Social Sciences In China Research Articles

Buddhist Studies in the People's Republic of China: 1990-1991 (review)

Reviews 249© 1994 by University ofHawai'i Press Michael R. Saso, translator and editor. Buddhist Studies in the People's Republic ofChina: 1990-1991. Honolulu: Tendai Education Foundation and University of Hawai'i Press, 1992. viii, 143 pp. Paperback $14. The first thing one notices when picking up this slim volume is its overly ambitious title. Can it be true that the sum total of research produced by Buddhist scholars in the PRC between 1990 and 1991 can be translated in a mere 143 pages?! If one takes the title of this work seriously, one would indeed be (mis)led to that conclusion. When one opens the cover, what one finds in fact are translations of four articles, all of which originally appeared in Chinese in a single bimonthly journal published by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing. (One wonders why Saso claims that these were "translated and published" [p. vii] by that journal.) Further, a little investigation shows that these represent fewer than half of the articles on Buddhism published in the same journal during the period in question. Since Saso volunteers no reasons for his particular selection— except to say that Aiey are of"interest and relevance ... to Buddhist dialogue abroad" (p. vii) and "are meant to encourage further dialogue between Chinese scholars in religious studies with [sic] their counterparts outside of China" (p. viii)—and since there is no obvious theme that ties these selections together, the best that can be said of this volume is that it introduces the research of four contemporary Chinese scholars working in and around Beijing, as published in Zhongguo shehui kexue (Social Sciences in China). Still, given the change in the political climate in the PRC, this is important and encouraging. The next thing one notices is how isolated scholarship remains in China. While the papers presented in this volume are serious attempts at working with the theoretical and historical issues of Chinese Buddhism, the conditions under which these scholars work are evident throughout. Lacking is almost any evidence of access to secondary scholarship, either within China itself or from abroad; primary source materials rarely go much beyond the obvious. (The notes to all four articles total a scant four and a half pages.) These Buddhist scholars are indeed working in a relative vacuum, and the overall quality of their research must be applauded , especially given the circumstances. Nevertheless, the most interesting dimension of this collection is the Chinese source of the scholarship rather than the research proper, which parallels and complements (yet regrettably still generally falls behind) that of its Western and Japanese counterparts. Unfortunately, one is also struck by the apparent haste with which this volume was put together. The overall lack of attention paid to presentation, beginning with fhe "Introduction" (a mere two pages), and the lack ofpolish (and/or consistency) of the translations are sometimes disconcerting. One is also occa- 250 China Review International: Vol. 1, No. 2, Fall 1994 sionally perplexed by the translation choices made for key technical terms. At times, the volume reads like a first draft. If Saso, rightly, wants us to "dialogue" more with our Chinese counterparts, he should have made it easier for us to do so. In point of fact, nowhere are we given the Chinese journal name, volume, or page numbers for the articles translated. Saso does not even settle on a translation for the respective titles of his selections . While translated differently elsewhere (pp. vii-viii), the four articles as listed in the "Table of Contents" (with original citations offered by this reviewer) are: (1)"Shen Xiu and the Northern School of Zen," by Ren Jiyu, director of the National Library in Beijing (Zhongguo shehui kexue, no. 2 [March 1990]: 109-118); (2)"The Multiethnic Character of Chinese Buddhism," by Du Jiwen of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (ibid., no. 6 [November 1990] : 109-124); (3)"Zhuangzi's Thought and the Spread of Buddhism," by Cai Dahua of the Henan Academy of Social Sciences (ibid., no. 1 [January 1991]: 137-147); and (4)"The Theory of Buddhist Spiritual Realms and Chinese Art Imagery," by Jiang Shuzhuo of Jinan University (ibid., no. 2 [March 1991]: 131...

