Wing Hong Chui

Veiled entrapment: A study of social isolation of older Chinese migrants in Brisbane, Queensland

ABSTRACT This paper presents the findings of a study of the support and service needs of older Chinese people in Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia. There were two specific objectives: to ascertain the problems encountered by older Chinese-Australians in their daily lives and social activities; and to develop policy and service development recommendations, with a view to mitigating their problems, meeting their unmet needs, improving their quality of life, and enhancing their participation in Australian society. The study used multiple methods, including a literature review, focus group meetings, and a community survey. The findings indicate that older Chinese people, and particularly women, experience significant restrictions in their activity patterns, social isolation and loneliness. Their lack of proficiency in the English language, and the difficulties they have in accessing language-support and interpretation services, limit their autonomous mobility and make them heavily dependent on their adult children, not least for transport. Their physical and psychological wellbeing is affected further by strained relations with their adult children, and these are compounded by financial concerns. The implications of the findings for welfare policy and practice are discussed at the end of the paper.

Police auxiliaries in Australia: Police liaison officers and the dilemmas of being part of the police extended family

Studies on security governance have highlighted that internationally there has been the pluralisation of police roles and functions. One feature of these developments has been the emergence of dedicated quasi-police personnel, termed police auxiliaries. Public police agencies have been instrumental in supporting the growth of police auxiliaries, promoting their adoption as part of broader police reforms to improve the engagement of ethnic minority groups. One example of these trends in Australia has been the emergence of police liaison officers (PLOs). This paper draws upon research into a PLO programme in the Australian State of Queensland in order to explore the intra-organisational features of auxiliarisation. Data from qualitative interviews are analysed to highlight that while police auxiliaries do make an important contribution to improving police community engagement, they face their own dilemmas and challenges that occur from being part of the police extended family. One relates to role conflict arising from a conflicting sense of accountability to the police and the wider community. This is particularly pronounced for police auxiliaries who are of an ethnic/racial background.

Residential Treatment Programs for Young Offenders in Hong Kong: A Report

Research evaluation of rehabilitation programs has used minimal contribution or participation from the ex-offenders who are the subjects or objects of study, and little attention has been paid to those who receive these services. This article looks at what young ex-offenders said about their experience of residential treatment programs in the probation homes and the detention center in Hong Kong. Based on in-depth, qualitative interviews with five young male ex-offenders, this small-scale study may shed light on how they perceive the advantages and disadvantages of treatment programs for them. Although loss of freedom, pains of detention, and doing time are a result of being locked up, some report their residential experiences as a fruitful way to enable them to grow out of crime and to cause them to reevaluate relationships with their families. Finally, an outline of what further research or policy evaluation could and should be done is given.

The Gendered Analysis of Self-Control on Theft and Violent Delinquency: An Examination of Hong Kong Adolescent Population

Despite previous gender-based studies of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s self-control theory, limited empirical attempts have been made outside of the Western hemisphere. This study is set to examine the cross-cultural and/or national boundaries generalizability of the self-control concepts in predicting gender differences on theft and violent delinquency in a rarely examined Hong Kong adolescent population. In addition, this study is among the first to investigate the age-effect gender differences on delinquency in the East. Using a cross-sectional design, 1,377 randomly selected native-Chinese secondary school–aged male and female adolescents of nine stratified randomly selected schools were surveyed. Multivariate analyses were used to examine gender differences, with and without controlling for the adolescent age, aside from the general offending propensity among Hong Kong adolescents with respect to their self-control level. Overall findings suggest that the relationship between low self-control indicators and types of delinquency differs across gender. Hence, findings of previous gender-based self-control studies conducted in the West are generally supported in this study. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are outlined.

Psychological Correlates of Violent and Non-violent Hong Kong Juvenile Probationers

There is little known about Hong Kong juvenile offenders on probation. The purpose of this study was to compare Hong Kong juvenile violent with non-violent probationers on static demographic and psychological variables. The study comprised 109 male juvenile probationers aged 14-20 years (M = 16.97, SD = 1.44) in community transitional housing; 34 were adjudicated for violent offenses, while 75 were non-violent. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Social Bonding Scale-Theft (SBS-T), Social Bonding Scale-Violent Crime (SBS-VC), Positive and Negative Affect Scales (PANAS), Impulsiveness Scale-Short Form (IS-SF) and CRIME-PICS II were administered to measure self-esteem, life satisfaction, social bond, positive and negative affect, impulsivity, pro-offending attitudes, and self-perceived life problems. Data on onset age of delinquent behavior, age of first adjudication, number of prior adjudications, and frequency of self-reported delinquency in the past year were also collected. t-tests were consistent with significant differences for violent offenders including higher self-esteem (p < 0.05). Non-violent offenders self-reported significantly more theft (p < 0.05) with a tendency to deny victim hurt more often (p < 0.01); 76.5% of violent offenders self-reported both violent and non-violent crime, while 58.7% of non-violent offenders reported only non-violent crime. For violent and non-violent offenders, the onset of delinquency was inversely related to the frequency of self-reported delinquency. Using ordinary least-squares (OLS) regression analyses, self-anticipated violent reoffending risk was predicted by age of onset, frequency of self-reported delinquency, social bond (inversely), and impulsivity, while non-violent reoffending risk was predicted by the number of prior convictions and self-reported delinquency. Only two psychological correlates, social bond and impulsivity, were related to violent delinquency; interventions are suggested.

