February 9, 2021
Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute Press Conference – Press Materials
Detailed Findings
POP releases findings on Hong Kong people’s feelings
towards different peoples and governments
Special Announcement
The predecessor of Hong Kong Public Opinion Program (HKPOP) was The Public Opinion Programme at The University of Hong Kong (HKUPOP). “POP” in this release can refer to HKPOP or its predecessor HKUPOP.
Abstract
POP successfully interviewed 1,000 and 1,011 Hong Kong residents in a two-stage random telephone survey conducted by real interviewers in January. Our survey shows that, in terms of net affinity, Hong Kong people feel more positively about all other peoples than their governments. Among them, the net affinity for the governments of Hong Kong, the United States, Mainland and the United Kingdom registered negative values. Compared to half a year ago, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the people of Mainland as well as the governments of Macau and Mainland have increased significantly, while that towards the peoples of the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and Australia, as well as the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Taiwan and Australia have all decreased significantly. Looking back at past records, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the peoples of Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States are at historical lows since records began in 2007, that towards the people of Taiwan is at its lowest since 2012, while that towards the people of Mainland is at its highest since 2010. As for the governments, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the government of the United Kingdom is at historical low since records began in 1997, that towards the government of Canada is also at its record low since 1997, that towards the government of Australia is at its lowest since 2000, while that towards the government of Macau has reached its new high since 2006. The effective response rate of the evaluation stage survey is 67.2%. The maximum sampling error of percentages is +/-4% and that of net values is +/-6% at 95% confidence level.
Contact Information
| Naming stage | Evaluation stage | ||
| Date of survey | : | 4-8/1/2021 | 18-22/1/2021 |
| Sample size[1] | : | 1,000 (including 492 landline and 508 mobile samples) | 1,011 (including 509 landline and 502 mobile samples) |
| Effective response rate | : | 58.5% | 67.2% |
| Survey method | : | Random telephone survey conducted by real interviewers | |
| Target population | : | Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong residents aged 18 or above | |
| Sampling error[2] | : | Sampling error of percentages not more than +/-4% and that of net values not more than +/-6% at 95% conf. level | |
| Weighting method | : | Rim-weighted according to figures provided by the Census and Statistics Department. The gender-age distribution of the Hong Kong population came from “Mid-year population for 2019”, while the educational attainment (highest level attended) distribution and economic activity status distribution came from “Women and Men in Hong Kong – Key Statistics (2019 Edition)”. | |
[1]This figure is the total sample size of the survey. Some questions may only involve a subsample, the size of which can be found in the tables below.
[2]All error figures in this release are calculated at 95% confidence level. “95% confidence level” means that if we were to repeat a certain survey 100 times with different random samples, we would expect 95 times having the population parameter within the respective error margins calculated. Because of sampling errors, when quoting percentages, journalists should refrain from reporting decimal places, whereas one decimal place can be used when quoting rating figures.
Latest Figures
In the naming survey, respondents could name, unprompted, up to 10 governments of countries or regions that they knew best apart from Hong Kong, Mainland, Taiwan and Macau. The top 5 nominees then entered the evaluation survey. In the evaluation survey, respondents were asked to rate their feeling towards the governments and peoples of Hong Kong, Mainland, Taiwan, Macau and the five countries or regions respectively. Hong Kong people’s feelings towards different governments and peoples are summarized as follows:
| Date of survey | 17-19/7/19 | 20-21/1/20 | 17-20/8/20 | 18-22/1/21 | ||
| Sample size[3] | 592-633 | 505 | 655-672 | 821-834 | ||
| Response rate | 59.8% | 71.2% | 60.9% | 67.2% | ||
