Recently published research by the Pew Research Center revealed that Indian Americans are more likely than other Asian diasporas in the US, to have a more favourable view of their ancestral homelands.
Findings
The Wednesday report showed that Indian Americans are more likely to have a favourable opinion of the US than of any other place. Almost 56% of those surveyed hold a very favourable view of the US.
Almost three-quarters of Indian adults in the US said their opinion of India is very or somewhat favourable, compared to 5% who hold unfavourable views of the country.
Meanwhile, 16% hold neither favourable or unfavourable views. Indian Americans’ views of India are also substantially more positive than those of other Asians: 76% vs. 23%.
NEW: How do Asian Americans feel about the homelands in Asia to which they trace their heritage, as well as about the U.S., China and elsewhere? 🧵 https://t.co/gAlobY77l7
— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) July 19, 2023
Those born in the US are more likely than those born abroad to say they have a neutral view of the country (31% vs. 13%). In addition, immigrants, who are not US citizens, are more likely to hold favourable views of India than those who are naturalised US citizens (87% vs. 73%).
Views on Other Countries
Most Indian adults also view Japan (70%) and South Korea (60%) in a favourable light. About half the respondents said they have a favourable opinion of Taiwan.
Meanwhile, their views of China are much more negative. Almost 60% of the Indian adults surveyed said they have an unfavourable opinion of China, including 32% who report very unfavourable opinions of the country.
Overall, Indian adults are 12 percentage points less likely than other Asian adults to hold favourable views of China.
Asian Americans on China
Asian Americans hold mostly negative views of China — with only 20% of the respondents holding a favourable opinion of the superpower, compared with 52% who have an unfavourable opinion. Around 26% had neither a favourable or unfavourable opinion.
Pew research Report- Most Asian Americans View Their Ancestral Homelands Favorably, Except Chinese Americans https://t.co/MzXwIgFv8V
— Bill Bishop (@niubi) July 19, 2023
Almost all Asian Americans have positive views of the places they trace their heritage to. However, Chinese Americans have mixed views of China. Less than half held favourable opinions of Beijing. In fact, Chinese adults seem to view Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea more favourably than they do China.
Despite this, a larger share of Chinese Americans has a positive opinion of China as compared to those of other Asian adults: 41% vs. 14%.
Among Chinese immigrant adults, 45% are more likely than US-born Chinese adults (25%) to have a favourable view of China.
Meanwhile, on Taiwan, Chinese immigrants are less likely than those born in the US to view the island favourably (60% vs. 70%).