Ethical challenges of life story research with ex‐prisoners with intellectual disability

This paper outlines the ethical considerations when engaging in life story research with ex‐prisoners with intellectual disability. Based on a study conducted in Queensland, Australia, the authors explore some of the challenges that have arisen through the lens of principle‐based ethics. The significant disadvantage experienced by ex‐prisoners with intellectual disability warrants further attention by social researchers, and care must be taken not to further harm this group through the research process. Issues pertaining to the broad ethical concepts of integrity, justice, respect for persons and beneficence are examined to identify the degree to which they can guide the actions of the life story researcher. Examples are given as to how the researcher responded to difficulties as they arose and the authors discuss ways forward from a principle‐based approach.

The Volunteer Satisfaction Index: A Validation Study in the Chinese Cultural Context

Using a Hong Kong-sourced sample of 261 participants, this study set out to validate the Volunteer Satisfaction Index (VSI) in the Chinese cultural context and to evaluate its psychometric properties. The VSI was originally developed by Galindo-Kuhn and Guzley (2001) to measure the outcomes of volunteer experiences. In this study, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded a different factor structure from that proposed by the scale developer. The three factors found were personal gain, relationship within organization and relationship with peers. Cronbach’s alpha values were high for all three subscales. Results from correlation and regression analysis also confirmed the construct and criterion-related validity of the scale. Thus, the reliability and validity of the scale were confirmed. Implications for the assessment of volunteer satisfaction and further directions for cross-cultural studies on related topics are discussed.

Ethnic experience of cancer: a qualitative study of Chinese-Australians in Brisbane, Queensland.

This article reports on the findings of a recent study of cancer experiences of members in the Chinese community in Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland. Results of the study have shown that the belief in fate and luck, as well as stoicism about cancer, is very common among cancer patients and their family members. Their general strategy for coping with cancer is often passive. Families play the most important role in determining the strategy for helping the cancer patients in coping with the illness. Most prefer to keep the illness secret and private within the family. Implications of the findings from this study will be discussed for the development of culturally appropriate programs for cancer prevention and treatment for the Chinese community.

Self-perceived Role and Function of Christian Prison Chaplains and Buddhist Volunteers in Hong Kong Prisons

Although there have been a handful of studies examining the work of chaplains and prison volunteers in a Western setting, few have endeavored to conduct research into the experiences of religious workers in Asian penitentiaries. To fill this gap, this article reports on exploratory research examining the work of a selected group of religious workers in Hong Kong prisons. A total of 17 religious workers were interviewed: 10 prison chaplains and 7 Buddhist volunteers who paid regular prison visits. Qualitative findings generated from in-depth interviews present three themes: the range of religious activities performed, the importance of religion for the rehabilitation of inmates, and the hope of continued religious support to prisoners after discharge. The significance of this research is that it sheds light on the understudied work of prison chaplains and volunteers in Hong Kong and portrays the difference between the works of the Christian ministry and Buddhist volunteers.

If ‘Something Works’ is the Answer, What is the Question? Supporting Pluralist Evaluation in Community Corrections in the United Kingdom

The aims of the paper are to present the argument for pluralistic evaluation, by outlining and assessing the various measures that have been and might be used in the United Kingdom, and to question the value of relying on reconviction rates. Most evaluation studies of offender programmes in the community and in prison have been based on single measures, mostly the recidivism rate. Some studies have evaluated the effectiveness of particular programmes in terms of the costs or of changing the attitudes or addressing the needs and problems of offenders. However, no single measurement can reveal the full picture of the effectiveness of a particular correctional programme. This paper criticizes current evaluation-driven practice - only do things that can be measured and divert resources from delivery to fairly unimaginative evaluation. It concludes that commitment to pluralistic evaluation in principle is often compromised in practice.