From Local Guanxi to Cross-Border Guanxi: The Functional Transition of Huiguan through Case Studies in Thailand
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Abstract
The subject of this research is huiguan (Chinese associations), literally a type of meeting hall for the ethnic Chinese (old-timers) community to discuss business, entertain, or solve communal problems. The methodology used was descriptive analysis. The study examines a core concept in the Chinese community, guanxi, first by analyzing literature reviews, then categorizing its functional development and combining current events to arrive at the findings. The research question is: what has driven the functional transition of huiguan? I will explore this by classifying their attributes; through this process we will gradually see the outcome and follow the changing situation of China and the world in a global frame. This research finds that huiguan-originally a symbolic building for hometown culture and folk religion that were frequented by new overseas Chinese are closely associated with political involvement. The purpose is to gain more business opportunities from the People’s Republic of China and further expand economic profit. In this regard, this study’s significance lies in its emphasis on the significance of guanxi (which means “connection” or “network” in Chinese) in the academic study of overseas Chinese. I conclude that what has changed is the influence of huiguan, which has extended from the local to cross-border level. Huiguan originates from guanxi; the former serve the latter locally and internationally because they have become a means of funneling newcomers and new capital from China into new overseas Chinese businesses, and have developed new functions and roles.
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