Suburban China Research Articles

Leadership and education of women entrepreneurs: A Qualitative Research in Chinese Agricultural service industry

With the development of globalization, more and more women entrepreneurs are standing out in the Chinese agricultural service industry. Their leadership is related firmly to their leadership. This paper provides the evaluation of influence of gender inequalities in education on women entrepreneurship leadership in selected Chinese women entrepreneurs in agriculture empirically. Six women entrepreneurs with different educational backgrounds from the Chinese agricultural service industry were investigated separately. The findings of this study show three main important facts. First, six women entrepreneurs have attended advanced education after working. These advanced courses have provided great help to their entrepreneurship. Second, six women entrepreneurs practice unique female leadership when they manage the company. Third, three of them had difficulties in early education at an early age because of family factors. Two of them feel that when they make a choice, their individual choice and needs must be in the second place to their family duties. One of them dropped out of primary school because her family is poor, and the chance of study was provided to her brothers. From a very young age, girls are treated with an unequal share of study opportunities between boys and girls, they are being reported to keep their balance between education and family domestic work within suburban China. Overall, the findings suggest that the higher education women entrepreneurs get, the stronger leadership they have.

The moderating effect of marital conflict on the relationship between social avoidance and socio-emotional functioning among young children in suburban China.

Social avoidance has been found to be related to negative social adjustment, yet evidence of the relationship between social avoidance and social adjustment is very limited in suburban preschoolers in China. Moreover, the underlying mechanisms that help to explain the associations between social avoidance and socio-emotional adjustment remain poorly considered. The goal of the present study was to examine the moderating effect of marital conflict in the link between social avoidance and indices of socio-emotional functioning among young children in mainland China. Participants were N = 256 children aged from 49 to 72 months (125 boys, 131 girls, Mage = 59.06 months, SD = 6.58) attending preschools/kindergartens in suburban areas of Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Multi-source assessments were employed, with mothers reporting marital conflict as well as rating their children's social withdrawal (i.e., social avoidance, shyness, unsociability), and teachers assessing indices of children's socio-emotional functioning at school (i.e., anxious-fearful behavior, peer exclusion, and loneliness). Children were asked about their loneliness. Among the results, social avoidance was positively associated with anxious-fearful behavior, peer exclusion, and loneliness (marginal significance). Moreover, as hypothesized, marital conflict was found to exacerbate the relations between social avoidance and peer exclusion, and loneliness. Results are discussed in terms of the etiology and implications of social avoidance among young children in mainland China.

Impact of Air Pollution on Cognitive Impairment in Older People: A Cohort Study in Rural and Suburban China.

The impact of air pollution on cognitive impairment in older people has not been fully understood. It is unclear which air pollutants are the culprit. We assessed the associations of six air pollutants and air quality index (AQI) with cognitive impairment. We examined 7,311 participants aged ≥60 years from the ZJMPHS cohort in China. They were interviewed for baseline socio-demographic and disease risk factors in 2014, and re-interviewed in 2015 and 2016, respectively. The presence of cognitive impairment was determined by the Chinese version of the Mini-Mental State Examination. Daily area-level data monitored for air pollution during 2013-2015 was then examined for associations with cognitive impairment in logistic regression models. Over the two years follow-up, 1,652 participants developed cognitive impairment, of which 917 were severe cases. Continuous air pollution data showed the risk of cognitive impairment increased with exposure to PM2.5 (fully adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.08), PM10 (1.03, 1.001-1.06), and SO2 (1.04, 1.01-1.08), but not with NO2, CO, O3, and AQI. Categorized data analysis for low, middle, and high level exposure demonstrated that the aOR increased with PM2.5 and AQI, somehow with PM10 and CO, but not significantly with SO2 and NO2, and decreased with O3. The patterns for these associations with severe cognitive impairment were stronger. Lowering PM2.5, PM10, SO2, and CO level could reduce the risk of cognitive impairment in older Chinese. Strategies to target most important air pollutants should be an integral component of cognitive interventions.

Exploring the Links between Unsociability, Parenting Behaviors, and Socio-Emotional Functioning in Young Children in Suburban China

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to explore the moderating role of parenting behaviors (i.e., authoritative, authoritarian, protective, and maternal involvement) in the relations between unsociability and socio-emotional adjustment in a sample of young Chinese children. Participants were N = 487 children (283 boys, M age = 58.88 months, SD = 10.23) attending preschool/kindergartens from suburban areas in Shanghai, People’s Republic of China. Mothers rated children’s unsociability and parenting behaviors, whereas teachers provided ratings of children’s socio-emotional functioning at school. Among the results, unsociability was positively associated with peer exclusion, asocial behavior, and anxious-fearful behavior. However, parenting behaviors significantly moderated these associations. Whereas authoritative parenting attenuated the relation between unsociability and peer exclusion (buffering effect), authoritarian parenting and protection each exacerbated the relations between unsociability and indices of socio-emotional difficulties. The current findings suggest that parenting behaviors may be instrumental in shaping young unsociable children’s socio-emotional adjustment. Our results also inform best practices for parenting strategies in response to unsociability in young Chinese children.

