Leaving Hong Kong?: the roles of attitude, subjective norm, perceived control, social identity and relative deprivation

Reports a study of Hong Kong people's intention in 1992 to leave after the 1997 Transition. 71 employees in a medium-sized organization in Hong Kong (mean age 31.3 yrs) responded to measures based on theories of planned behavior, social identity, and relative deprivation. Identification was associated with status evaluations of Hong Kong rather than perceived personal benefits from living there. Intention to leave was associated with attitudes and subjective norms but not with other variables. Perceived control moderated the relationship of anticipated deprivation to frustration and identification. Among respondents with low control, but not those with high control, anticipated deprivation was associated with greater frustration and lowered identification. The authors distinguish between leaving the group physically vs psychologically. The results are interpreted as being consistent with a Social Identity Theory perspective on social change and intergroup boundary permeability.