DOCSLIB.ORG

Surveying Public Opinion in Transitional China: an Examination of Survey Response

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Surveying Public Opinion in Transitional China: an Examination of Survey Response SURVEYING PUBLIC OPINION IN TRANSITIONAL CHINA: AN EXAMINATION OF SURVEY RESPONSE by Liying Ren BA, Peking University, China, 1996 MA, Peking University, 2000 MA, University of Pittsburgh, 2007 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2009 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH FACULTY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Liying Ren It was defended on April 16, 2009 and approved by David C. Barker, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science Jonathan Harris, Professor, Department of Political Science Thomas Rawski, Professor, Department of Economics Dissertation Advisor: Wenfang Tang, Professor, Department of Political Science ii Copyright © by Liying Ren 2009 iii SURVEYING PUBLIC OPINION IN TRANSITIONAL CHINA: AN EXMAINATION OF SURVEY RESPONSE Liying Ren, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2009 This study investigates the usefulness of public opinion survey in China for political research. Using data from the World Values Survey and from several Chinese public opinion surveys, my central inquiry consists of three separate but interrelated issues: are public opinion survey data from China truthful, meaningful, and comparable? I frame these questions in a comparative perspective and in the transitional contexts of China. By examining the issues of item- nonresponse, norm-seeking response, and cross-national comparability, I show that the validity of survey responses in Chinese opinion surveys is mainly influenced by the respondents’ cognitive ability, political interest, media exposure, and cultural difference. Political control is present in the form of response effect and information control, but it should not be a serious concern about the use of Chinese survey data. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE .................................................................................................................................... XI 1. INTRODUCTION: CHARTING THE VOYAGE OF INQUIRY .................................. 1 1.1 PUBLIC OPINION AND SURVEY RESEARCH ........................................... 5 1.2 PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY IN CHINA ........................................................ 9 1.3 PUBLIC OPINION SURVEYS AND CHINESE POLITICAL STUDIES .. 13 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION: THE VALIDITY OF SURVEY RESPONSES . 16 1.5 DATA .................................................................................................................. 22 1.6 OUTLINE OF CHAPTERS .............................................................................. 24 2. SURVEYING PUBLIC OPINION IN TRANSITIONAL CHINA ............................... 28 2.1 CHINA UNDER TRANSITION ...................................................................... 29 2.2 CONTEXTS FOR PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY RESEARCH................... 34 2.2.1 Historical context ........................................................................................ 35 2.2.2 Political context ........................................................................................... 39 2.2.3 Social context ............................................................................................... 44 2.2.4 Research context ......................................................................................... 45 2.3 THE ORGANIZATIONAL GROWTH OF PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY RESEARCH ........................................................................................................................ 47 2.3.1 Government opinion research apparatus ................................................. 47 v 2.3.2 Academic survey research institutes ......................................................... 54 2.3.3 Commercial opinion research firms .......................................................... 57 2.4 PROBLEMS OF PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY IN CHINA ........................ 59 2.5 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................. 62 3. DECIPHERING THE SILENCE: DON’T KNOW, DON’T CARE, OR DON’T WANT TO TELL ........................................................................................................................ 65 3.1 THE ISSUE: ITEM NONRESPONSE ............................................................ 65 3.2 ITEM NONRESPONSE IN PUBLIC OPINION SURVEYS ........................ 68 3.3 DATA, CASE SELECTION, AND MEASURES ........................................... 73 3.4 EXPLANATIONS AND HYPOTHESES ........................................................ 76 3.5 EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION .............................................. 81 3.5.1 The ZINB regression results of “don’t know” responses ........................ 84 3.5.2 A comparison of “don’t know” responses to politics-related questions. 88 3.6 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................. 94 4． EXAMINING THE VOICED OPINIONS: THE MEANINGFULNESS OF POLITICAL SUPPORT ............................................................................................................ 96 4.1 THE ISSUE: POLITICAL SUPPORT ............................................................ 96 4.2 THE MEANING OF POLITICAL SUPPORT ............................................ 100 4.3 THE DIMENSIONALITY OF THE VOICED POLITICAL SUPPORT .. 103 4.4 EXPLANATIONS AND HYPOTHESES ...................................................... 107 4.4.1 Regime arguments .................................................................................... 