Articles
DOI DOI: 10.62441/actainnovations.v60i.675

De Jiao and Social Transformation: Cultural Reproduction, Community Governance, and Adaptive Mechanisms in Malaysian Chinese Society

Gengye Wu1, Muhamad Azwan Abd Rahman1, Tan Raan Hann1
  1. 1 Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Abstract

This study examines the role of De Jiao, a syncretic religious and ethical organization rooted in Confucian traditions, in the social transformation of Malaysian Chinese communities. While existing studies on the Chinese diaspora have primarily focused on identity formation, economic networks, and formal institutions, the adaptive role of hybrid religious organizations remains insufficiently explored. Based on qualitative analysis of organizational documents, academic literature, public records, and observational materials collected from selected De Jiao associations in Malaysia, this study investigates how De Jiao operates as a hybrid religious-social institution within multicultural social contexts. Drawing on theories of cultural reproduction, social capital, and institutional embeddedness, the study argues that De Jiao functions across multiple interconnected domains, including cultural continuity, social service provision, informal governance, and ethical economic networking. The findings indicate that De Jiao not only preserves and reinterprets traditional cultural values, but also facilitates community cohesion, volunteer participation, and adaptive social support mechanisms in rapidly changing urban environments. Rather than functioning solely as a symbolic religious institution, De Jiao has gradually developed into a flexible community-based organization that connects religious practice with everyday social life. This study contributes to the sociology of religion and diaspora studies by providing a Southeast Asian perspective on how community-based religious organizations adapt to modernization while maintaining cultural relevance in plural societies.

How to Cite

Wu, G., Azwan Abd Rahman, M., & Raan Hann, T. (2026). De Jiao and Social Transformation: Cultural Reproduction, Community Governance, and Adaptive Mechanisms in Malaysian Chinese Society. ACTA INNOVATIONS, 60, 324–334. https://doi.org/10.62441/actainnovations.v60i.675
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS) BibTeX

References

  1. Ammerman, N. T. (2005). Pillars of faith: American congregations and their partners. University of California Press.
  2. Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241–258). Greenwood.
  3. Castells, M. (2010). The power of identity (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.
  4. Chee-Beng, T. (1985). The Development and Distribution of Deijiao Associations in Malaysia and Singapore. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
  5. Chee-Beng, T. (2020). Chinese Religion in Malaysia. Brill, 12.
  6. Cohen, R. (2008). Global diasporas: An introduction (2nd ed.). Routledge.
  7. Coleman, J. S. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. American Journal of Sociology, 94(Supplement), S95–S120. https://doi.org/10.1086/228943
  8. Dean, K. (1998). Lord of the three in one: The spread of a cult in Southeast China. Princeton University Press.
  9. Delanty, G. (2018). Religion and the emergence of modernity. European Journal of Social Theory, 21(3), 329–347. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368431017745932
  10. Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretation of cultures. Basic Books.
  11. Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and self-identity: Self and society in the late modern age. Stanford University Press.
  12. Goossaert, V., & Palmer, D. A. (2011). The religious question in modern China. University of Chicago Press.
  13. Granovetter, M. (1985). Economic action and social structure: The problem of embeddedness. American Journal of Sociology, 91(3), 481–510. https://doi.org/10.1086/228311
  14. Hefner, R. W. (2011). Civil Islam: Muslims and democratization in Indonesia. Princeton University Press.
  15. Kuah-Pearce, K. E. (2009). Chinese women and the cyborg diaspora in Thailand. Routledge.
  16. Levitt, P. (2007). God needs no passport: Immigrants and the changing American religious landscape. The New Press.
  17. Levitt, P., & Jaworsky, B. N. (2007). Transnational migration studies: Past developments and future trends. Annual Review of Sociology, 33, 129–156. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.33.040406.131816
  18. Light, I., & Gold, S. J. (2000). Ethnic economies. Academic Press.
  19. Liu, H. (2014). Chinese diaspora and transnationalism. The Journal of Asian Studies, 73(3), 571–575. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021911814000610
  20. Ma, L. J. C., & Cartier, C. (Eds.). (2003). The Chinese diaspora: Space, place, mobility, and identity. Rowman & Littlefield.
  21. Portes, A. (1998). Social capital: Its origins and applications in modern sociology. Annual Review of Sociology, 24, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.24.1.1
  22. Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.
  23. Smart, N. (1998). The world’s religions. Cambridge University Press.
  24. Smith, M. P., & Guarnizo, L. E. (Eds.). (1998). Transnationalism from below. Transaction Publishers.
  25. Tan, C. B. (2000). Chinese religion in Malaysia: Temples and communities. Asian Folklore Studies, 59(2), 255–277. https://doi.org/10.2307/1178943
  26. Tan, C. B. (2015). Chinese religion and cultural identity in Southeast Asia. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 46(3), 381–402. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022463415000258
  27. Tu, W.-m. (1991). Cultural China: The periphery as the center. Daedalus, 120(2), 1–32.
  28. Vertovec, S. (2009). Transnationalism. Routledge.
  29. Wang, G. W. (1991). China and the Chinese overseas. Times Academic Press.
  30. Wang, G. W. (2000). The Chinese overseas: From earthbound China to the quest for autonomy. Harvard University Press.
  31. Yang, F. (1999). Chinese Christians in America: Conversion, assimilation, and adhesive identities. Pennsylvania State University Press.
  32. Yang, M. M. H. (2008). Chinese religiosities: Afflictions of modernity and state formation. University of California Press.
  33. Zhou, M. (2004). Revisiting ethnic entrepreneurship: Convergences, controversies, and conceptual advancements. International Migration Review, 38(3), 1040–1074. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-7379.2004.tb00228.x
  34. Zhu, J. (2012). Religion and social capital in China. Journal of Contemporary China, 21(77), 1025–1042. https://doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2012.684965