Cantonese (Dis)investment by Cross‐Border Postgraduates in Hong Kong: Negotiating Competing Capitals and Multiple Identities Among Neoliberal Subjects

One key strategy that local universities and the government of Hong Kong have adopted in recent years is attracting more students from Chinese Mainland to study at Hong Kong's higher education institutions and contribute to society after graduation. However, studies have documented the linguistic challenges Mainland students face with the Cantonese language in Hong Kong. Little research has focused on how these students cope with their limitations in Cantonese and the extent of their dedication to learning and using the language. Against this backdrop, this study investigated the language investment of cross‐border postgraduate students in Cantonese. As a qualitative study, data were collected from nine postgraduate students across three universities in Hong Kong through semi‐structured interviews. Thematic analysis, informed by language investment theory, revealed these students’ decisions regarding (dis)investment in learning Cantonese as negotiations among competing capitals and multiple identities, guided by ideologies of the ideal neoliberal subject characterized by the commodification of self, autonomy, and flexibility. Following the expanded framework of language investment theory, this study underscores the importance of ideology, particularly socio‐cultural ideologies like neoliberalism and neoliberal subjects. It highlights the complex interplay between ideological contexts and their effects on language acquisition and social integration: while neoliberal education policies attract more students to study in Hong Kong, they also discourage genuine investment in learning Cantonese and integrating into local society.