107 4.4.2 Cultural arguments ................................................................................... 111 4.4.3 Rationality arguments .............................................................................. 112 vi 4.5 EMPIRICAL FINDINGS AT THE MACRO LEVEL ................................ 113 4.5.1 Measurement ............................................................................................. 114 4.5.2 Findings ...................................................................................................... 115 4.5.3 Summary of macro analysis ..................................................................... 120 4.6 EMPIRICAL FINDINGS AT THE MICRO LEVEL .................................. 121 4.6.1 Measurement ............................................................................................. 121 4.6.2 Findings ...................................................................................................... 125 4.6.3 Summary of micro analysis ...................................................................... 128 4.7 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................ 129 5． ENHANCING THE COMPARABILITY: INTERPERSONAL TRUST AND DEMOCRACY .......................................................................................................................... 131 5.1 THE ISSUE: INTERPERSONAL TRUST AND DEMOCRACY .............. 132 5.2 STUDIES ON INTERPERSONAL TRUST AND DEMOCRACY ............ 135 5.3 UNPACKING INTERPERSONAL TRUST IN CHINA ............................. 140 5.4 MEASURING DEMOCRATIC SUPPORT: A NONPARAMETRIC APPROACH ..................................................................................................................... 146 5.5 INTERPERSONAL TRUST AND DEMOCRACY: A MULTILEVEL ANALYSIS ........................................................................................................................ 151 5.6 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................ 159 6． CONCLUSION: FINDINGS, IMPLICATIONS, AND FUTURE RESEARCH ....... 162 6.1 CONTEXT MATTERS ................................................................................... 163 6.2 PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY AND CHINESE POLITICAL RESEARCH 166 vii 6.3 PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY AND POLICY MAKING ............................ 169 APPENDIX A . QUESTIONS FOR THE ANALYSIS OF “DON’T KNOW” ANSWERS 177 APPENDIX B . A ZINB MODEL OF DK ANSWERS TO POLITICS-RELATED QUESTIONS ............................................................................................................................. 181 APPENDIX C . DESCRIPTION OF VARIABLES IN TABLE 4 ....................................... 182 APPENDIX D . DESCRIPTION OF VARIABLES IN TABLE 7 ....................................... 183 APPENDIX E . FREEDOM BY INTERPERSONAL TRUST ............................................ 184 APPENDIX F . DIMENSIONS OF INTERPERSONAL TRUST ....................................... 185 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................................... 186 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 An examination of item nonresponse in public opinion surveys ..................................... 72 Table 2 Distribution of total DKs by countries ............................................................................. 75 Table 3 ZINB results for “don’t know” responses in China, WVS 2000 .................................... 85 Table 4 A comparison of “don’t know” responses to politics-related questions .......................... 89 Table 5 Dimensions of political support ..................................................................................... 104 Table 6 Regression analyses of political support ........................................................................ 119 Table 7 Multivariate multiple OLS regression analysis of political support in China ............... 126 Table 8 Logistic
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Book Review on Marxism, China and Globalization (By Xu Changfu)*
    Comparative Philosophy Volume 12, No. 1 (2021): 215-221 Open Access / ISSN 2151-6014 / www.comparativephilosophy.org https://doi.org/10.31979/2151-6014(2021).120117 RECENT WORK BOOK REVIEW ON MARXISM, CHINA AND GLOBALIZATION (BY XU CHANGFU)* IAN HUNT Xu Changfu’s book is an excellent and thoughtfully written collection of essays on the role that Marxism plays in Chinese thought today and how China fits into the modern world, and raises several interesting problems concerning the role of Marxism in China. He argues that a freer discussion of Marxism would enable a thoroughgoing Sinicization of Marxism by ensuring interpretations and developments of Marx’s thought are produced in China and not simply borrowed from elsewhere, as they will tend to be so long as the discussion of Marxism relates only to the theory’s application to social issues in China. The revised edition includes two additional chapters on the nature of the ruling power in a revolutionary society progressing toward socialism. The first introduces a highly interesting discussion of the difference between Lenin and Kautsky over, firstly, the role of elections in a revolutionary situation in which society could progress toward socialism and, secondly, over the nature of “the dictatorship of the proletariat.” The second looks at the political legacy of Deng Xiaoping and argues for the importance of rules limiting leadership positions to two terms in the ruling bodies of the People’s Republic of China. This review concludes that Xu raises important issues concerning the understanding of Marxism, and the influence of Marxism in China, which should be widely discussed, given their interest and importance in the world today.
