Periodic Reporting for period 1 - REHEAL (Rethinking the Health Experience and Active Lifestyles of Chinese Students)
Reporting period: 2019-01-28 to 2021-01-27
Objective and Significance
This research specifically examines British Chinese communities, as Chinese diasporas is the most widely spread diaspora in the world, being the third largest after German and Irish diasporas (Poston & Wong, 2016). The focus on Leeds and Manchester in this project provides the specific data on local circumstances and have contributed to the existing studies which have largely examined those cities where the Chinese have a long established community, and a high concentration or clustering such as in London (Office of National Statistics, 2011). When we look at the intellectual landscape of British Chinese communities in health-related experiences. The examination of race in the UK and Europe is often located within a black-white debate, that often excludes the Chinese from any form of critical analysis. This lack of academic recognition and critical engagement is coupled with the taken-for-granted gendered and racialised British Chineseness in everyday discourses. In the Health and Physical Education and sport, minority ethnic youths are either under-represented or represented in public health messages as ‘bodies-at-risk’ because they do not conform to the Western parameters of physical activity and health regimes. And because they are less obese than other ethnic groups, Chinese communities are often overlooked or seen as fragile, reserved and disinterested in physical movements. These racialised stereotypes in relation to bodies and physicality provide few alternatives for describing and analysing Chinese children in health-related experiences. This project meets the urgent need in providing new knowledge and insights that could potentially enable Europe’s increasingly ethnic diverse children population to lead healthy and active lifestyles, as well as the promotion of social cohesion in its citizens’ lifestyles amidst contestations about cultural diversity (European Commission, 2020).
Aims
1. To map the needs and meanings of physical activity, leisure, and health-related experiences in the lives of Chinese young people in the UK.
2. To develop contextualised understandings of influences (e.g. family, school, leisure, environment) related to Chinese young people's perceptions and experiences in health and physical activity engagement.
3. To identify new conceptual, methodological, and empirical insights on the processes of researching with British Chinese young people in health and physical cultures.
Conclusion
This research has addressed pressing gaps in ethnic diversity knowledge in health and physical cultures, by providing unique insights into Chinese children’s (aged 11-15) physical activity, leisure, and health-related experiences in England. The project has explored how Chinese children’s ethnicity, gender, social class and their intersections; their use of time and space and digital technologies, and consumption patterns that influence their practices, and has critically engaged with the contestable work of cultural norming in relation to their health and bodily experiences. This project has adopted an inter-disciplinary research underpinned by socio-cultural perspectives, arts-based methods, and digital ethnography methods to understand the health-related experiences of British Chinese children.
This research specifically examines British Chinese communities, as Chinese diasporas is the most widely spread diaspora in the world, being the third largest after German and Irish diasporas (Poston & Wong, 2016). The focus on Leeds and Manchester in this project provides the specific data on local circumstances and have contributed to the existing studies which have largely examined those cities where the Chinese have a long established community, and a high concentration or clustering such as in London (Office of National Statistics, 2011). When we look at the intellectual landscape of British Chinese communities in health-related experiences. The examination of race in the UK and Europe is often located within a black-white debate, that often excludes the Chinese from any form of critical analysis. This lack of academic recognition and critical engagement is coupled with the taken-for-granted gendered and racialised British Chineseness in everyday discourses. In the Health and Physical Education and sport, minority ethnic youths are either under-represented or represented in public health messages as ‘bodies-at-risk’ because they do not conform to the Western parameters of physical activity and health regimes. And because they are less obese than other ethnic groups, Chinese communities are often overlooked or seen as fragile, reserved and disinterested in physical movements. These racialised stereotypes in relation to bodies and physicality provide few alternatives for describing and analysing Chinese children in health-related experiences. This project meets the urgent need in providing new knowledge and insights that could potentially enable Europe’s increasingly ethnic diverse children population to lead healthy and active lifestyles, as well as the promotion of social cohesion in its citizens’ lifestyles amidst contestations about cultural diversity (European Commission, 2020).
Aims
1. To map the needs and meanings of physical activity, leisure, and health-related experiences in the lives of Chinese young people in the UK.
2. To develop contextualised understandings of influences (e.g. family, school, leisure, environment) related to Chinese young people's perceptions and experiences in health and physical activity engagement.
3. To identify new conceptual, methodological, and empirical insights on the processes of researching with British Chinese young people in health and physical cultures.
Conclusion
This research has addressed pressing gaps in ethnic diversity knowledge in health and physical cultures, by providing unique insights into Chinese children’s (aged 11-15) physical activity, leisure, and health-related experiences in England. The project has explored how Chinese children’s ethnicity, gender, social class and their intersections; their use of time and space and digital technologies, and consumption patterns that influence their practices, and has critically engaged with the contestable work of cultural norming in relation to their health and bodily experiences. This project has adopted an inter-disciplinary research underpinned by socio-cultural perspectives, arts-based methods, and digital ethnography methods to understand the health-related experiences of British Chinese children.
Research Process
A range of ethnographic, online, and arts-based methods was used to undertake research with British Chinese children aged 11-15 years old as well as some of the parents and community members. Participants were mainly recruited from two Chinese supplementary schools in Leeds and Manchester and with participants residing across the North East of England. The supplementary schools represented a mixture of children’s profiles which varied by social class, gender, age and the country of origins of parents. The data collected with the participants are supplemented by field notes and reflective work conducted by the researcher in the two schools and informed by her everyday lived experiences to enable a further understanding of race-relations and an insider/outsider experiences.
