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From the outset of the post-Mao reform, the central government has made genuine efforts to adapt the grassroots government system in the urban areas to social changes brought about by the reform in the urban neighborhoods, such as the drastic decline of the role of work units and the rapid increase in private ownership of residential properties. This system was anchored by its self-governing body, Residents' Committee (RCs, jumin weiyuanhui). Residents' Committees were first established by the government in the 1950s. Before the post-Mao reform, the central government used RCs to assist work units at the grassroots level in implementing Party and government policies, monitoring and controlling the population, and providing residents with some basic social welfare services. Moreover, the central government treated the RCs as its administrative extensions, in conjunction with work units, at the local level.

AbstractBased on data collected from a representative-sample survey conducted in five Chinese cities (Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Chengdu, and Hangzhou) in the middle of 2008, this study examines the behavioral orientations of Chinese middle class toward the local elections which are held in urban areas, and the attitudinal orientations of Chinese middle class toward the current regime. The results indicate that there is a strong division within the group of the middle class, especially along the lines of the relationship with the state. Therefore, this study suggests that the Chinese middle class is a class without a shared class identity.

Does the middle class in China think and act democratically and hence serve as the harbinger of democratic development in that country? Little empirical work has been done to systematically address this crucial question. The primary goals of this dissertation are to explore the level of attitudinal support for democracy among Chinese middle class individuals, examine their behavioral orientations toward politics, and provide a comprehensive assessment of the role of the Chinese middle class in the evolution of the Chinese political system. This dissertation argues that the middle class in China consists of the following four occupational groups: self-employed laborers, managers, professionals, and civil servants. Following this conceptualization, it discusses the relations between the Chinese party-state and the newly rising middle class, and makes distinctions between the subgroup of middle class individuals employed in the public sector and the subgroup employed in the private sector, and posits three hypotheses: (1) The private-sector middle class has strong democratic attitudes; on the other hand, the public-sector middle class has significantly weaker democratic attitudes; (2) The private-sector middle class individuals' democratic orientation may lead to their negative evaluation of the current forms of mass political participation; in turn, this negative evaluation may cause the private-sector middle class individuals to engage in non-participatory action as a form of protest against the current system; and (3) The public-sector middle class individuals' undemocratic belief may lead to their positive evaluation of the current forms of mass political participation; in turn, this positive evaluation may cause the public-sector middle class individuals to engage in participatory action to express their support of the current system. The hypothesized causal relationships are tested via three representative public opinion surveys. The three hypotheses are strongly supported by the empirical evidence. This dissertation concludes that the private-sector middle class people are more likely to hold democratic values and act in ways that promote democracy in China, while the public-sector middle class people tend to hold negative attitudes toward democracy and act in an undemocratic fashion. Such findings are of theoretical and practical significance.

Do the middle classes in authoritarian, late-developing countries support democratization? Among scholars, there seems no clear consensus on this question. To fill this gap, this article examines the case of the middle class in China, based on data collected from a probability-sample survey. The findings from this study indicate (1) the middle class does not necessarily support democratization in authoritarian developing countries, (2) there is a negative correlation between the middle class's dependence on the state and its support for democracy, and (3) the middle class's perceived social and economic well-being is also negatively associated with its democratic support. Adapted from the source document.

Do the middle classes in authoritarian, late-developing countries support democratization? Among scholars, there seems no clear consensus on this question. To fill this gap, this article examines the case of the middle class in China, based on data collected from a probability-sample survey. The findings from this study indicate (1) the middle class does not necessarily support democratization in authoritarian developing countries, (2) there is a negative correlation between the middle class's dependence on the state and its support for democracy, and (3) the middle class's perceived social and economic well-being is also negatively associated with its democratic support.

Since the onset of the post-Mao reform, China has become more and more dependent on the world economy. Based on survey data drawn from the Second PEW Global Attitudes Project in 2002, this article finds that a majority of the surveyed respondents, especially in urban China, had 'positive' attitudes toward economic internationalism. Moreover, the findings indicate that Chinese people's subjective orientations (such as the belief in cultural superiority, the sense of modernity, and life satisfaction) significantly influenced their support for economic internationalism; objective socio-demographic attributes (that is, education, age, and contact with overseas friends or relatives) helped shape such support. These findings have important political implications for the future of China's involvement in the world economy. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Ltd., copyright 2008 International Political Science Association.]