The dragon and the snake: health practices among Chinese in the UK from an inter-disciplinary perspective

Abstract

Objectives. This paper explores how ethnicity has been represented in research on the health practices of Chinese populations in the UK and suggests ways in which such research might be enriched by adopting an interdisciplinary approach.

Design. A systematic literature review of studies was conducted on research with ‘Chinese’ in the UK.

Results. The review highlighted that research with Chinese populations is frequently grounded in assumptions about the homogeneity of Chinese ethnic and cultural identities, and health practices, which undermines the generalizability of findings and conclusions.

Conclusions. There was a lack of clarity surrounding the term ‘Chinese’ as an ethnic and national label that can lead to racialised constructions of ethnicity. An interdisciplinary approach is a valuable tool for enriching understandings of culturally-specific accounts of health and illness, and to address ways in which Chinese populations negotiate different health care systems and models of health.

Keywords:

• interdisciplinarity
• critical ethnicity
• everyday health practices
• medical epistemology
• Chinese
• migration

Funding

The review was funded by Liverpool Health Inequalities Research Institute (LivHIR). The research team is independent of the funders and the views expressed are those of the researchers, and not the funders.

Key messages

1. A need to clarify terminology, e.g., the Chinese when conducting research with Chinese populations.

2. An interdisciplinary approach is required to improve understandings of ethnicity and health, particularly of culturally-specific accounts of health and illness.

3. The need to address how Chinese populations negotiate different health care systems, as well as TCM and WM models of health.

Notes

(1) The ‘Han’ ethnic group constitute over 90% of the PRC population (www.gov.cn).

(2) Historical, racialised term for hired labourer from India and later China (OED: www.oed.com).

(3) Higher Education Statistics Agency www.hesa.ac.uk See also, Office for National Statistics http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/ctu/annual-abstract-of-statistics/quarter-4-2011/chapter-20-education.xls

(4) Statistics for the 2011 had not been released at the time of writing.

(5) This situation remained the same in the 2011 census, although ‘Chinese’ was now listed under the ‘Asian/Asian British’ category.

Additional information

Funding

Funding: The review was funded by Liverpool Health Inequalities Research Institute (LivHIR). The research team is independent of the funders and the views expressed are those of the researchers, and not the funders.