Adolescent Chinese immigrants in Hong Kong: a comparison with locally born students and factors associated with their psychological well-being.

The present research aims to compare the psychological well-being of young Mainland Chinese immigrants and locally born students in Hong Kong and to identify factors that are associated with the psychological well-being of young immigrants. Participants, aged from 12 to 17 years, included 1,109 youngsters born in Hong Kong and 342 new immigrants from Mainland China. Factors examined in this research included individual demographic and socio-economic factors like age, gender, length of residence in the host society and the financial situation of immigrants' immediate family, as well as personal factors including immigrants' self-concept, perceived discrimination, and educational aspiration. Findings indicated that the psychological well-being of young Mainland Chinese immigrants was on the whole better than that of the locally born students. Findings also revealed that demographic factors did not have significant correlation with the psychological functioning of young immigrants, while personal factors generally correlated significantly with their psychological well-being.