Hui Wen
Anthropologist
I am a Ph.D. candidate in Anthropology at Brandeis University. In 2024, I joined the Max Planck Research Group “Ageing in a Time of Mobility” in Göttingen, Germany, as a visiting writing fellow.
Anthropologist
I am a Ph.D. candidate in Anthropology at Brandeis University. In 2024, I joined the Max Planck Research Group “Ageing in a Time of Mobility” in Göttingen, Germany, as a visiting writing fellow.
My research examines how people seek care and meaning in times of moral and social transformation. I am fascinated by the interplay between psyche and society—how historical traumas, moral anxieties, and popular hypes shape personal decisions, and how these individual expressions, in turn, feed back into broader social moods.
My dissertation, The Care-Scam Paradox and New Ethical Strivings in China’s Senior Supplements Market, explores how senior urbanites turn to the booming yet controversial health supplements market for self-care. While families and the public often denounce these markets as fraudulent, many elders experience them as vital sources of care, companionship, and health information. I call this the “care-scam paradox.” Through this work, I explore how ageing, care, and morality are being reimagined in contemporary China.
Brandeis University
415 South Street
Waltham, Massachusetts 02453
huiwen@brandeis.edu.