Approaches to study of three Chinese national groups

Although numerous studies have examined the learning approaches of Chinese students, very few comparative studies have been carried out with Chinese students from different nations.

The present research was designed to identify differences in study approach between Chinese university students drawn from Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

The sample consisted of 192 Chinese students with 89 students from Malaysia (43 males and 46 females), 65 students from Hong Kong (41 males and 24 females), and 38 students from Singapore (12 males and 26 females).

All students completed Entwistle and Ramsden's (1983) Approaches to Studying Inventory by rating on a 4-point Likert scale how well each of the 64 items described their own learning behaviour.

The hypotheses that, in comparison with their respective counterparts, Malaysian Chinese students would identify themselves as being more dependent in their learning, Singaporean students as being more adept in presenting ideas/concepts in a clear and systematic fashion, and Hong Kong students as being more anxious in their learning approach, were all supported. However, the hypothesis that Hong Kong students would be more strategic in their learning approach than their national counterparts was not supported.

Based on the significant differences in learning approaches noted among the different Chinese subgroups, caution must therefore be taken against forming fixed conceptualisations of cultural characteristics and considerable care be given in sample definition and selection in cross-cultural research.