| Latest findings[4] | Findings | Findings | Findings | Finding & error | Latest change | |
| Hong Kong | People Positive | 63%[5] | 57% | 55% | 44+/-3% | -10%[5] |
| People Negative | 12% | 13% | 6%[5] | 10+/-2% | +4%[5] | |
| Net value | 51%[5] | 44% | 49% | 34+/-5% | -14%[5] | |
| Government Positive | 26%[5] | 13%[5] | 23%[5] | 20+/-3% | -3% | |
| Government Negative | 58%[5] | 74%[5] | 61%[5] | 54+/-3% | -8%[5] | |
| Net value | -32%[5] | -61%[5] | -39%[5] | -34+/-6% | +5% | |
| Mainland | People Positive | 30% | 30% | 32% | 36+/-3% | +4% |
| People Negative | 34% | 37% | 32% | 22+/-3% | -10%[5] | |
| Net value | -4% | -7% | <1% | 14+/-5% | +13%[5] | |
| Government Positive | 25%[5] | 23% | 27% | 33+/-3% | +6%[5] | |
| Government Negative | 51%[5] | 59%[5] | 52%[5] | 41+/-3% | -11%[5] | |
| Net value | -26%[5] | -36%[5] | -26%[5] | -9+/-6% | +17%[5] | |
| Taiwan | People Positive | 76%[5] | 74% | 68%[5] | 55+/-3% | -13%[5] |
| People Negative | 2%[5] | 4%[5] | 4% | 5+/-2% | +2% | |
| Net value | 75%[5] | 69% | 64% | 50+/-4% | -14%[5] | |
| Government Positive | 52%[5] | 55% | 51% | 42+/-3% | -9%[5] | |
| Government Negative | 19%[5] | 18% | 21% | 23+/-3% | +2% | |
| Net value | 33%[5] | 37% | 31% | 20+/-5% | -11%[5] | |
| Macau | People Positive | 62%[5] | 51%[5] | 50% | 50+/-4% | — |
| People Negative | 3% | 9%[5] | 5%[5] | 2+/-1% | -3%[5] | |
| Net value | 60%[5] | 42%[5] | 45% | 48+/-4% | +3% | |
| Government Positive | 43%[5] | 31%[5] | 45%[5] | 53+/-3% | +9%[5] | |
| Government Negative | 23% | 35%[5] | 20%[5] | 8+/-2% | -12%[5] | |
| Net value | 20% | -4%[5] | 25%[5] | 46+/-4% | +21%[5] | |
[3]Before March 2020, weighted count was used to report subsample size. Starting from March 2020, raw count was used instead.
[4]Collapsed from a 5-point scale.
[5]The difference between the figure and the result from the previous survey has gone beyond the sampling error at 95% confidence level, meaning that the change is statistically significant prima facie. However, whether the difference is statistically significant is not the same as whether they are practically useful or meaningful, and different weighting methods could have been applied in different surveys.
Hong Kong people’s feelings towards some other governments and peoples are summarized as follows, in descending order of net values towards the peoples:
| Date of survey | 17-19/7/19 | 20-21/1/20 | 17-20/8/20 | 18-22/1/21 | ||
| Sample size[6] | 598-616 | 505 | 667-700 | 820-827 | ||
| Response rate | 59.8% | 71.2% | 60.9% | 67.2% | ||
| Latest findings[7] | Findings | Findings | Findings | Finding & error | Latest change | |
| Japan | People Positive | 76%[8] | 71% | 59%[8] | 52+/-3% | -7%[8] |
| People Negative | 3%[8] | 7%[8] | 6% | 5+/-1% | -1% | |
| Net value | 73%[8] | 64%[8] | 53%[8] | 48+/-4% | -5% | |
| Government Positive | 39%[8] | 46%[8] | 35%[8] | 30+/-3% | -5%[8] | |
| Government Negative | 27% | 17%[8] | 17% | 15+/-2% | -3% | |
| Net value | 12%[8] | 29%[8] | 18%[8] | 16+/-5% | -2% | |
| Canada | People Positive | — | — | — | 34+/-3% | — |
| People Negative | — | — | — | 4+/-1% | — | |
| Net value | — | — | — | 30+/-4% | — | |
| Government Positive | — | — | — | 27+/-3% | — | |
| Government Negative | — | — | — | 16+/-3% | — | |
| Net value | — | — | — | 11+/-5% | — | |
| Australia | People Positive | — | 54% | 43%[8] | 34+/-3% | -9%[8] |
| People Negative | — | 4% | 6% | 4+/-1% | -2% | |
| Net value | — | 50% | 37%[8] | 30+/-4% | -8%[8] | |
| Government Positive | — | 38% | 38% | 30+/-3% | -7%[8] | |
| Government Negative | — | 12% | 15% | 16+/-3% | — | |
| Net value | — | 26% | 22% | 15+/-5% | -8%[8] | |
| United Kingdom | People Positive | 63%[8] | 51%[8] | 42%[8] | 29+/-3% | -12%[8] |
| People Negative | 5% | 6% | 10%[8] | 11+/-2% | +1% | |
| Net value | 58%[8] | 44%[8] | 32%[8] | 19+/-4% | -13%[8] | |
| Government Positive | 51% | 40%[8] | 37% | 24+/-3% | -12%[8] | |
| Government Negative | 17% | 21% | 25% | 28+/-3% | +3% | |
| Net value | 34% | 19%[8] | 12% | -3+/-5% | -15%[8] | |
| United States | People Positive | 48%[8] | 47% | 38%[8] | 21+/-3% | -17%[8] |
| People Negative | 9%[8] | 12% | 14% | 20+/-3% | +6%[8] | |
| Net value | 39%[8] | 35% | 24%[8] | 2+/-4% | -23%[8] | |
| Government Positive | 24%[8] | 33%[8] | 28% | 14+/-2% | -14%[8] | |
| Government Negative | 48%[8] | 36%[8] | 41%[8] | 44+/-3% | +3% | |
| Net value | -24%[8] | -2%[8] | -13%[8] | -30+/-5% | -17%[8] | |
[6]Before March 2020, weighted count was used to report subsample size. Starting from March 2020, raw count was used instead.