Data exploitation
Four sets of data collected in different phases were undertaken which included interview and observation; online mobile ethnographic research; arts-based research; field notes and reflective data. Based on these data sets, the research involved a number of data analysis methods which were designed to provide an all-round and in-depth understanding of British Chinese children’s health-related experiences. This included thematic analysis, families as case study, narrative analysis, photo drive content analysis, and auto-ethnography.
Research dissemination
• 3 advisory board meetings
• 2 journal articles published, 1 accepted with minor revision, 1 in process
• 2 conference presentations
• 1 teaching resource with radio drama plays and comics
• 1 project report for stakeholders
• 1 academic website
• 3 invited (webinar and face-to-face) presentations
Overview of results
The study found nuanced experiences amongst the participants. However of concern is that there were a few British Chinese pupils who have received racist comments at day-schools such as ‘do you eat dogs?’ or ‘Ching Chong Chinaman’ and these children have learned to manage it by ‘turning the table’, using similar jokes to put-down their white peers or to ignore the comments and pretend they were alright with them. These situations can become worse when a child told their parents about these racist incidents but the parents are not proficient in English and cannot speak up for the child, the family could feel helpless. Often, the parents from a different generation and cultural upbringing have different perspectives with their children on career aspirations, leisure activities, and Chinese schooling. It is common to receive comments from the children that they did not choose to attend Chinese supplementary schools on the weekend despite valuing the friendship with their Chinese friends. Some families with Chinese takeaway businesses have long-working hours and have therefore much less quality time to spending with their children on the weekends. These children are often left on their own above the takeaway shop or are asked to help out the family business during leisure. Whereas those families whose parents are doctors seem to have more opportunities for outdoor activities and have more adult supervision from parents, grandparents, or au pairs conducive to wellbeing and development.
A range of ethnographic, online, and arts-based methods was used to undertake research with British Chinese children aged 11-15 years old as well as some of the parents and community members. Participants were mainly recruited from two Chinese supplementary schools in Leeds and Manchester and with participants residing across the North East of England. The supplementary schools represented a mixture of children’s profiles which varied by social class, gender, age and the country of origins of parents. The data collected with the participants are supplemented by field notes and reflective work conducted by the researcher in the two schools and informed by her everyday lived experiences to enable a further understanding of race-relations and an insider/outsider experiences.
Data exploitation
Four sets of data collected in different phases were undertaken which included interview and observation; online mobile ethnographic research; arts-based research; field notes and reflective data. Based on these data sets, the research involved a number of data analysis methods which were designed to provide an all-round and in-depth understanding of British Chinese children’s health-related experiences. This included thematic analysis, families as case study, narrative analysis, photo drive content analysis, and auto-ethnography.
Research dissemination
• 3 advisory board meetings
• 2 journal articles published, 1 accepted with minor revision, 1 in process
• 2 conference presentations
• 1 teaching resource with radio drama plays and comics
• 1 project report for stakeholders
• 1 academic website
• 3 invited (webinar and face-to-face) presentations
Overview of results
The study found nuanced experiences amongst the participants. However of concern is that there were a few British Chinese pupils who have received racist comments at day-schools such as ‘do you eat dogs?’ or ‘Ching Chong Chinaman’ and these children have learned to manage it by ‘turning the table’, using similar jokes to put-down their white peers or to ignore the comments and pretend they were alright with them. These situations can become worse when a child told their parents about these racist incidents but the parents are not proficient in English and cannot speak up for the child, the family could feel helpless. Often, the parents from a different generation and cultural upbringing have different perspectives with their children on career aspirations, leisure activities, and Chinese schooling. It is common to receive comments from the children that they did not choose to attend Chinese supplementary schools on the weekend despite valuing the friendship with their Chinese friends. Some families with Chinese takeaway businesses have long-working hours and have therefore much less quality time to spending with their children on the weekends. These children are often left on their own above the takeaway shop or are asked to help out the family business during leisure. Whereas those families whose parents are doctors seem to have more opportunities for outdoor activities and have more adult supervision from parents, grandparents, or au pairs conducive to wellbeing and development.
State of the art
1. A range of academic, educational and arts-based resources were developed and co-constructed aiming to engage different audiences, communities and stakeholders to enrich the project’s development that extend existing one-dimensional and academic knowledge production and dissemination methods.
2. This project has extended the theoretical and empirical knowledge in understanding British Chinese children’s health-related experiences which has been published in three key journal articles (2 published and 1 under review).
The research has produced new insights that aims to increase the awareness and understanding of, and to change thinking and attitudes about ‘differences’/the Others in the following three areas:
1. Revealing Chinese Diaspora Communities and their Health-related Experiences
2. Weaving Research, Health Education and Artworks
3. Increasing the Visibility of Chinese Cultures and Language in Anglo-phone Countries
1. A range of academic, educational and arts-based resources were developed and co-constructed aiming to engage different audiences, communities and stakeholders to enrich the project’s development that extend existing one-dimensional and academic knowledge production and dissemination methods.
2. This project has extended the theoretical and empirical knowledge in understanding British Chinese children’s health-related experiences which has been published in three key journal articles (2 published and 1 under review).
The research has produced new insights that aims to increase the awareness and understanding of, and to change thinking and attitudes about ‘differences’/the Others in the following three areas:
1. Revealing Chinese Diaspora Communities and their Health-related Experiences
2. Weaving Research, Health Education and Artworks
3. Increasing the Visibility of Chinese Cultures and Language in Anglo-phone Countries