KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 11 — A young Chinese individual may know about the latest political controversy, follow debates on social media or have strong views about the rising cost of living.

Yet, he or she could still be unsure which government agency is responsible for addressing a problem in their neighbourhood, or how politics fit into everyday life application.

That gap between following politics and understanding how the system works emerged as one of the findings in a recently published IMAN Research study on Malaysian Chinese youths.

The interviews found that participants often associated national politics with elections, scandals, party manoeuvring and disputes over race and religion.