[7]Collapsed from a 5-point scale.
[8]The difference between the figure and the result from the previous survey has gone beyond the sampling error at 95% confidence level, meaning that the change is statistically significant prima facie. However, whether the difference is statistically significant is not the same as whether they are practically useful or meaningful, and different weighting methods could have been applied in different surveys.
Our latest survey shows that, in terms of net affinity, Hong Kong people feel more positively about all other peoples than their governments. As regards people’s feeling towards different peoples, from high to low net affinity, the order goes: Taiwan, Macau, Japan, Hong Kong, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Mainland and the United States. Regarding people’s feeling towards different governments, from high to low net affinity, the order goes: Macau, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mainland, the United States and Hong Kong. Among them, the net affinity for the governments of Hong Kong, the United States, Mainland and the United Kingdom are negative.
Compared to half a year ago, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the people of Mainland as well as the governments of Macau and Mainland have increased significantly, while that towards the peoples of the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and Australia, as well as the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Taiwan and Australia have all decreased significantly.
Looking back at past records, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the peoples of Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States are at historical lows since records began in 2007, that towards the people of Taiwan is at its lowest since 2012, while that towards the people of Mainland is at its highest since 2010. As for the governments, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the government of the United Kingdom is at historical low since records began in 1997, that towards the government of Canada is also at its record low since 1997, that towards the government of Australia is at its lowest since 2000, while that towards the government of Macau has reached its new high since 2006.
It should be noted, however, that our survey only covers regions and countries best known to Hong Kong people. Hong Kong people may well like or dislike other places much more, but because they are not the most well-known places, they do not appear on the list by design.
Opinion Daily
In 2007, POP started collaborating with Wisers Information Limited whereby Wisers supplies to POP a record of significant events of that day according to the research method designed by POP. These daily entries would then become “Opinion Daily” after they are verified by POP.
For the polling items covered in this press release, the previous survey was conducted from 17 to 20 August, 2020 while this survey was conducted from 18 to 22 January, 2021. During this period, herewith the significant events selected from counting newspaper headlines and commentaries on a daily basis and covered by at least 25% of the local newspaper articles. Readers can make their own judgment if these significant events have any impacts to different polling figures.
| 22/1/21 | Sources say the government will lock down designated areas in Yau Ma Tei. |
| 20/1/21 | The US President Biden is sworn into office. |
| 15/1/21 | Mandatory testing is ordered for residents of 20 buildings in Yau Ma Tei. |
| 13/1/21 | Brazil authority announces that the general efficacy of Sinovac vaccine is 50.4%. |
| 7/1/21 | The US Congress confirms Biden’s victory in presidential election. Trump supporters break into the US Congress and conflicts occur. |
| 6/1/21 | Police arrests 53 democrats involved in the pro-democracy primaries who allegedly violated the national security law. |
| 5/1/21 | Geoffrey Ma says details and justifications are needed to call for judicial reform. |
| 4/1/21 | The government announces extension of anti-epidemic measures. Face-to-face classes are suspended in kindergartens, primary and secondary schools until the Lunar New Year holidays. |
| 2/1/21 | The government does not rule out mandatory use of the “LeaveHomeSafe” app. |
| 2/1/21 | The government expects to provide vaccinations to the public in February at the earliest. |
| 31/12/20 | The Court of Final Appeal grants leave to appeal to the Department of Justice. Jimmy Lai is remanded in custody. |
| 30/12/20 | Ten among the 12 Hong Kong people case are sentenced to 7 months to 3 years in prison, while two minors are transferred to Hong Kong. |
| 28/12/20 | Mandatory testing is ordered after coronavirus is detected in the sewage from a building. |
| 25/12/20 | Jimmy Lai is granted bail, but barred from leaving home, giving interviews and publishing articles. |
| 23/12/20 | The government sets up indemnity fund for vaccine and lets citizens choose which type of vaccine to take. |
| 21/12/20 | New strains of COVID-19 virus are found in the UK. The Hong Kong government bans passenger flights from the UK. |
