街道公共体制改革和国家意志的柔性控制——对黄宗智“国家和社会的第三领域”理论的扩展

The Soft Control of the State Will on Community Public Affairs An Expansion on Philip Huang’s Concept of"the Third Realm between State and Society"

城市社区建设与发展成为中国城市社会发展和政治民主进程的温床,很多学者试图用国家与社会分野的视角,或者说市民社会概念来理解和诠释中国城市社区建设和发展。本文以一个具体的城市社区改革案例为基础,运用个案研究方法,从中来展示中国城市社区建设和发展,虽然有民主化的进程,但是这种民主进程仍然是中国特色的国家意志对社区公共事务的柔性控制,而不是所谓的市民社会的分殊与发展。只不过,当前社区公共治理中,国家意志的展现更加隐蔽、柔性和更具合法性。由此,本文扩展了黄宗智先生的"国家和社会的第三领域"概念,在当代中国,强财政支持下的政府已经不是通过"简约主义原则"来进行基层治理,而是通过一套更加复杂的柔性控制策略来试试基层治理。

The construction and development of urban community has become the basis of social development and political democratization in Chinese urban areas. Many scholars try to interpret this phenomenon as the separation between state and society, or as the development of a civil society. This article, based upon a case study, argues that, in spite of some increase in democracy in the development of urban community administration, community public affairs are still under the soft control of the state. There is no development of civil society here, only the more hidden, more flexible, and more legitimate control of the state will. This article extends the concept of ＂the third realm between state and society＂ put forward by Philip C. C. Huang. Presently, the government, equipped with strong fiscal support, no longer conducts grassroots governance by the principle of ＂minimalism＂, but rather by a set of soft-control strategies.