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Urban China (urban + china)
Selected AbstractsThe Consumer Revolution in Urban China; Japanese Consumer Behavior: From Worker Bees to Wary ShoppersAMERICAN ETHNOLOGIST, Issue 4 2001Hai Ren The Consumer Revolution in Urban China. Deborah S. Davis, ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. xiii + 366 pp., illustrations, tables, photographs, bibliography, index. Japanese Consumer Behavior: From Worker Bees to Wary Shoppers. John McCrcery Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2000. ix + 278 pp., illustrations, photographs, bibliography, index. [source] Earnings Differentials between State and Non-State Enterprises in Urban ChinaPACIFIC ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 1 2002Yaohui Zhao The present paper estimates earnings differentials between state and non-state sectors for Chinese urban residents in 1996 by taking into account differences in non-wage benefits. Household survey data are used to estimate wage differentials while aggregate statistics are utilised in estimating non-wage benefits. We find that state-sector workers earned significantly more than workers in urban collective and domestic private enterprises in 1996. Unskilled workers in foreign invested enterprises (FIE) earned significantly less than those in the state sector but skilled workers earned more in FIE than in the state sector. These findings shed light on the source of labour immobility that state-owned enterprise had experienced until recently. [source] Marching toward a Harmonious Society: Happiness, Regime Satisfaction, and Government Performance in Contemporary Urban ChinaASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2009Diqing Lou This study examined the happiness of citizens in urban China. Empirical measurements were made of the relationship of reported happiness to economic variables, as well as to citizens' satisfaction with government policies. Employing the 2002 Asian Barometer Survey and the Amelia statistical software package, I found that happiness is strongly correlated both to absolute economic conditions and to relative economic status. Furthermore, citizens who perceived government policies as being responsive to their needs were more likely to report a high level of personal well-being. This empirical analysis confirms the direction of Chinese leader Hu Jintao's development strategy, which seeks to promote widespread economic prosperity among Chinese citizens. The study results indicate that a healthy and balanced economy is essential in improving urban happiness in China. Based on these results, I argue that the Chinese government can further improve citizen happiness by providing ample employment opportunities and promoting progressive housing policies. [source] The Impact of Government Corruption and Monopolized Industries on Poverty and Income Disparity in Urban ChinaASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2009Xia Li Lollar This article examines the impact of government corruption and state monopolized industries on poverty and income disparity in urban China. Urban poverty and income disparity in China have increased sharply in recent years. The gap between the rich and poor has become so alarmingly wide that it has caused riots and violent protests in cities and towns across the country. While most studies on the roots of urban poverty and income disparity in China have focused on factors, such as unemployment, rural-to-urban migration, and lack of a social safety net, this study investigates the impact of government corruption and state-monopolized industries on urban poor and income inequality. This study argues that the root causes of the fast-growing gap between the rich and poor are the irrationally high income gained through the monopoly of state-owned industries, the legal gains derived from graft, corruption, and power-for-money transactions. [source] Property Tax in Urban ChinaCHINA AND WORLD ECONOMY, Issue 4 2008Dan Li H20; R21; R31 Abstract This paper examines China's urban housing sector and proposes that property tax reform be undertaken. Specifically, China should significantly reduce taxes on transactions and introduce property taxes during the possession of houses. This will increase housing affordability as a result of lower transaction costs, reduce speculation because of the higher opportunity cost of holding vacant houses, stabilize the fiscal system by generating more sustainable tax revenue, and improve the efficiency and fairness of the property tax system according to the principles of "ability-to-pay" and "user pays". [source] Reflections on Place and Place-making in the Cities of ChinaINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2007JOHN FRIEDMANN Abstract This article is about the small spaces of the city we call ,places'. Places are shaped by being lived in; they are spaces of encounter where the little histories of the city are played out. They are, of course, also shaped by the state through planning, supervision, ordinances, and so forth. The patterns and rhythms of life in the small spaces of the city are therefore not simply a straightforward projection of civil life. Places are also sites of resistance, contestation, and actions that are often thought to be illegal by the (local) state. After introducing the concept of place, the remainder of this article is a reflection on places and place-making (but also place-breaking) in urban China. Because the patterns and rhythms of urban life have continuity, however, my approach to their study was historical. The story told here is roughly divided into four major periods: Imperial China, Republican China, the People's Republic under Mao Zedong, and the reform period from about 1980 onward. I then return to the concepts of place and place-making with which I began, summarizing my findings and suggesting some topics for further research. Résumé Cet article traite des petits espaces de la ville qu'on appelle des ,lieux'. Les lieux sont modelés par la vie qui s'y déroule; ce sont des espaces de rencontre où se jouent les petites histoires d'une ville. Bien sûr, ils sont aussi façonnés par l'Etat, à travers l'aménagement, le contrôle, les règlements, etc. Les modèles et rythmes de vie dans les petits espaces urbains ne sont donc pas une projection pure de la vie civique. Ce sont aussi des scènes de résistance, de contestation et d'actions souvent jugées illégales par les autorités (locales). Après le concept de lieu, l'article présente une réflexion sur les lieux et leur fabrication (ainsi