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)
News
- 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 coauthorUrban 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.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*, 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
- Who Cares? Childcare Providers and Women’s Labor Supply in Hong Kong (with Jiao Guo, Karen Li, Lucy Jordan)
- More Graduates, Fewer Skills? Vocational Education Expansion and Skilled Labour Shortages in China (with Xinmiao Song)
- 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 Xinmiao Song and Jiao Guo)
- How Do Neighbors’ Attitudes Affect Your Identity? The Case of Hong Kong (with Zhuoni Zhang and Han Zhang)
- School as the Second Home for Children: The Protective Factors of Parental Divorce in Chinese Schools (with Yuying Tong and Minghong Shen)
- 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 SemesterHKU 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 SemesterHKUST Social Science UG
SOSC3880 Social Inequality and Social Mobility
2018/19 2nd Semester
2017/18 2nd SemesterData
Links to some datasets that I have used for my research.
Contact
9.05, 9/F., The Jockey Club Tower, Centennial Campus, The University of Hong Kong+852 3917 2062CV
© 2019