Returns to Education in China

We were fortunate in having access to a survey of 800 adults in Nanjing that was conducted by the International Wool Secretariate in 1986. The survey was intended for market research (e.g., brand recognition), but questions were asked about the respondent's age, occupation, income, and education level. These questions, though not ideally worded, were sufficient for the undertaking of a returns-to-education study. We believe the data to be unique and, of course, the issue of interest is whether a member of the workforce in China faces investment decisions on education similar to those faced elsewhere. The influence of sex and marital status on the level of income achieved by an individual was also examined. The basic equation modeled personal income as a nonlinear function of schooling and experience, but multicollinearity problems were encountered. As a result, a production function approach was successfully adapted to the returns-toeducation model. The collinearity problem was overcome, and this approach allowed the ease of substitution of education for experience in income generation to be examined more formally. An additional problem of errors in variables arose from a failing in questionnaire design and was handled statistically.

The Household Responsibility System in China's Agricultural Reform: A Theoretical and Empirical Study

The emergence and eventual prevalence of the household responsibility system, which replaces the production team system as the unit of production and income distribution, has brought about dramatic changes in China's rural areas since 1979. This institutional change has resulted in remarkable growth in agricultural productivity.' However, in the literature on collective farms, a theory that is capable of explaining the causes and effects of this change is yet to be developed. The formal theory about collective economies developed so far by Ward, Domar, Sen, Oi and Clayton, Bradley, Maurice and Ferguson, Cameron, Bonin, Chinn, Israelsen, Putterman, and others suggests that the allocation of resources in a collective farm is efficient at least in

Modeling Indian Migration and City Growth, 1960-2000

Previous articleNext article No AccessModeling Indian Migration and City Growth, 1960-2000Charles M. Becker, Edwin S. Mills, and Jeffrey G. WilliamsonCharles M. Becker Search for more articles by this author , Edwin S. Mills Search for more articles by this author , and Jeffrey G. Williamson Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Economic Development and Cultural Change Volume 35, Number 1Oct., 1986 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/451571 Views: 6Total views on this site Citations: 13Citations are reported from Crossref Copyright 1986 The University of ChicagoPDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Andrew J. Seltzer Globalisation, migration, trade and growth: Honouring the contribution of Jeff Williamson to Australian and Asia‐Pacific economic history—Guest Editor's introduction, Australian Economic History Review 61, no.22 (Jul 2021): 128–135.https://doi.org/10.1111/aehr.12216N. Abhishek, Mamata Jenamani, Biswajit Mahanty Urban growth in Indian cities: Are the driving forces really changing?, Habitat International 69 (Nov 2017): 48–57.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2017.08.002Zhang Yuan, Wan Guanghua International Trade and the Urbanization of Developing Countries: Evidence from Asia, Social Sciences in China 36, no.22 (May 2015): 186–204.https://doi.org/10.1080/02529203.2015.1029679Stephen Malpezzi The Contributions of Stephen K. Mayo to Housing and Urban Economics, Journal of Housing Economics 10, no.22 (Jun 2001): 72–108.https://doi.org/10.1006/jhec.2001.0282Andrew R. Morrison, Xin Guo Measuring the Macroeconomic Impact of Internal Migration: A Production Function Approach with Evidence from Peru, (Jan 1998): 221–246.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4852-8_7Robert E.B. Lucas Chapter 13 Internal migration in developing countries, (Jan 1997): 721–798.https://doi.org/10.1016/S1574-003X(97)80005-0Brian J. L. Berry TECHNOLOGY-SENSITIVE URBAN TYPOLOGY, Urban Geography 17, no.88 (May 2013): 674–689.https://doi.org/10.2747/0272-3638.17.8.674J Shen, N A Spence Modelling Urban—Rural Population Growth in China, Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space 28, no.88 (Dec 2016): 1417–1444.https://doi.org/10.1068/a281417Vibhooti Shukla, Brian J. L. Berry The Pace of Indian Urbanization, Geographical Analysis 23, no.33 (Sep 2010): 185–209.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.1991.tb00234.xBarbara J. Kilbourne, Brian J. L. Berry WEST AFRICAN URBANIZATION: WHERE TOLLEY'S MODEL FAILS, Urban Geography 10, no.11 (May 2013): 1–18.https://doi.org/10.2747/0272-3638.10.1.1 Mark R. Montgomery How Large Is Too Large? Implications of the City Size Literature for Population Policy and Research, Economic Development and Cultural Change 36, no.44 (Oct 2015): 691–720.https://doi.org/10.1086/451693Jeffrey G. Williamson Chapter 11 Migration and urbanization, (Jan 1988): 425–465.https://doi.org/10.1016/S1573-4471(88)01014-9Charles M. Becker Economic Sanctions against South Africa, World Politics 39, no.22 (Jun 2011): 147–173.https://doi.org/10.2307/2010438

