Existing research on grassroots rural governance in China adopts a network perspective to explore the role of traditional social vehicles including clans,clan clusters and popular beliefs in improving village governan...Existing research on grassroots rural governance in China adopts a network perspective to explore the role of traditional social vehicles including clans,clan clusters and popular beliefs in improving village governance.However,most of this research has concentrated on analyzing the way in which horizontal network relationships lead to effective village governance.It has thus to some extent neglected the basic reality of the overlapping interconnections between the ＂top-down＂ administrative system and the informal structure of village governance.In fact,an analysis that proceeds from the features of the government＇s own organizational network,the social structure of the village itself and the position of its elites in order to focus on modes of interaction within the village under the intermixture of（formal） system design and（informal） social relations,shows that differences in the composition of the government＇s promotional networks resulting from the traits of keyofficials affect the speed of policy dissemination as well as the government＇s mode of interaction with the village elites.Moreover,differences in these modes of interaction further influence the subsequent operation of self-organization based on social traditions（＂filial piety＂ or ＂morality＂）.At the same time,structural elements,including the economic and social relations of the village itself,determine whether self-organization will improve the quality of governance in the long term.This finding can serve as a reflection on and critique of the theories of ＂strong government＂ and ＂tradition＂ current in academia.展开更多
The purpose of this article is to examine the stock of social capital in rural China and explore the different impacts of two types of social capital upon the economic development performance of rural China. This empi...The purpose of this article is to examine the stock of social capital in rural China and explore the different impacts of two types of social capital upon the economic development performance of rural China. This empirical study of social capital is based on an original survey of 410 villages throughout China. The findings indicate that bonding social capital still has a very solid foundation in rural areas of China. Bridging social capital is in formation in Chinese villages, even though the stock of bridging social capital is currently very moderate. Moreover, this study finds that bridging social capital, as manifested in general trust and inclusive social networks, positively affected villages＇ development performance. However, bonding social capital, as manifested in particular trust and exclusive social networks, tends to negatively impact villages＇ development performance. These findings help to shed some light on the distribution of two types of social capital-bridging and bonding-in rural China and their impact on the socioeconomic development of rural areas. Given the scarcity of representative survey studies of this sort, the findings from this study are especially valuable for establishing some conceptual and empirical baselines for subsequent studies of social capital in rural China.展开更多
基金sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China project“Research on Political Connections and Behavior of Nonprofit Organizations”(71373230)the National Social Science Fund of China project“Research on Community Governance Modes in the Context of New-type Urbanization”(15BZZ066)the National Scholarship of China Scholarship Council(201506320101)
文摘Existing research on grassroots rural governance in China adopts a network perspective to explore the role of traditional social vehicles including clans,clan clusters and popular beliefs in improving village governance.However,most of this research has concentrated on analyzing the way in which horizontal network relationships lead to effective village governance.It has thus to some extent neglected the basic reality of the overlapping interconnections between the ＂top-down＂ administrative system and the informal structure of village governance.In fact,an analysis that proceeds from the features of the government＇s own organizational network,the social structure of the village itself and the position of its elites in order to focus on modes of interaction within the village under the intermixture of（formal） system design and（informal） social relations,shows that differences in the composition of the government＇s promotional networks resulting from the traits of keyofficials affect the speed of policy dissemination as well as the government＇s mode of interaction with the village elites.Moreover,differences in these modes of interaction further influence the subsequent operation of self-organization based on social traditions（＂filial piety＂ or ＂morality＂）.At the same time,structural elements,including the economic and social relations of the village itself,determine whether self-organization will improve the quality of governance in the long term.This finding can serve as a reflection on and critique of the theories of ＂strong government＂ and ＂tradition＂ current in academia.
文摘The purpose of this article is to examine the stock of social capital in rural China and explore the different impacts of two types of social capital upon the economic development performance of rural China. This empirical study of social capital is based on an original survey of 410 villages throughout China. The findings indicate that bonding social capital still has a very solid foundation in rural areas of China. Bridging social capital is in formation in Chinese villages, even though the stock of bridging social capital is currently very moderate. Moreover, this study finds that bridging social capital, as manifested in general trust and inclusive social networks, positively affected villages＇ development performance. However, bonding social capital, as manifested in particular trust and exclusive social networks, tends to negatively impact villages＇ development performance. These findings help to shed some light on the distribution of two types of social capital-bridging and bonding-in rural China and their impact on the socioeconomic development of rural areas. Given the scarcity of representative survey studies of this sort, the findings from this study are especially valuable for establishing some conceptual and empirical baselines for subsequent studies of social capital in rural China.