    [Show full text]
  • Comprehensive Encirclement
    COMPREHENSIVE ENCIRCLEMENT: THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY’S STRATEGY IN XINJIANG GARTH FALLON A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy School of Humanities and Social Sciences International and Political Studies July 2018 1 THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES Thesis/Dissertation Sheet Surname or Family name: FALLON First name: Garth Other name/s: Nil Abbreviation for degree as given in the University calendar: MPhil School: Humanitiesand Social Sciences Faculty: UNSW Canberraat ADFA Title: Comprehensive encirclement: the Chinese Communist Party's strategy in Xinjiang Abstract 350 words maximum: (PLEASETYPE) This thesis argues that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has a strategy for securing Xinjiang - its far-flung predominantly Muslim most north-western province - through a planned program of Sinicisation. Securing Xinjiang would turna weakly defended 'back door' to China into a strategic strongpointfrom which Beijing canproject influence into Central Asia. The CCP's strategy is to comprehensively encircle Xinjiang with Han people and institutions, a Han­ dominated economy, and supporting infrastructure emanatingfrom inner China A successful program of Sinicisation would transform Xinjiang from a Turkic-language-speaking, largely Muslim, physically remote, economically under-developed region- one that is vulnerable to separation from the PRC - into one that will be substantially more culturally similar to, and physically connected with, the traditional Han-dominated heartland of inner China. Once achieved, complete Sinicisation would mean Xinjiang would be extremely difficult to separate from China. In Xinjiang, the CCP enacts policies in support of Sinication across all areas of statecraft. This thesis categorises these activities across three dimensions: the economic and demographic dimension, the political and cultural dimension, and the security and international cooperationdimension.
    [Show full text]
  • COURSE SYLLABUS Chinese Society in the 21St Century IFSA 21St Century City Program in Shanghai Suggested US Semester Credit Hour
    COURSE SYLLABUS Chinese Society in the 21st Century IFSA 21st Century City Program in Shanghai Suggested US semester credit hours: 3 credits Contact hours: 45 IFSA-Butler course code: SOCI260 Course length: Semester Delivery method: Face to face Language of Instruction: English COURSE DESCRIPTION This course for American students provides a topical introductory survey of the culture and society of China since early times, focusing on contemporary China. It will familiarize students with their surroundings, strengthen their academic knowledge of China, and prepare them for research based in Shanghai on China’s current development trends, practices, and policies. In this course, we will examine the complexities of social issues in contemporary China. Starting from people’s everyday life, we will learn to approach Chinese culture and social issues through the lenses of globalization and modernization. We will introduce theoretical tools like the body to explore the state’s one-child policies, rural/urban division, health care system in urban China. Throughout this course, we are asking what counts as a better life to Chinese people and how they have been pursing it over the past thirty years. STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES Understand key elements of culture in contemporary China. Utilize theoretical tools to analyze social issues in China. Strengthen critical thinking skills. Become familiar with resources available for further research on contemporary China. Make cognitive connections between learning in this course and other learning experiences in the IFSA 21ST Century City program in Shanghai. COURSE SCHEDULE Session 01 Course overview Film: To Live Section 02 Introduction and Historical background on “transition” Recommended Readings: Tang, Wenfang and William L.
