• About

    BIO

    I am an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Hong Kong (2019-present). I also held joint appointments at the Department of Geography and the Faculty of Arts from 2019 to 2023. Before joining HKU, I was a Research Assistant Professor of Social Science and a Junior Fellow of Institute for Advanced Study at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (2017-2019).

     

    In 2017, I received my PhD in Social Science from HKUST, where I was also trained at the Center for Applied Social and Economic Research (CASER). I completed my MPhil in Social Science at HKUST in 2013 and BA in Sociology at Shandong University in 2011.

    Research Interests

    My research interests center on social stratification and inequality, and lie at the intersection of urban sociology, sociology of education, and sociology of work. In particular, I am interested in understanding:

    • how social-spatial factors (e.g. migration, segregation, location) shape urban residents' attitudes, behaviors, and life chances;
    • the impacts of various family, school and neighborhood factors on children’s educational and developmental outcomes;
    • young people’s experiences of school-to-work transition, precarious employment and labour market mismatch.

    My studies are mainly concerned with child development and youth employment issues in Chinese cities (e.g. Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing), and I draw on various longitudinal survey datasets and a range of quantitative methods for causal inference. Currently, I am working on multiple research projects, including:

    • Skill Requirements of Job Ads during an Economic Recession in Hong Kong: A Machine Learning Approach to Studying Labour Market Mismatch
    • Educational Expansion, College Premium and Social Mobility: A Comparative Study of Hong Kong and Taiwan Youth (funded by RGC-ECS)
    • Socioeconomic Segregation, School Choice, and Geography of Educational Inequality in Hong Kong (funded by RGC-GRF)
  • Duoduo Xu

    News

    • Our new paper is out in Chinese Sociological Review, examining the effects of diverse childcare combinations on women’s labor supply from a life course perspective. Turns out that domestic workers, rather than grandparents or kindergartens, are the lifesavers for mothers of young children in Hong Kong!

     

    • In this academic year, I will be teaching SOCI6003 Research seminars for postgraduate students.

     

    • I am serving on the 13th Council of Hong Kong Sociological Association (HKSA) as the Vice President (2022-2024). Check out our new website!

     

    • My PhD student, Jiao Guo, and I recently published a paper in British Journal of Sociology, focusing on the spatial dimension of urban protests and its attitudinal consequences.

    Read EurekAlert! coverage of this paper.

     

    • Based on the same dataset (i.e. HKPSSD), my co-authors and I have another forthcoming paper in Work, Employment, and Society, examining young people's entry into precarious employment during economic crises and the long-term scarring effect of first job precarity.

     

    • I am serving as a Guest Editor of Chinese Sociological Review for a Special Issue on education and inequality in Chinese societies, together with Anning Hu and Angran Li.

     

  • Research

    “It is possible to make very significant progress against the biggest problem in the world through the accumulation of a set of small steps, each well thought out, carefully tested, and judiciously implemented.”

    —— Banerjee and Duflo (2011, p.40, Poor Economics)

  • Publications

    See below for a list of my publications by research area.

     

    *: Xu is corresponding author
    #: post-doc/graduate student coauthor

    Urban Sociology

     
    Main interest: how social-spatial factors (e.g. migration, segregation, location) shape urban residents' attitudes, behaviors, and life chances.

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Jiao Guo# (equal authorship). 2023. “In Sight, In Mind: Spatial Proximity to Protest Sites and Changes in Peoples’ Political Attitudes.” The British Journal of Sociology, 74(1): 83-104. [Open Access]

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Xiaogang Wu. 2022. “Separate and Unequal: Hukou, School Segregation, and Educational Inequality in Urban China.” Chinese Sociological Review, 54(5), 433-457.

     

    Jin, Shuheng#, Tianzhu Nie#, Ngai Pun, and Duoduo Xu*. 2022. "Spatial Mismatch, Different Labor Markets and Precarious Employment: The Case of Hong Kong." Social Indicators Research, 161(1): 51-73. [Open Access] 

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Xiaogang Wu. 2021. “From Political Power to Personal Wealth: Privatization and Elite Opportunity in Post-Reform China.” Journal of Contemporary China, 30(132):993-1013.

     

    Xu, Duoduo and Xiaogang Wu. 2017. “The Rise of the Second Generation: Aspirations, Motivations and Academic Success of Chinese Immigrants’ Children in Hong Kong.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 43(7), 1164-1189.

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Jaap Dronkers. 2016. “Migrant Children in Shanghai: A Research Note on the PISA-Shanghai Controversy.” Chinese Sociological Review, 48(3), 271-295.

    Sociology of Education

     
    Main interest: the impacts of various family, school and neighborhood factors on children’s educational and developmental outcomes.

     

    Song, Xinmiao# and Duoduo Xu*. Accepted. “More Graduates, Fewer Skills? Vocational Education Expansion and Skilled
    Labour Shortages in China.” The China Quarterly.

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Xiaogang Wu. 2022. “Separate and Unequal: Hukou, School Segregation, and Educational Inequality in Urban China.” Chinese Sociological Review, 54(5), 433-457.

