The paradox of ‘positive energy’ (zheng nengliang): the complex affective realities of people with hearing impairments in china’s service industry

Abstract

This study focuses on ‘positive energy’ (zheng nengliang), which has become a hegemonic discourse in contemporary China, to explain a possible new affective way of governing in China. Specifically, it targets the complex, ambiguous, and paradoxical affective practices of people with disabilities to examine why and how the catchphrase of ‘positive energy’ has become influential for employees with hearing impairments in China’s service industry. Using participant observation and in-depth interviews, this study demonstrates the paradox between the positive structure of feeling and the ‘cruel’ reality of people with hearing impairments. It also analyzes how the dominant ‘positive energy’ discourse impacts the employment opportunities and psychology of people with hearing impairments and why the positive structure of feeling among people with hearing impairments may paradoxically lead them to have a precarious and uncertain future.