    [Show full text]
  • E-Waste in China: a Country Report
    SOLVING THE E-WASTE PROBLEM StEP Green Paper Series E-waste IN CHINA: A country report Authors: Feng Wang (UNU-ISP SCYCLE) Ruediger Kuehr (UNU-ISP SCYCLE) Daniel Ahlquist (UNU-ISP SCYCLE) Jinhui Li (Tsinghua University) ISSN: 2219-6579 (Online) ISSN: 2219-6560 (In-Print) 5 April 2013 E-waste in China: A country report Table of contents Executive summary 4 1. Background 6 1.1. Goal of the study 6 1.2. Country profile 7 2. Sources and volumes of e-waste in China 10 2.1. Products put on the domestic market 10 2.2. Domestic e-waste generation 12 2.3. Transboundary shipments 13 3. E-waste collection in China 17 3.1. Informal collectors 17 3.2. Formal collectors 18 3.3. Consumer attitudes and behaviour 19 4. E-waste recycling in China 21 4.1. Informal recyclers 21 4.2. Formal recyclers 25 4.3. Summary: e-waste flows in China 27 5. Legislative developments 29 5.1. Overview of legislation on e-waste 29 5.2. Enforcement of e-waste legislation: challenges and opportunities 31 6. Projects related to e-waste 33 6.1. National projects 33 6.2. International collaboration and projects 37 7. Stakeholder analysis 40 7.1. Governmental agencies 40 7.2. Industry 41 7.3. Consumers 43 7.4. Research institutions 43 7.5. NGOs 46 7.6. Findings from 2012 stakeholder workshop 46 7.7. Summary 47 8. Potential directions for future work 49 8.1. Transboundary shipments 49 8.2. Domestic e-waste flows in China 49 8.3.
    [Show full text]
  • The Xinjiang Class: Education, Integration, and the Uyghurs
    Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Vol. 30, No. 1, March 2010 The Xinjiang Class: Education, Integration, and the Uyghurs TIMOTHY A. GROSE Abstract In 2000, the Chinese Communist Party established the Xinjiang Class (Xinjiang neidi gaozhong ban), a program that funds middle school-aged students from Xinjiang, mostly ethnic Uyghur, to attend school in predominately Han populated cities located throughout eastern China. This paper examines the efficacy of the Xinjiang Class in promoting ethnic unity and Chinese nationalism. By examining the extent to which Uyghur students participating in the Xinjiang Class interact with Han students; speak Chinese outside of the classroom; and by considering if these Uyghur students are returning to Xinjiang, I argue that many Uyghurs are resisting integration, and the Xinjiang Class is largely failing to promote ethnic unity between Han and Uyghurs. Conversely, this program has even strengthened some Uyghur students’ sense of ethnic identity. Introduction Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has controlled the apparatus of education, and the expansion of state-sponsored education has been a priority of the CCP in an attempt to unify China’s 56 ethnic groups (minzu) into one Chinese nation (zhonghua minzu). In this context, Linda Benson argues, “The ultimate goal for the PRC’s educational policy for minority peoples has been to integrate all ethnic groups into a single and unified socialist state”.1 Zhu Zhiyong, who has conducted extensive research on education in Tibet, contends, “State education for ethnic minorities has been considered one of the best ways to intensify the identity of the Chinese nation”.2 State-sponsored education is one of the CCP’s most valuable tools for instilling minority students with “pro- Chinese” principles.
    [Show full text]
  • Domestic Political Determinants of China's External Behavior
    Session I Can China Maintain Domestic Stability? How will Be Its Likely Behavior in the Future? Domestic Political Determinants of China’s External Behavior Yasuhiro Matsuda 1. Introduction China is sometimes called a “fragile superpower”1 due to certain unstable internal factors in contrast to its hard-line external policies. Varied are the approaches and analytic conclusions of the degree to which China’s external policies are affected by its internal factors.2 The factors currently most influential on China’s external behavior are generally considered the expansion of its economic and trade relations, and interpersonal exchanges. In other words, this theory holds that given the increasingly complex interdependence between China and other countries, China is becoming less able to threaten the use of force or engage in diplomacy backed by the threat by force. Then there is the doctrine of a democratic peace, which holds that stable democratic states do not engage in war from the standpoint of imposing a country’s political system on another. This leads to the conclusion that the United States cannot completely eliminate the risk of conflict with China, which is under a one-party dictatorship by the Chinese Communist Party, or the CCP, and that there will be greater security as China becomes more democratic. We can also point out based on the scapegoat theory of China exhibiting hard-line reactions externally in order to distract public attention from its unstable domestic factors and enhance its own political power base, that China may adopt hard-line external measures should it face a state of serious confusion, in considering the social unrest stemming from the people’s dissatisfaction with disparities in income and widespread corruption.