The General Concept of Productive Labor

[Author's note]: For the basic viewpoint of this article, see Guanyu Ma-ke-si de shengchan laodong lilun de ji ge wenti [Some Questions Concerning Marx's Theory of Productive Labor] in Zhongguo shehui kexue [Social Sciences in China] 1 (1982). For the present volume, the author rewrote the original essay according to the requirements of this book.

Social Science in China: Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China . Report of a Delegation Visit, February-March 1984. Alice S. Rossi, Ed. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1985. x, 161 pp. Paper, $3.

Social Science in China: <i>Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China</i> . Report of a Delegation Visit, February-March 1984. Alice S. Rossi, Ed. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1985. x, 161 pp. Paper, $3.

Social Science in China: Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China . Report of a Delegation Visit, February-March 1984. Alice S. Rossi, Ed. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1985. x, 161 pp. Paper, $3.

Social Science in China: <i>Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China</i> . Report of a Delegation Visit, February-March 1984. Alice S. Rossi, Ed. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1985. x, 161 pp. Paper, $3.

Social Science in China: Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China.

Social Science in China: Sociology and Anthropology in the People's Republic of China.

On the Economics of Compliance with the Minimum Wage Law

This paper reexamines the issues of compliance with and enforcement of the minimum wage law recently addressed in this Journal by Ashenfelter and Smith and by Grenier. Pursuing a more rigorous methodology we are able to add new general conclusions, and correct and reconcile some previous conflicting conclusions concerning the role of the disparity between the minimum and free market wages, the level and elasticity of labor demand, and the magnitude of deterring monetary sanctions on the noncompliance decision. Our formulation also addresses the law evasion (reduced wages) as well as the law avoidance (modified employment) aspects of the noncompliance decision, which previous formulations have ignored.

Continuities and Discontinuities in the Social Sciences in China

The career of the social sciences China has been a tempestuous one. For those familiar only with their almost total eclipse during the period of the cultural revolution, and the struggling attempts (still uncertain of success) at reestablishment recent years, it may come as a surprise that an earlier period things were quite different. In the words of Maurice Freedman, for example, It could be argued that before the Second World War, outside North America and Western Europe, China was the seat of the most flourishing sociology the world, at least respect of its intellectual quality (1962:106-116). In this paper I am interested exploring the strain between theory and practice and its role the introduction and growth of social science China. My suggestion is that the tendency Western social science for social theories to be divorced from practice was reproduced and intensified when these theories were initially transplanted to China, and that much of the intellectually stimulating work done social science there represented attempts to adapt Euro-American theories to realities, and attempts to unify theory and practice solving China's problems. I will broadly outline two major, if overlapping, stages the development of social science China, with the major emphasis on academic sociology and anthropology (the two are not distinctly separate China): a period of introduction, covering the late 19th century and the first two decades or so of the 20th century, which the first became acquainted with Western social thought and first attempted conscious programs of social change inspired by Western models of social work; and a period of sinicization, beginning the 1920s, which there was a good deal of conscious theoretical work t o adapt imported theories to realities. Throughout this development the importance of practice and application remained high, though towards mid-century an increasing split had developed between socialists and Marxists interested rapid and revolutionary change on the one hand, and on the other hand academic (and largely functionalist) social scientists interested more gradual and reformist change. China had no indigenous social science the usual sense of the term. The imperial state was a centralized bureaucracy based on very labor-intensive agriculture. This bureaucracy accumulated an enormous amount of social and economic information. The interests guiding such accumulation were administrative, however, and not sociological; the goals were control and order, not criticism and theoretical understanding (Wang 1938:345). Control of a large number of agricultural producers by a small number of bureaucratic elite was achieved through promoting a Confucian doctrine of the naturalness of social hierarchy and a structured pattern of social duties within that hierarchy. The social thought of this doctrine concerned itself with normative statements of what social relations ought to be, and not with what they fact were (Fei 1979:20). The Confucian tradition was too humanistic to develop its own social science, in that the value of knowledge was judged by whether it could benefit people and bring quick improvements to their livelihood. Thus the practical efficacy of social techniques was extolled while the value of developing a scientific logic was dismissed and the importance of theoretical investigation denied (Wong 1979:2). The Qing dynasty (1644-1911) version of the Confucian bureaucratic state came under increasing pressure the 19th century. Internal social, economic, and political strains led to numerous and often very serious uprisings. After the Opium Wars of mid-century there were rapidly escalating encroachments by the various foreign powers, culminating the humiliating defeat of China by Japan 1894-95. The first response to this evidence of weakness was to try to reinvigorate the Confucian tradition and arm it with Western technology and science to help deal with the crisis; Chinese learning as substance, Western learning as instrument was the slogan.

