Are Hong Kongese Still Bicultural? Six Preregistered Replications of the Cultural Priming Effect in Hong Kong

Abstract

Cultural priming significantly enhances the internal validity of causal inferences in cultural psychology. Earlier studies showed that bicultural Hong Kongese could alternate between Chinese and Western cultural frames based on priming. However, after more than 25 years since Hong Kong's transfer from the UK to China, this assumption requires reevaluation due to substantial social and political changes. While the late 1990s studies reasonably presumed Hong Kongese were bicultural, the region has since undergone profound transformations. To reassess this, we conducted six preregistered experiments and internal mini meta-analyses. In Experiment 1 (N = 369), we aimed to replicate the second and third of Hong et al.'s (1997) original studies of cultural priming in Hong Kong. In Experiment 2 (N = 434), we incorporated design improvements by T. K. Ng et al. (2016). In Experiment 3 (N = 330), we considered potential cohort effects and targeted a more diverse adult sample. In Experiment 4 (N = 565), we made adjustments related to the individual versus group salience in the measurement of the dependent variable. In Experiment 5 (N = 451), we increased group salience and fixed the language of the materials to English for Hong Kongese of student age. In Experiment 6 (N = 522), we increased group salience, fixed the language of the materials to Chinese, and recruited more general Hong Kong public participants. The six experiments and the mini meta-analysis consistently failed to replicate the cultural priming effect. Potential reasons for these failed replications are discussed.