que leur fracture) dans la Chine urbaine. Les modèles et rythmes de la vie urbaine présentant une continuité, l'approche appliquée à leur étude est historique. Le récit rapporté se décompose en quatre grandes périodes: la Chine impériale, la Chine républicaine, la République populaire de Mao Zedong et l'ère réformatrice depuis 1980 environ. L'article revient ensuite sur les concepts de lieux et de fabrication de lieux en résumant les résultats obtenus et en suggérant quelques thèmes de recherche à approfondir. [source] Vertebral Fractures in Beijing, China: The Beijing Osteoporosis ProjectJOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 10 2000Xu Ling Abstract Women in China have much lower risk of hip fracture than women in Europe or North America but their risk of vertebral fractures is not known. Lateral spine radiographs, hip and lumbar spine bone density, and potential risk factors for and consequences of vertebral fractures were assessed in a random sample of 402 women age 50 years or older living in Beijing, China. The prevalence of vertebral fractures, defined by vertebral morphometry, increased from 5% (95% CI, 1,9%) in 50- to 59-year olds to 37% (27-46%) among women age 80 years or older. The age-standardized prevalence of vertebral fractures was 5.5% lower than found by similar methods for women in Rochester, MN, U.S.A. Each SD lower spine bone mineral density (BMD) was associated with a 2.4-fold (1.7-3.5) increased odds of having a vertebral fracture. Women with a history of heavy physical labor had a lower risk of vertebral fractures. Vertebral fractures were associated with decreased height loss and limited physical function but not chronic back pain. Women in Beijing, China have lower bone density and a slightly lower rate of vertebral fracture than white women in the United States. Low bone density and more sedentary occupations increase the risk of fracture in women living in urban China. [source] An assessment of the current structure of food demand in urban ChinaAGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2006Brian W. Gould China; Food demand system; QUAIDS; Fractional logit Abstract We evaluate the current structure of food demand in urban China by using household expenditure survey data from five provinces. Two complementary analyses are undertaken. First, an aggregate analysis based on a fractional logit model is used to examine how households allocate food expenditures across the food-at-home (FAH) and food-away-from-home (FAFH) categories. This is followed by a disaggregated analysis of how households allocated their FAH expenditures across 12 commodity categories. A Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System (QUAIDS) is used. We find evidence of significant food purchase substitution and complementarity. [source] Resource Consumption of New Urban Construction in ChinaJOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2007John E. Fernández The volume of China's recent additions to its urban-built environment is unprecedented. China now accounts for half of all new building area in the world. Increases in building stocks of all types have occurred during an extended period of accelerated growth of the national economy. This expansion promises to continue through 2030. As a result, the rapid conversion of land from low-density agricultural and light manufacturing to new urban zones of high density and material-intensive commercial and residential buildings has consumed enormous quantities of domestic and imported resources and has irreversibly altered the Chinese landscape. This article examines the consumption of material resources dedicated to Chinese building construction through a survey and analysis of the material intensity of three major building types. This provides a basis for outlining the emerging life-cycle issues of recent additions to the built environment and of continued construction. With this as the starting point, the field of industrial ecology can work toward formulating strategies for a circular economy that include a resource-efficient urban China. [source] Can a subjective poverty line be applied to China?JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 8 2004Assessing poverty among urban residents in 199 For the first time, subjective poverty line methodology is applied to China. The data refer to 12 cities for the year 1999. A major conclusion is that poverty counts, based on the subjective poverty line, is surprisingly close to those obtained when applying the methodology used when providing official estimates on poverty in urban China. However, the opinions of the general public can differ considerably across cities. Applying the poverty line we find substantial variation across cities in the extent of poverty. Poverty status in urban China is very much related to education level of the household, to life cycle, as well as to labour market status. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Socio-political control in urban China: changes and crisis*THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY, Issue 4 2001Raymond W. K. Lau ABSTRACT This paper examines urban China's socio-political control crisis under the impact of economic reforms as an epitome of a more general social crisis. The traditional urban institutional form of socio-political control in the People's Republic of China (PRC), the work unit form of control, is a variant of age-old forms. The latter's reproduction in variant form in the former was premised upon the fact that the PRC's industrialization was carried out by a peasant-based party creating a new working class of rural migrants engaged in non-market production and exchange. The persistence of non-market economic relations ensured this form of control's continued reproduction. Post-1978 market-oriented reforms have undermined this form. As the emergence of new forms has been slow, a socio-political control crisis has arisen, at a time when millions of urban employees are being thrown out of work. In dealing with the crisis, the official trade union, an organic constituent institution of the work unit form of control, plays a prominent part, in being given the tasks of sustaining this decaying form, and preventing and defusing potential social explosion. Yet, the very economic reform programme that has undermined the work unit form of control, is also gravely weakening the union. [source] Wages, participation and unemployment in the economic transition of urban China,THE ECONOMICS OF TRANSITION, Issue 3 2010Jun Han Wages; participation rates; unemployment