     

    Zhang, Zhuoni, Tianzhu Nie# and Duoduo Xu. 2019. “Family Background, Parenting Practices, and Child Outcomes: Chinese Immigrants’ Offspring in Hong Kong.” Chinese Journal of Sociology, 5(3), 263-282. [Open Access]

     

    Xu, Duoduo*, Xiaogang Wu, Zhuoni Zhang and Jaap Dronkers. 2018. “Not A Zero-Sum Game: Migration and Child Well-being in Contemporary China.” Demographic Research, 38(26), 691-726. [Open Access]

     

    Xu, Duoduo and Xiaogang Wu. 2017. “The Rise of the Second Generation: Aspirations, Motivations and Academic Success of Chinese Immigrants’ Children in Hong Kong.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 43(7), 1164-1189.

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Jaap Dronkers. 2016. “Migrant Children in Shanghai: A Research Note on the PISA-Shanghai Controversy.” Chinese Sociological Review, 48(3), 271-295.

    Sociology of Work

     
    Main interest: young people’s experiences of school-to-work transition, precarious employment and labour market mismatch.

     

    Xu,Duoduo*, Jiao Guo#, Karen Ka Han Li#, and Lucy P. Jordan. 2023. “Who Cares? Childcare Support and Women’s Labor Supply in Hong Kong.” Chinese Sociological Review, Online First. [Open Access]

     

    Song, Xinmiao# and Duoduo Xu*. Accepted. “More Graduates, Fewer Skills? Vocational Education Expansion and Skilled
    Labour Shortages in China.” The China Quarterly.

     

    Xu, Duoduo*, Shuheng Jin#, Ngai Pun, Jiao Guo#, and Xiaogang Wu. 2022. “The Scarring Effect of First Job Precarity: New Evidence from a Panel Study in Hong Kong.” Work, Employment and Society, Online First.

     

    Jin, Shuheng#, Tianzhu Nie#, Ngai Pun, and Duoduo Xu*. 2022. "Spatial Mismatch, Different Labor Markets and Precarious Employment: The Case of Hong Kong." Social Indicators Research, 161(1): 51-73. [Open Access]

     

    Xu, Duoduo* and Xiaogang Wu. 2021. “From Political Power to Personal Wealth: Privatization and Elite Opportunity in Post-Reform China.” Journal of Contemporary China, 30(132):993-1013.

     

    Xu, Duoduo*. 2018. “From Poverty to Prosperity: College Education, Non-cognitive Abilities, and First-job Earnings.” Chinese Sociological Review, 50(1), 53-82.

  • Working Papers

    See below for a list of my working papers.

    Under Review

    • School Allocation Policy and Reverse Gender Gap in Academic Achievement: Evidence from a Quasi-experiment in Hong Kong (with Xiaogang Wu)

    In Progress

    • Tracking Effect or Selection Effect? Social Origin, Track Choice, and Status Attainment in China (with Jiao Guo and Xinmiao Song)
    • School as the Second Home for Children: The Protective Factors of Parental Divorce in Chinese Schools (with Minghong Shen and Yuying Tong)
    • How Do Neighbors’ Attitudes Affect Your Identity? The Case of Hong Kong
    • Skill Requirements of Job Ads during an Economic Recession in Hong Kong: A Machine Learning Approach to Studying Labour Market Mismatch
    • School Segregation and Geography of Educational Inequality in Hong Kong
    • Risk Preference and Migrant Entrepreneurship in Urban China

  • Teaching

    See below for a list of UG/PG courses that I have taught.

    HKU Sociology PG

    SOCI6003 Research Seminars for Postgraduate Students

    2023/24 1st and 2nd Semesters

    HKU Sociology UG

    SOCI2002 Social Stratification and Social Class

    2022/23 2nd Semester

    HKU Sociology UG

    SOCI2030 Quantitative Research Methods

    2021/22 2nd Semester
    2020/21 2nd Semester
    2019/20 2nd Semester

    HKU Sociology PG

    SOCI8021 Individual dissertation

    2021/22 2nd Semester

    HKU Geography UG

    GEOG3421 Studying Cities

    2022/23 2nd Semester

    2021/22 2nd Semester

    HKU Geography UG

    GEOG2126 Globalizing China

    2019/20 1st Semester

    HKU Geography PG

    GEOG7120 Urban China

    2019/20 2nd Semester

    HKU Arts UG

    SINO2005 Selected Topics in China Studies

    2021/22 2nd Semester
    2020/21 2nd Semester
    2019/20 1st Semester

    HKUST Social Science UG

    SOSC3880 Social Inequality and Social Mobility

    2018/19 2nd Semester
    2017/18 2nd Semester

  • Data

    Links to some datasets that I have used for my research.

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    Hong Kong Panel Study of Social Dynamics (HKPSSD)

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    Shanghai Urban Neighborhood Survey (SUNS)

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    Beijing College Students Panel Survey (BCSPS)

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    China Education Panel Survey (CEPS)

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    China Family Panel Studies (CFPS)

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    Programme for International Students Assessment (PISA)

  • Contact

    9.05, 9/F., The Jockey Club Tower, Centennial Campus, The University of Hong Kong
    +852 3917 2062
    +852 3917 2062
    ddxu@hku.hk

  • CV

     

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