| 17/12/20 | The government launches the fourth round of the Anti-epidemic Fund. |
| 12/12/20 | Jimmy Lai is additionally charged with “collusion with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security”. |
| 11/12/20 | The government has made procurement deals on COVID-19 vaccine and expects arrival and vaccination in January the earliest. |
| 8/12/20 | The government tightens anti-epidemic measures again and empower authorities to impose lockdown and mandatory testing. |
| 5/12/20 | Designated judge for national security cases Victor So receives death threat. |
| 3/12/20 | Jimmy Lai is denied bail and remanded in custody. |
| 2/12/20 | Former Demosistō member Joshua Wong, Ivan Lam and Agnes Chow are sentenced to 7 to 13.5 months in prison. |
| 30/11/20 | The government tightens anti-epidemic measures and sets up a hotline for reporting violations. |
| 26/11/20 | The Education Bureau introduces reforms to liberal studies. |
| 25/11/20 | Carrie Lam delivers her Policy Address. |
| 24/11/20 | The government tightens anti-epidemic measures and orders public venues to display QR codes for “Leave Home Safe”. |
| 21/11/20 | Police arrests 3 people including an online radio host who allegedly violated the national security law by providing financial assistance to secession. |
| 19/11/20 | The High Court rules that police officers not displaying their identification numbers violated the Bill of Rights. |
| 14/11/20 | The government tightens anti-epidemic measures and imposes mandatory testing. |
| 11/11/20 | NPCSC disqualifies 4 democrats in LegCo. |
| 8/11/20 | Biden gives victory speech. |
| 7/11/20 | Multiple US media calls the presidential election for Biden, but Trump makes claims of election fraud. |
| 6/11/20 | Vice-Premier of the State Council Han Zheng meets Carrie Lam. |
| 1/11/20 | Police arrests 6 democrats who allegedly violated the LegCo Powers and Privileges Ordinance. |
| 31/10/20 | Seven defendants accused of rioting on 31 August 2019 are found not guilty. |
| 29/10/20 | The fifth plenary session of the Communist Party of China Central Committee passes the 15th Five-Year Plan. |
| 12/10/20 | Carrie Lam postpones Policy Address. |
| 10/10/20 | Police arrests 9 people on suspicion of helping the 12 Hong Kong people now being detained in Shenzhen flee Hong Kong. |
| 6/10/20 | The Education Bureau deregisters a primary school teacher for professional misconduct. |
| 2/10/20 | Donald Trump and his wife test positive for COVID-19. |
| 1/10/20 | Police arrests at least 86 protesters in various districts including Causeway Bay. |
| 22/9/20 | Police changes the definition of “media representatives” under the Police General Orders. |
| 14/9/20 | The Universal Community Testing Programme ends with 1.78 million people participated and 32 new cases found. |
| 12/9/20 | Twelve Hong Kong youngsters have been detained in Shenzhen for over two weeks. Their family members hold a press conference. |
| 11/9/20 | The jury in the Coroner’s Court returns an open verdict in the death of Chan Yin-lam. |
| 10/9/20 | Police arrests 15 people on suspicion of defrauding and money laundering by trading Next Digital shares. |
| 3/9/20 | The Universal Community Testing Programme locates two new cases among about 128,000 tests conducted. |
| 27/8/20 | China Coast Guard intercepted a speedboat to Taiwan on August 23 and arrested 12 young Hong Kong people. |
| 26/8/20 | Police arrests 13 people who were not “people in white” for rioting in the 7.21 incident. |
| 19/8/20 | Unemployment rate in Hong Kong rises to 6.1%. |
| 18/8/20 | The government announces the second round of Employment Support Scheme. |
Data Analysis
Our latest survey shows that, in terms of net affinity, Hong Kong people feel more positively about all other peoples than their governments. Among them, the net affinity for the governments of Hong Kong, the United States, Mainland and the United Kingdom registered negative values. Compared to half a year ago, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the people of Mainland as well as the governments of Macau and Mainland have increased significantly, while that towards the peoples of the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and Australia, as well as the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Taiwan and Australia have all decreased significantly.
Looking back at past records, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the peoples of Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States are at historical lows since records began in 2007, that towards the people of Taiwan is at its lowest since 2012, while that towards the people of Mainland is at its highest since 2010. As for the governments, the net affinity of Hong Kong people towards the government of the United Kingdom is at historical low since records began in 1997, that towards the government of Canada is also at its record low since 1997, that towards the government of Australia is at its lowest since 2000, while that towards the government of Macau has reached its new high since 2006.