![Elaine Chung](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/8324?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
My research interests lie broadly in identity politics in East Asian popular culture, spanning film, television, celebrity culture and user-generated social media. My current research is organised around three interconnected themes.
Stars and Celebrity
My primary research interest is the sociopolitical significance of stars and celebrities in East Asia. I examine how stardom operates within transnational media industries and how celebrity personas become sites for negotiating identity politics, particularly nationalism and feminism.
Soft Power
My second research strand explores the role of non-state actors in producing, mediating and contesting cultural soft power in East Asia. Drawing partly on my teaching experience in Chinese Studies, my current work examines Mandarin-language education in UK higher education and its relationship to Taiwan’s soft power strategies.
Migration and Identity
I also investigate the cultural practices and identity formation of migrant communities, with a particular focus on recent Hong Kong migrants in Wales. My research examines how practices such as Welsh-language learning and participation in Welsh elections shape migrants’ negotiations of belonging, citizenship and community identity.
