Social capital and the well-being of migrants to Australia: Exploring the role of generalised trust and social network resources

Few studies have explored the role of social capital in migrant well-being. This is important to examine, as changes in social capital are often expected following migration. The present study, using standardised measures, investigated the relationships of two components of social capital – generalised trust and network resources – with two dimensions of well-being – flourishing and psychological distress – among 1036 Australian migrants. Participants completed a national online survey and were from four different cultural backgrounds (Anglo, Other European, Indian, Chinese). Compared to the Anglo group, the Indian group was found to have lower levels of both generalised trust and network resources. The Chinese group had lower levels of generalised trust but similar levels of network resources. Multiple regression analyses found higher generalised trust was linked to higher flourishing and lower psychological distress for all groups. For network resources, however, all groups had an association with higher flourishing, except for the Other European group, while the only group with an association with lower psychological distress and network resources was the Chinese group. These results suggest that generalised trust has some positive implications for migrant well-being, consistent with previous research. This study also suggests that the role of network resources in psychological well-being and its development may vary across different groups of migrants and requires further research.     

Acculturation in a postcolonial context: Language,identity, cultural adaptation,and academic achievement of Macao students in Mainland China

The mainstream acculturation research focuses on international students and immigrants’ settlement in a new cultural environment, but little is known about the adaptation process of people from postcolonial areas relocating to their home country. Drawing from research on acculturation and postcolonial studies, this research examined the importance of language and social identity of Macao Chinese (N = 102; 50 males, Mage = 20.1) transitioning to universities in Mainland China. The results of path analysis showed that Chinese national identity and perceived Mandarin language proficiency were positively associated with each other, but they were linked to cultural adaptation through different paths. Perceived language proficiency was directly linked to social, academic, and psychological adaptation, whereas Chinese identity was indirectly associated with social and academic adaptation through acculturation to the Mainland Chinese culture. Moreover, academic adaptation was, in turn, associated with academic achievement (i.e., GPAs). The present study extends acculturation research to a postcolonial context, highlighting that national identity and language proficiency are important factors for successful cultural adaptation to the homeland. The theoretical and practical implications regarding intra-cultural adaptation barriers andprocesses in postcolonial contexts were discussed.     

Years since migration and wellbeing among Indian and Sri Lankan skilled migrants in Australia: Mediating effects of acculturation

The present study investigated language, identity and behavioral acculturation experiences and personal wellbeing among 306 Sri Lankan and Indian skilled migrant employees using a cross-sectional survey. The results indicated that participants were more acculturated to their heritage culture compared to the host culture. The majority of Sri Lankan and Indian skilled migrants were moderately acculturated into Australian society, and were most acculturated in the language dimension, followed by the behavior and identity dimensions respectively. Years since migration predicted overall host acculturation but not overall heritage acculturation. While overall heritage acculturation predicted personal wellbeing, overall host acculturation was a stronger predictor. Testing of a mediation model demonstrated that overall host acculturation fully mediated the relationship between years since migration and wellbeing. Further analysis showed that only host identity and language acculturation, and not host behavior acculturation, mediated the relationship between years since migration and wellbeing. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

The spiritual and ethical predicaments in contemporary China: an investigation of thought

Accompanying the fast development of China’s economy in the last three decades is the worsening of its spiritual and ethical conditions. This article aims to analyze and discuss the contexts in which such spiritual and ethical predicaments emerged so as to offer historical and conceptual backgrounds that are necessary for understanding this contemporary reality in China.     

Positive and negative intergroup contact and willingness to engage in intergroup interactions among majority (Han) and minority (Uyghur) group members in China: The moderating role of social dominance orientation

The present study investigated whether the associations of positive and negative intergroup contact with behavioral intentions (intentions to have contact with the outgroup in the future) are moderated by social dominance orientation (SDO), by considering the perspective of both majority and minority group members in China. Participants were 325 Han (majority) and 373 Uyghur (minority) members, who completed a self-report questionnaire. Results indicated that positive contact was associated with more positive behavioral intentions among high-SDO majority group members, whereas SDO did not moderate the association between positive contact and behavioral intentions among minority group members. In addition, negative contact was associated with lower behavioral intentions among high-SDO majority group members, and among low-SDO minority group members. This study suggests that attention should be placed simultaneously on positive and negative contact and on individual difference variables relevant to social ideologies, such as SDO.