rates; economic transition Abstract Wages, participation and unemployment are major topics for researchers of the labour market. How have these measures evolved in the economic transition of urban China? Have they evolved in accordance with those in the Statistical Yearbook of China (produced by the National Bureau of Statistics, China) and previous studies? We find that the estimated wage level based on Urban Household Survey (UHS) data was higher than that in the Statistical Yearbook in earlier years, but the relationship has reversed since 1999. Our estimated participation rate is lower than that of Giles et al. (2006) but higher than Dong et al. (2007) and Maurer-Fazio et al. (2007). The analysis shows that the unemployment rate is lower than that estimated with the China Urban Labor Survey data in Giles et al. (2005). Our estimation results on unemployment rates turn out to be more similar to those in Dong et al. (2007) but are different from those in Hu and Sheng (2007). This analysis provides the first systematic comparison of the wage level from different sources, and supplements the existing estimates on participation and unemployment using a more representative dataset for urban China. [source] The effects of transition on the distribution of income in ChinaTHE ECONOMICS OF TRANSITION, Issue 3 2001A study decomposing the GINI coefficient for 198 Using two large samples for 1988 and 1995 we decompose the Gini coefficient of household income according to type of income with the purpose of analyzing reasons for the rapid increase of inequality. The results show that the change in relative size of money income and its changed profile are found to be the major processes behind the rapid increase of income inequality in rural China. Changes in housing allocation and an increased number of retirees in combination with higher benefits have made inequality increase in urban China and in China as a whole. JEL classification: D31, P27. [source] Neoliberalism and the Aestheticization of New Middle-Class LandscapesANTIPODE, Issue 2 2009Choon-Piew Pow Abstract:, If according to Terry Eagleton (The Ideology of the Aesthetic 1990:28), the aesthetic is from the start "a contradictory, double-edged concept", how are seemingly innocent acts of viewing and consuming aesthetically pleasing landscapes implicated in the neoliberal politics of urban restructuring? Using contemporary Shanghai as a case study, this paper critically examines the role of the aesthetic in the politics of exclusion and urban segregation in post-Socialist Shanghai where the restructuring and commodification of erstwhile public welfare housing have led to the rapid development of private "middle-class" gated enclaves. A central objective of this paper is to excavate the underlying cultural politics of neoliberalism and demonstrate how the aestheticization of urban spaces in Shanghai has become increasingly intertwined with and accentuated by neoliberal ideologies and exclusionary practices in the city. Imbricated in the pristine neighborhoods of Shanghai's gated communities are the fault lines of social division and class distinction that are rapidly transforming urban China. [source] Marching toward a Harmonious Society: Happiness, Regime Satisfaction, and Government Performance in Contemporary Urban ChinaASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2009Diqing Lou This study examined the happiness of citizens in urban China. Empirical measurements were made of the relationship of reported happiness to economic variables, as well as to citizens' satisfaction with government policies. Employing the 2002 Asian Barometer Survey and the Amelia statistical software package, I found that happiness is strongly correlated both to absolute economic conditions and to relative economic status. Furthermore, citizens who perceived government policies as being responsive to their needs were more likely to report a high level of personal well-being. This empirical analysis confirms the direction of Chinese leader Hu Jintao's development strategy, which seeks to promote widespread economic prosperity among Chinese citizens. The study results indicate that a healthy and balanced economy is essential in improving urban happiness in China. Based on these results, I argue that the Chinese government can further improve citizen happiness by providing ample employment opportunities and promoting progressive housing policies. [source] The Impact of Government Corruption and Monopolized Industries on Poverty and Income Disparity in Urban ChinaASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2009Xia Li Lollar This article examines the impact of government corruption and state monopolized industries on poverty and income disparity in urban China. Urban poverty and income disparity in China have increased sharply in recent years. The gap between the rich and poor has become so alarmingly wide that it has caused riots and violent protests in cities and towns across the country. While most studies on the roots of urban poverty and income disparity in China have focused on factors, such as unemployment, rural-to-urban migration, and lack of a social safety net, this study investigates the impact of government corruption and state-monopolized industries on urban poor and income inequality. This study argues that the root causes of the fast-growing gap between the rich and poor are the irrationally high income gained through the monopoly of state-owned industries, the legal gains derived from graft, corruption, and power-for-money transactions. [source] Housing Wealth, Financial Wealth and Consumption in ChinaCHINA AND WORLD ECONOMY, Issue 3 2009Jie Chen E21; E32 Abstract The paper investigates the relationship between changes in asset wealth and the trend movements of household consumption in urban China. Using the vector error correction cointegration model, we demonstrate that there is a unique long-run cointegrating relationship between household consumption, disposable income, financial wealth and housing wealth in urban China. We find that housing wealth is the only factor that restores the long-run equilibrium relationship when the cointegrated system is disturbed by an external shock. In addition, our permanent,transitory variance decomposition analysis indicates that nearly all variance in the movement of consumption is permanent, supporting the classical random walk hypothesis of consumption behavior. However, a large proportion of variance in the short-run movements of housing wealth is found to be transitory. [source] | ||||||||||||||||