Ontological insecurity and dual identity: how social change anxiety shapes local-national identification among Hong Kong residents.

Dual identity people believe that they are a part of a local community and national group at the same time. Past studies have indicated that individuals who have dual identities are likely to decrease intergroup conflict, whereas those with a single identity are likely to increase social divisions. In Hong Kong, there are numerous inhabitants that consider themselves as both Hongkonger and Chinese. The continued social changes have however questioned how these changes have been influenced by these changes on dual identity. In this study, three questions are covered. First, does it have a concern about social change as it pertains to dual identity of the Hong Kong residents? Second, is the experience of personal life predictor of the less desirable impact of such worry on dual identity? Third, do these relationships vary based on the age of a person or whether he or she was born in Hong Kong or another place? Information was sampled using a giant and representative cross-sectional survey of the adults of Hong Kong. Dual identity, existential anxiety, life stability, and sense of incompatibility were measured using standard measures. Direct relationships and interaction effects by age and place of birth were investigated using regression models. The results indicate that anxiety about social change had a negative correlation with dual identity particularly among the residents aged 35 and above. This relation was not found to be significant between younger residents. The sense of stability in everyday life had a positive correlation with dual identity and minimized the adverse impact of social change worry on various groups. Social change concern was a significant predictor of weaker dual identity in the aged residents. The personal stability and sense of incompatibility among the younger and locally-born residents were more correlated with dual identity than with social change.