Christopher Choong Weng Wai
Christopher Choong Weng Wai
PhD Candidate
christopher.choong-weng-wai@warwick.ac.uk
Publications
Social Media
Affiliations
I am a PhD candidate at the University of Warwick and a recipient of the Chancellor’s International Scholarship. I am a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity at the International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science, and Deputy Director of Research at Khazanah Research Institute in Malaysia (currently on study leave). I was previously Economist/Programme Manager for the UNDP Country Office of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam.
I hold an MSc Inequalities and Social Science from the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London (Distinction); MSc in Development Economics from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (Distinction); and a BSc in Economics from the University of Malaya (Distinction).
My PhD research is on the everyday political economy of raced/gendered capitalism in Malaysia. I am supervised by Juanita Elias and Lena Rethel.
Research interests
- Political economy of Malaysia
- Feminist international political economy
- Social reproduction theories
- Race and colonialism
- Historical materialist approaches to capitalism
Awards
Winner of the Colonial, Postcolonial and Decolonial (CPD) Early-Career Researcher Paper Prize for the paper titled "Racial/Gender Capitalism in Malaysia: Contested Scripts, Muted Repertoires". 2023.
Winner of the Atkinson Prize for best overall performance, MSc Inequalities and Social Science. 2021.
Publications
Edited Book
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. eds. (2021) Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia: Old Fractures, New Frontiers. Singapore: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.
Book Chapters
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. (2021) Introduction: Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia. In: Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. eds. Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia: Old Fractures, New Frontiers. Singapore: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, 2021: 1-21.
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. (2021) Inequality and Exclusion in Malaysia: Macro Trends, Labour Market Dynamics and Gender Dimensions. In: Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. eds. Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia: Old Fractures, New Frontiers. Singapore: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, 2021: 87-132.
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. (2021) Conclusion: Old Fractures and New Frontiers. In: Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. eds. Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia: Old Fractures, New Frontiers. Singapore: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, 2021: 323-334.
Journal Special Issue
- Lee, H.A. & Choong, C. eds. (2019) Special Issue: Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia. Journal of Southeast Asian Economies 36(3).
Journal Articles
- Choong, C. (2024) Anti-colonial raced capitalism in Malaysia: Contested logics, gendered repertoires. Review of International Studies, pp. 1-20. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0260210524000548
- Choong, C. (2021) Race-based affirmative action in Malaysia: Misrecognised subjectivities, enduring inequalities. Asian Journal of Social Science, 50(2): 79-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajss.2021.12.001
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. (2019) Introduction: Inequality and Exclusion in Southeast Asia. Journal of Southeast Asian Economies, 36(3): 281-283.
- Lee, H. A. & Choong, C. (2019) Inequality in Malaysia: Empirical questions, structural changes, gender aspects. Journal of Southeast Asian Economies, 36(3): 329-354.
Research Note
- Choong, C., Jasmin, A.F. & Firouz, A. (2020) Income Inequality in Malaysia: Examining the Labour Income Links. Journal of Southeast Asian Economies 37(3): 270-290.
Reports
- Choong, C. (2023) Colonising the 'home' in British Malaya/Malaysia: lessons for academic-practitioner collaborations. AcPrac Case Study (1). International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, UK. http://doi.org/10.21953/lse.lzfi5y0gw23r
- Khazanah Research Institute. (2020) Welfare in Malaysia Across Three Decades: The State of Households 2020 Part I. Kuala Lumpur: Khazanah Research Institute.
- Khazanah Research Institute. (2019) Time to Care: Gender Inequality, Unpaid Care Work and Time Use Survey. Kuala Lumpur: Khazanah Research Institute.
Blogs
- Choong, C. (July 2024) 'Neutrality, Solidarity, and Activist Sustainability: Dialogue for Palestine' Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity https://afsee.atlanticfellows.lse.ac.uk/en-gb/blogs/neutrality-solidarity-and-activist-sustainability-dialogue-for-palestine
- Choong, C. (October 2023) 'Remembering Care Work: What Does This Picture Tell You?' Atlantic Fellows https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/remembering-care-work-what-does-picture-tell-you-atlantic-fellows-1ofue/?trackingId=3FDS3Yelvr%2Fu0ioXGKuQkw%3D%3D
- Choong, C. (March 2022) 'Why women are often overlooked in household surveys' 360info https://360info.org/why-women-are-often-overlooked-in-household-surveys/
- Choong, C. (January 2022) 'Embedded myths of Malaysia’s New Economic Policy' New Mandala https://www.newmandala.org/embedded-myths-of-malaysias-new-economic-policy/
- Choong, C. (February 2021) 'Policy Change vs Social Schange: It's a Question of Power' Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity https://afsee.atlanticfellows.org/blog/christopher-choong-weng-wai-question-of-power-policy-social-change
- Choong, C. (January 2021) 'The dangers of "policy-sising" social change' From Poverty to Power https://oxfamapps.org/fp2p/the-dangers-of-policy-sising-social-change/
- Choong, C. (December 2020) 'COVID-19 flights to nowhere: radical escape or radical reimagining of the everyday?' New Mandala https://www.newmandala.org/covid-19-flights-to-nowhere-radical-escape-or-radical-reimagining-of-the-everyday/