Livelihood Of Contemporary China

Since being established in 1949 OCo and especially since the reform and opening up 30 years ago OCo China has experienced the most drastic changes ever in its 5000-year history. During this period, China has transformed from an agricultural society into an emerging, dynamic, and industrialized nation and has undergone rapid urbanization. The standard of living of the Chinese continues to rise and is taking rapid strides forward to a higher level of comprehensive well-being. China''s development over the past 60 years has indicated that the livelihood of the people is a key factor in economic and social construction in contemporary China. Having sufficient food and clothing is the first step in improving the livelihood of the people. A higher level of well-being can be achieved only after the basic needs are met. This higher level of well-being comprises of employment as the foundation, education as the key point, income distribution as the source, social security as the support, and public safety as an assurance. This book offers fresh perspectives by prestigious scholars from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Based on a unique source of data which is available only to Chinese scholars, this book showcases key issues on people''s livelihood and social construction in Contemporary China, including income disparity, social security system, employment situation, post-80s generation and so on.

[Please note: This book is in Chinese language text only.] This detailed book examines the issues and changes Chinese society has experienced around employment, wealth, subsistence and livelihood since China's opening up. Based on research findings from the leading Chinese scholars, it examines employment, social security, social support, the expanding income gaps, social stratification, rural migration, gender discrimination & age discrimination plus changes to the traditional family structure.

In recent decades, China has undergone rapid economic growth, industrialisation and urbanisation concomitant with deep and extensive structural and social change, profoundly reshaping the country’s development landscape and urban-rural relationships. This book applies livelihoods approaches to deepen our understanding of the changes and continuities related to rural livelihoods within the wider context of political economy of development in post-socialist China, bridging the urban and rural scenarios and probing the local, national and global dynamics that have impacted on livelihood, in particular its mobility, security and sustainability. Presenting theoretically informed and empirically grounded research by leading scholars from across the world, this book offers multidisciplinary perspectives on issues central to rural livelihoods, development, welfare and well-being. It documents and analyses the processes and consequences of change, focusing on social protection of mobile livelihoods, particularly rural migrants’ citizenship rights in the city, and the environmental, social and political aspects of sustainability in the countryside. This book contributes to the current scholarly and policy debates, and is among the first attempts to critically reflect on China’s market transition and the associated pathways to change. It will be of interest to students in international development studies, China studies, social policy, public health, political science, and environmental studies at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, as well as academics, policy makers and practitioners who are concerned with China’s human and social development in general, and agriculture and rural livelihoods in particular.

This comprehensive volume is a three-part study of whether the Chinese political system has maintained a significant degree of regime legitimacy in the context of rising domestic discontent, in particular the popular protests against socio-economic inequality and environment degradation. Part I presents the scholarly debate on the theoretical refinement and empirical measurement of regime legitimacy in contemporary China. Part II focuses on the challenges to regime legitimacy of the increasingly widespread popular protests and civil activism. Part III examines the regime’s responses to these challenges, including coercive repression, adaptation, and economic performance. This book finds that, while repression can hardly stop popular protests – and often backfires – economic performance legitimacy is increasingly difficult to be maintained. The only way out is the adaptation to the changing domestic and international environment. The chapters in this collection were originally published in the Journal of Contemporary China.

This book offers a comprehensive review of the far-reaching social changes that have taken place since the start of the Chinese economic reform and opening up of Chinese society over 30 years ago. As such, it examines various aspects of the social transformation of China, from urbanization, population aging and social governance to family structure, youth society and social mentality. It identifies major issues and challenges emerging during the process of the great social change, and proposes solutions to aid in future strategic planning. The analysis is supported by a wealth of empirical data collected in the course of extended social survey research. The book also provides a systematic summary of the most important research findings from the past few years, helping readers to understand and interpret the ongoing and complex process of transformation in Chinese society.

Placing the modernization of China in a historical context, Social Construction in Contemporary China provides a powerful argument that social construction is instrumental for the country's modernization process and a key factor in China’s national rejuvenation. A wide range of topics and issues related to social construction are covered, including people's livelihood and social undertakings, income distribution, urban and rural communities, community organizations, social management, social norms, reforms of social institutions and systems, social restructuring and the process of social construction. In addition to well-informed and insightful analyses of these subjects that draw on the country's historical experiences, contributors also provide policy suggestions on how to tackle problems and respond to challenges. Its breadth and depth make this volume a valuable addition to the growing body of literature on this important topic.

This book portrays the middle class in contemporary China with plain language and precise professional knowledge in an all-round, broad and responsible way from the perspectives of income, property, profession, education, consumption, investment, physiological and behavioral characteristics, history and development. It gives, in a logical order, the reasons for stimulating the rise of the middle class in contemporary China. It emphatically describes what the middle class is and what the middle class in contemporary China looks like. It also analyzes whether the middle class can rise in China and sheds light on the basic thinking, medium and long-term goals, main measures and current work priorities for achieving full rise of the middle class in contemporary China. As China becomes the world's largest economy, the new middle class will be the Chinese people facing the world; as such, this book will be of interest to sociologists, sinologists, political scientists, and economists.