ETHNIC IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION IN THE TRANSITION OF ETHNIC MINORITY YOUTHS TO EMPLOYMENT IN THE HONG KONG-CHINESE CONTEXT

Ethnic minority (EM) youths in Hong Kong face difficulties in their transition to employment. A large number of studies reveal that the transition of EM youths to employment is closely related to three domains: (1) the familial-cultural environment, (2) the education landscape, and (3) the employability aspects of EM youths and workplace climate. However, few studies have examined the relationship between identity construction and transition to employment. This study solicits the views and opinions of multiple stakeholders on the transition of EM youths to employment in Hong Kong through individual interviews with: (1) 53 EM students, (2) 3 EM parents, (3) 8 social workers, and (4) 10 employers. The interview verbatim is then examined under the three domains of family, education and employment, respectively. An identity construction paradigm is proposed as a conceptual framework to explain the relationship between the identity construction process and transition to employment and can be used in future research to examine other transitions of similar EM youth.