    [Show full text]
  • Ming Fever: the Past in the Present in the People's Republic of China at 60
    Ming Fever: The Past in the Present in the People’s Republic of China at 60 The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Szonyi, Michael. 2011. Ming fever: The past in the present in the People’s Republic of China at 60. In The People’s Republic of China at 60: An international assessment, ed. William Kirby, 375-387. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:33907949 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Open Access Policy Articles, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#OAP Ming Fever: The Past in the Present in the People’s Republic of China at Sixty Michael Szonyi1 In summer 2007, while gathering materials in rural south China, I was struck by how often history came up in conversation with the villagers I was interviewing. Evening interviews had to be scheduled around the nightly television broadcast of a miniseries about the founding emperor of the Ming, the Hongwu emperor Zhu Yuanzhang. Next morning, everybody was talking about the previous night’s episode. Browsing the main Xinhua bookstore in Beijing on my way home, I was also struck that the biggest bestseller, the book with the most prominent display, was not a guide to succeeding in business or preparing for the TOEFL, but a work of history.
    [Show full text]
  • Boss Lady: How Female Chinese Managers Succeed in China's Guanxi System
    University of Mississippi eGrove Honors College (Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors Theses Honors College) 2015 Boss Lady: How Female Chinese Managers Succeed in China's Guanxi System Charles Palmer Withers University of Mississippi. Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College Follow this and additional works at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis Part of the International Business Commons Recommended Citation Withers, Charles Palmer, "Boss Lady: How Female Chinese Managers Succeed in China's Guanxi System" (2015). Honors Theses. 182. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/182 This Undergraduate Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors College (Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College) at eGrove. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of eGrove. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Withers 1 Boss Lady: How Female Chinese Managers Succeed in China’s Guanxi System © 2015 By C. Palmer Withers A thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for completion Of the Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies Croft Institute for International Studies Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College The University of Mississippi University, Mississippi May 2015 Approved: _________________________________ Advisor: Dr. Gang Guo _________________________________ Reader: Dr. Kees Gispen _________________________________ Reader: Dr. Peter Frost Withers 2 Abstract: This project examines how female Chinese managers within China’s traditionally male-dominated, guanxi-related private sector are coming into their own as leaders of the new Chinese economy. In this project, guanxi (关系) is defined as “interpersonal relations and connections” and research hinges around investigating how female Chinese managers use, or do not use, guanxi in their careers and personal lives.
    [Show full text]
  • Surveying Public Opinion in Transitional China: an Examination of Survey Response
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by D-Scholarship@Pitt SURVEYING PUBLIC OPINION IN TRANSITIONAL CHINA: AN EXAMINATION OF SURVEY RESPONSE by Liying Ren BA, Peking University, China, 1996 MA, Peking University, 2000 MA, University of Pittsburgh, 2007 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2009 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH FACULTY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES This dissertation was presented by Liying Ren It was defended on April 16, 2009 and approved by David C. Barker, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science Jonathan Harris, Professor, Department of Political Science Thomas Rawski, Professor, Department of Economics Dissertation Advisor: Wenfang Tang, Professor, Department of Political Science ii Copyright © by Liying Ren 2009 iii SURVEYING PUBLIC OPINION IN TRANSITIONAL CHINA: AN EXMAINATION OF SURVEY RESPONSE Liying Ren, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2009 This study investigates the usefulness of public opinion survey in China for political research. Using data from the World Values Survey and from several Chinese public opinion surveys, my central inquiry consists of three separate but interrelated issues: are public opinion survey data from China truthful, meaningful, and comparable? I frame these questions in a comparative perspective and in the transitional contexts of China. By examining the issues of item- nonresponse, norm-seeking response, and cross-national comparability, I show that the validity of survey responses in Chinese opinion surveys is mainly influenced by the respondents’ cognitive ability, political interest, media exposure, and cultural difference.