Toward a People's Anthropology

H AVING TRAVELED THOUSANDS O F MILES over the Pacific and across the Rockies to Denver to receive this year's Malinowski Memorial Award, my sentiments go beyond delight and gratitude. Preparing my remarks for this occasion stirred up memories of a scene that took place 42 years ago when I bade farewell to my mentor, a man who left a deep imprint on my lifelong academic pursuits. I still remember his advice to me: By all means go on with your study of Chinese society and its culture. He was a great admirer of Chinese culture and had deep sympathy for the Chinese people. I knew very well his solicitude for Chinese students because I was one of them. He was untiring in his efforts to help and enlighten us. He had the high hope that his creative method of research into social anthropology would also be of use to social sciences in China.

Tariffs and the Distribution of Income: The Importance of Factor Specificity, Substitutability, and Intensity in the Short and Long Run

This paper analyzes the effects of changes in relative commodity prices on the distribution of income among factors of production in the context of two models of a simple, two-good economy. In the first model capital is treated as a specific factor in each industry, with labor mobile between industries. The assumption of specificity determines the direction of factor income changes, with magnitudes depending on substitutability between factors and on intensities of factor use within the two industries. In the second model, capital is viewed as a quasi-fixed factor. For the short run, this model is identical to the model first considered. For the long run, this model is identical to the Stolper-Samuelson model in which the direction and magnitude of factor income changes depend solely on relative factor intensities. The difference between the short-run and long-run determinants of changes in factor incomes gives rise to a conflict between factor owners' short-run and long-run interests.

A Theory of Price Control

PRICE or rent control is but one of many forms of legislative action which interfere with private contracting in the market place. To delimit the scope of my analysis, I shall use the term "price control" to refer only to any set of regulations which satisfies the following three conditions. First, the control must fix the price (or income)' terms of private contracts; this categorically excludes any laws which regulate the distribution of income among the contracting parties on a share or percentage basis.2 Second, the control must involve no appropriation of proceeds to or from the government; taxation and subsidization are thus excluded. Finally, the fixing of price must not be associated with direct government sales, purchases, or manipulation of resources so as to maintain the regulated price;3 by this stipulation, price "support" is also excluded. Even on such terms, legal regulations to control price are still many and varied. To evaluate our understanding of the class of phenomena which we seek to explain it is essential that we discover implications refutable by facts. By this criterion the available body of economic theory pertaining to price control is deficient indeed: the massive literature on the subject offers few such implications.4 An alternative approach to analyzing the observable effects of price control is presented here.