perceived stress regarding the new secondary school curriculum at Time 3. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Evaluation of a Positive Youth Development Program in Hong Kong: A Replication

Objectives: In this study, we used the one-group pretest–posttest design to examine changes in students after joining a positive youth development program (Project PATHS) in Hong Kong, with 9,226 successfully matched junior high school students joining the Tier 1 and/or Tier 2 program(s). Method: Program participants completed the validated outcome measures on positive youth development, life satisfaction, and thriving before and after joining the program(s). Results: Students showed positive changes after joining the Tier 1 and/or Tier 2 program(s). The present findings replicated and converged with the findings of the previous two studies. Conclusion: The present study illustrates the role of positive youth development programs in promoting adolescent development and highlights the importance of replication in intervention research in positive youth development programs in youth services. The contributions and limitations of this series of studies are discussed.

The effect of subgroup homogeneity of efficacy on contribution in public good dilemmas

This paper examines how to maximize contribution in public good dilemmas by arranging people into homogeneous or heterogeneous subgroups. Past studies on the effect of homogeneity of efficacy have exclusively manipulated group composition in their experimental designs, which might have imposed a limit on ecological validity because group membership may not be easily changed in reality. In this study, we maintained the same group composition but varied the subgroup composition. We developed a public good dilemmas paradigm in which participants were assigned to one of the four conditions (high- vs. low-efficacy; homogeneous vs. heterogeneous subgroup) to produce their endowments and then to decide how much to contribute. We found that individuals in homogeneous and heterogeneous subgroups produced a similar amount and proportion of contribution, which was due to the two mediating effects that counteracted each other, namely (a) perceived efficacy relative to subgroup and (b) expectation of contribution of other subgroup members. This paper demonstrates both the pros and cons of arranging people into homogeneous and heterogeneous subgroups of efficacy.

Dreams, aspirations and related behavior in children and adolescents : impacts on child developmental outcomes

Abstract “Dreams”, “aspirations” and related constructs are traditionally regarded as facilitators of adolescent educational attainment in the Chinese context. Besides, there is an emergent need to widen the understanding of such constructs and their impact on children and adolescent developmental outcomes. This paper discusses the developmental outcomes of dreams, aspiration and related concepts based on a thorough review of the literature. Besides outlining the impacts of aspirations, dreams and related constructs on children and adolescents, features of related intervention programs, including themes of the intervention programs, program participants, methods of implementation and evaluation in both Western and Chinese contexts are also documented.