    [Show full text]
  • Contemporary Chinese Philanthropy Literature Review
    Contemporary Chinese Philanthropy Literature Review Wenjuan Zheng Paul Ong Karna Wong 2014–2016 Professor Paul Ong, GCPI Research Director UCLA Center for Neighborhood Knowledge Global Chinese Philanthropy Initiative 1 The authors are grateful for funding support from the Greater China Philanthropy Initiative (GCPI). The content claims, and findings of this report are the sole responsibility of the authors, and do not represent the opinions of UCLA or its administration. Neither GCPI nor its partners endorse or are responsible for any of the views or opinions expressed in this work. The authors are not liable for misinterpretation of the provided information or policy failures based on analyses proved in this paper. All research was conducted by the authors using English-language sources. Copyrighted by the authors. 2 Preface This working paper is a part of a series of background papers produced for the Global Chinese Philanthropy Initiative (GCPI), which is a bilateral effort to study, promote, support, and highlight philanthropy among Chinese in Greater China and Chinese Americans. GCPI is a collaborative effort of Asian American Advancing Justice–Los Angeles, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, and UC Irvine Long China-US Institute. Support for the GCPI comes from the John and Marilyn Long Family Foundation, Lao Niu Foundation, and Wallace H. Coulter Foundation. Additional support provided by UCLA’s Center for Neighborhood Knowledge (née Center for the Study of Inequality) and Center for Civil Society. Stewart Kwoh, John Long, and Archie Kleingartner serve on the GCPI Executive Committee. The multiyear research plan includes four major phases: developing foundational knowledge through reviewing secondary data and existing literature; discovering new knowledge through primary social science research on philanthropy, civil society, and key sectors; evaluating case studies to examine the social, political, and economic impacts of philanthropy; and translating research into instrumental knowledge to improve policies, programs, and practice.
    [Show full text]
  • Country Report China
    The State of Social Entrepreneurship in China SEFORÏS Country Report Zhiyuan Zhao NPI April, 2014 About SEFORÏS: Social Enterprise as FORce for more Inclusive and Innovative Societies SEFORIS is a flagship multi-disciplinary, multi-method international research project on social enterprise funded by the European Commission. Through the generation of robust evidence and internationally leading research, SEFORIS aims to better understand the role that social enterprises play in the EU and beyond in the development and evolutions of inclusive and innovative societies. SEFORIS will investigate key processes through which social enterprises deliver inclusion and innovation (spanning a range of domains, from organisation and governance, over financing and innovation to behavioural change) as well as the contexts in which social enterprises thrive. In terms of methodology, we will start from policy and social enterprise practitioner questions and challenges together with critically scrutinizing existing academic literature. We use this first step to develop theoretical frameworks that then serve as a basis for thinking systematically about innovation and inclusion processes in context. This is followed by field and lab experimentation with social enterprises and in-depth case studies to expand and enrich our understanding of social enterprises. Unique longitudinal survey data will be collected across 9 distinct countries to test new (and at times counterintuitive) hypotheses to reach novel insights and generalizable conclusions. We engage policy makers and social enterprises throughout the research process to ensure that our research is relevant for them and can inform their practice. The SEFORIS partnership SEFORIS is a consortium of 12 organisations from 10 countries including Belgium, China, Germany, Hungary, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and the UK.
    [Show full text]
  • Education and Social Inequality in China Elite Groups Perpetuating Their Privileged Status
    China Perspectives 2007/3 | 2007 Creating a Harmonious Society Education and Social Inequality in China Elite Groups Perpetuating Their Privileged Status Chunguang Wang Édition électronique URL : http://journals.openedition.org/chinaperspectives/2123 DOI : 10.4000/chinaperspectives.2123 ISSN : 1996-4617 Éditeur Centre d'étude français sur la Chine contemporaine Édition imprimée Date de publication : 15 septembre 2007 ISSN : 2070-3449 Référence électronique Chunguang Wang, « Education and Social Inequality in China Elite Groups Perpetuating Their Privileged Status », China Perspectives [En ligne], 2007/3 | 2007, mis en ligne le 01 septembre 2010, consulté le 28 octobre 2019. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/chinaperspectives/2123 ; DOI : 10.4000/chinaperspectives.2123 © All rights reserved Special feature s e v Education and Social i a t c n i e Inequality in China h p s c r Elite Groups Perpetuating Their Privileged Status e p WANG CHUNGUANG At a time of growing economic and social inequality in China, there is a tendency to invoke education as a great leveller but that rose-tinted view fails to take cognisance of the role of entrenched vested interests which are in fact nurturing educational disparities precisely because education helps to perpetuate them. Current arrangements in education in China can thus hardly help achieve or promote a harmonious society. y e l n xpanding income disparities and social inequality tainment of social position. ((1) Their theory has had great e H k r among different classes, groups and regions have been impact on research into the relationship between education a M Eemerging as prominent issues in contemporary China.
    [Show full text]