Abstract
<p>This paper examines the impact of types of housing on the tendency to engage in neighborhood-level political participation among urban residents in China, using 2005 China General Social Survey. Four types of housing were discussed: commercial housing; previously state-owned (<em>work unit</em>) housing; old neighborhood; and other types of housing (i.e. migration housing). Two indicators of local political participation were presented in the form of Local People’s Congress elections and Residents’ Committee elections. Using multivariate logistic regression analysis, the authors found that types of housing had strong implications for voting in local elections among Chinese urban residents. First, the likelihood of voting in two local elections was lowest among residents living in commercial housing, and the highest in old neighborhoods. Second, participation in community-led venues (i.e. cultural events) enhanced the voting rate among residents living in commercial housing. Results highlight the importance of the sweeping housing reform in urban neighborhoods to local political participation in contemporary China, and the changing relationship between state and society. Although rapid economic reform has diversified and alienated the neighborhood, community-led civic activities can reunify the residents and enhance their local political participation. This effect was more significant among the young, college-educated, high-income middle class. </p>
Highlights
With the rapid economic growth occurring since the 1978 economic reform, China has been experiencing drastic urbanization and urban development, as manifested by rising housing units, steady inflow of rural migrants, accelerated urban renewal and expansion, increased labor mobility, cost of living, life expectancy, educational attainment, and the widen income gap (Doepke & Zilibotti, 2007; Forrest & Yip, 2007)
The proportions of people voting in the Local People’s Congress (LPC) were 25.22% in commercial housing, 22.78% in work unit housing, 30.26% in old neighborhoods, and 37.85% in other type of housing
After breaking down the data into five age subgroups, the subgroup aged 30-39 emerged as the largest group in commercial housing (22.87%), work unit housing (22.63%) and other type of housing (27.41%), whereas the largest group was older and aged 40-49 for those living in old neighborhood (24.13%)
Summary
With the rapid economic growth occurring since the 1978 economic reform, China has been experiencing drastic urbanization and urban development, as manifested by rising housing units, steady inflow of rural migrants, accelerated urban renewal and expansion, increased labor mobility, cost of living, life expectancy, educational attainment, and the widen income gap (Doepke & Zilibotti, 2007; Forrest & Yip, 2007). Among those social changes, housing reform is one of the most challenging areas. Workers lived in the work unit ownership housing and were strongly dependent on housing from the state and its local government agencies
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
