Thesis This Thesis Must Be Used in Accordance with the Provisions of the Copyright Act 1968

COPYRIGHT AND USE OF THIS THESIS This thesis must be used in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Reproduction of material protected by copyright may be an infringement of copyright and copyright owners may be entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. Section 51 (2) of the Copyright Act permits an authorized officer of a university library or archives to provide a copy (by communication or otherwise) of an unpublished thesis kept in the library or archives, to a person who satisfies the authorized officer that he or she requires the reproduction for the purposes of research or study. The Copyright Act grants the creator of a work a number of moral rights, specifically the right of attribution, the right against false attribution and the right of integrity. You may infringe the author’s moral rights if you: - fail to acknowledge the author of this thesis if you quote sections from the work - attribute this thesis to another author - subject this thesis to derogatory treatment which may prejudice the author’s reputation For further information contact the University’s Copyright Service. sydney.edu.au/copyright The Chinese Knowledge Diaspora and Diaspora Knowledge Network: Australia and Canada compared By Zhen Zhang A thesis submitted to the University of Sydney in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Education and Social Work The University of Sydney August 2014 Faculty of Education and Social Work Office of Doctoral Studies AUTHOR’S DECLARATION This is to certify that: I. this thesis comprises only my original work towards the Doctor of Philosophy Degree II. due acknowledgement has been made in the text to all other material used III. the thesis does not exceed the word length for this degree. IV. no part of this work has been used for the award of another degree. V. this thesis meets the University of Sydney’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) requirements for the conduct of research. Signature(s): ……………………………………………………………………………………………… Name(s): …Zhang Zhen………………………………………………………………………………….. Date: ……July 2014…………………………………………………………………………………… The Author’s Declaration must be inserted in the front of each thesis copy. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Completion of a doctoral program is a challenging journey a person travels and completes only with the assistance of many caring people. First, I would like to thank my participants in this study who shared their stories, experiences, and lives with me. They enabled me to learn more than I could have hoped. Without the help of my advisor and mentor of ten years, Prof. Anthony Welch, I would not have completed a PhD or a dissertation. Throughout this journey, he guided me with competence, with integrity and benevolence. I benefited enormously from his timely and thoughtful feedback despite my completion an ocean away. Data collection in two countries would not have been possible had it not been for his expertise and his reputation as a renowned social scientist. He expertly guided me to the finish line, and I will forever be grateful to him for his outstanding coaching and leadership. Of course, I am also grateful to my associate supervisors, Associate Professor Nigel Bagnall and Associate Professor Shen Huizhong, for their timely encouragement, consistent support and insightful ideas. My loving thanks also go to my cohort comrades, Zhang Xingkui, Li Haibin, Cai Hongxing, Hao Jie, Sang Un Namgung, Rose Amazan for their emotional and intellectual support since day one of this long journey. Throughout the whole graduate program I have gone to two people, Venice Jureinini-Briozzo and Gilbert Cheng to ask hundreds of questions. Their patience, understanding and support have helped me to achieve this goal. Many thanks go to all my Chinese colleagues at Tianjin University who have been ii very supportive and patient throughout this course of study. In closing, thanks to my family, my mom and dad, my in-laws, my husband and the little one, for always being with me, and for loving and supporting me no matter what. Their love, clarity, encouragement, and forbearance have enabled me to get to this point in my academic career. iii ABSTRACT In the context of globalization and the knowledge economy, brains, increasingly mobile, have assumed unprecedented importance, and even more so in the coming decades when the academic profession is ageing. Developed nations like Australia and Canada compete to attract and retain the best and brightest. A related development, advancement in information and communications technology, enables the establishment of powerful cross-boundary research networks. The study builds on previous research in order to understand the Chinese knowledge diaspora in Australian and Canadian universities, and trace their transnational intellectual networks to colleagues in mainland, and other parts of the Chinese intellectual diaspora. A qualitative, grounded theory approach was used for the study. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted for data collection. The data gathering techniques yielded a rich volume of detailed descriptions that were categorized and thematically analyzed. The study investigates the role of the Chinese knowledge diaspora, and the dynamics of the diaspora network with special reference to the factors that both sustain and limit such transnational knowledge networks. The strong sense of cultural/ethnic identity and motivation for closer academic ties were reiterated, as were commonly-expressed sentiments that doing science in the West was a primary source of satisfaction. Substantial accounts of scientific communication and transnational collaboration were highly illustrative. While some had one or two kinds of interaction, most had multiple types of collaboration with China. The influencing factors at personal, institutional, iv and system level were well documented and categorized. Among the most prominent were the differences of research culture across the two systems. Limitations of this study include small sample size and distribution. Recommendations for future study include increasing the sample size, recruiting indigenous scholars and administrative staff, examining the Chinese knowledge diaspora from both research-intensive and less research-intensive universities in the United States, and investigating further how gender affects both academic being and knowledge networks with the mainland academia of China. v TABLE OF CONTENTS AUTHOR‘S DECLARATION ....................................................................................... i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT……… ...................................................................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................. vi LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................... x LIST OF TABLES… .................................................................................................... xi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................... xii Chapter One Introduction ........................................................................................ 1 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Diaspora, Knowledge Diaspora and Diaspora Knowledge Network ............... 7 1.3 Research Questions ........................................................................................ 13 1.4 Design of the Study ........................................................................................ 14 1.5 Significance of the Study ............................................................................... 16 1.6 Organization of the Thesis ............................................................................. 18 Chapter Two Reviewing High-skilled Mobility .................................................... 20 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................. 20 2.2 Globalization and Highly Skilled Mobility ................................................... 21 2.2.1 Global Overview ......................................................................................... 21 2.2.2 Multidirectional or Periphery-Center Mobility .......................................... 23 2.2.4 Deregulation or Reregulation ..................................................................... 26 2.3 Higher Education Dynamics in a Global Era ................................................ 29 2.3.1 Changing Landscape of Higher Education ................................................. 30 2.3.2 International Research Collaboration ......................................................... 38 2.4 China‘s Brain Issues and Strategies: Context and Development .................. 44 2.4.1 Overview of Brain Drain in China ............................................................. 44 2.4.2 Tapping Chinese Talents Abroad ................................................................ 52 2.5 Conceptual and Theoretical Frameworks ..................................................... 56 2.5.1 Evolution: Brain Drain, Brain Gain and Diaspora Network ...................... 56 2.5.2 Reframing the Core-Periphery Paradigm ..................................................

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