Socioeconomic variations and disparity in space–time accessibility in suburban China: A case study of Guangzhou

The concept of conventional place-based accessibility, despite being well researched, tends to ignore people’s space–time constraints arising from mandatory activities (e.g. work and household duties), which confine people’s potential movement and delimit the accessible opportunities. As people with different socioeconomic statuses may have different space–time constraints even while living in similar locations, using the place-based measures could lead to an underestimation of accessibility inequality. This study applies a space–time measure to unravel the disparities in service accessibility in suburban China. Since the late 1970s, suburbanisation in Chinese cities has fostered income inequality and has elevated other dimensions (e.g. institutional status and gender) of disparity within each income class. Within this context, we conduct a case study of suburban neighbourhoods in Guangzhou, based on the activity diary data derived from a home-based questionnaire survey. Findings indicate that the use of a space–time measure effectively captures the disparities in service accessibility among residents in suburban Guangzhou. On the basis of structural equation modelling, we further identify that certain socioeconomic groups (e.g. high-income residents, public sector workers, local hukou holders, male household heads and welfare housing residents) tend to experience fewer space–time constraints from rigid activities, such as work, commuting and household duties, and are thus more advantaged in accessing service facilities. These findings imply that urban planning should address the space–time perspective to promote equal service access for the highly heterogeneous social groups in suburban China and to incorporate time-sensitive policies (e.g. flexitime policies).

Suburban neighborhood environments and depression: A case study of Guangzhou, China

BackgroundResearch on neighbourhood environments and depression has concentrated on public health in developed countries. This study aims to enrich the discourse on geographic characteristics and depression by providing new evidence of direct and indirect associations between suburban neighbourhood environments and depression in urban China. MethodsPanyu in Guangzhou, a suburban district restructured by the speedy expansion of private housing, was selected as the case study area. Given the wide variety of influential factors of neighbourhood environments on depression, multivariate statistical analysis was performed using a two-stage model: 1) Binary Logistic Regression to evaluate the direct associations between neighbourhood environmental factors and depression; 2) Path Analysis to assess the indirect relationships between neighbourhood environmental attributes, physical activity and depression. ResultsWe found that population density, sufficiency of public space, land use mix level and street connectivity had direct impacts on depressive symptoms. Land use mix, street connectivity and destination accessibility had indirect effects on depressive symptoms through influencing time spent on public transport and driving time. However, no significant effect of social capital on depression was found. ConclusionEnvironmental factors and mechanisms negatively affecting depressive symptoms in the specific suburban context of Guangzhou, China, are found to be the unsatisfactory public space and community facility provision, and land use mix. This study particularly identifies the mediation effect of time spent on public transit and driving time on depressive symptoms, enriching the debates in the extant literature on mediating effects of utilitarian physical activity in suburban China. It was also ascertained that interventions that create comfortable, convenient, appropriate, and active built environment can reduce depression symptoms.

The place of courage

I have been rereading my editorial for 57(2) and cannot quite comprehend how quickly the quarter has flown by. Electing to leave off writing this present editorial until the end of the Institute of Australian Geographers 49th annual conference, held last week in Hobart, I recall sitting in Washington DC in April, thinking about the Hobart meeting and about conference culture more generally. Now, suddenly, the Hobart meeting is over and, as I write, people have wound or are winding their ways home. For those of us who reside here, of course, that journey is blissfully short—a rare event for us, and, I confess, welcome. So today, as I gaze at Kunanyi’s snow-covered peaks and valleys, I have time to reflect on the conference in a way more leisurely than might be the case had I been travelling. Scanning the contents for this issue, readers will see we have been fortunate to reproduce a speech given at the conference opening by University of Tasmania’s Vice Chancellor and President, Professor Rufus Black. I will not pre-empt what he writes except to note that he was gracious and authentic in his engagement with us and encouraged us to continue to be courageous in our scholarly considerations of place, in our defence of place, and in the example we set for others in relation to place. Readers will also see that we have included a few reflections on the conference from the lead organisers, Jason Byrne and Aidan Davison. In addition, Carolyn Finney has graciously given her permission to reproduce the moving poem she read during her keynote address at the conference.

Land acquisition induced conflicts in suburban China: a procedural perspective

AbstractProtests and opposition to land acquisition from displaced peasants for fair compensation occur on a daily basis in China and have become the most prominent social problem in rural parts of the country. Employing a procedural perspective on conflict, this paper aims to uncover the complexities and tensions that are triggered in the process by drawing on a case of a land confiscation in Jining City, a medium‐size city in Shandong Province, China. Our research shows that conflicts exist at various scales: both between the local governments and rural households and between the village officials and villagers. The paper argues that ambiguity in de jure and de facto land acquisition procedures has resulted in both an escalation of conflict and increasing inequality in the outcomes and benefits of the process. We discuss and conclude that the differences between de jure and de facto procedures in the process of land acquisition are a significant institutional barrier in the resolution of conflict in this important issue for rural China.

Sources of volatile organic compounds in suburban homes in Shanghai, China, and the impact of air filtration on compound concentrations

Air pollution in China is an ongoing concern, with subsets of the population (e.g., asthmatic children) especially susceptible to the associated health effects. In addition, people spend the majority of their time indoors, where pollutant composition may differ from the better characterized ambient environment. Although volatile organic compounds (VOCs) present health risks and have high concentrations indoors, their sources have not been thoroughly quantified in typical homes in suburban China. Similarly lacking is an understanding of how well a purifier with high efficiency particulate air and activated carbon filters can remove VOCs in a real-world setting in China. In this study, we a) quantified total VOCs (TVOC) and 900 + individual VOCs in 20 homes in China, b) identified potential sources of VOCs, and c) evaluated impacts of filtration. We used non-negative matrix factorization, a variable reduction technique, to identify sources. TVOC and individual compounds had higher concentrations indoors than outdoors (mean [range] indoors, filtration with pre-filter only: 302 [56–793] μg m−3; outdoors, entire study: 92 [26–629] μg m−3), indicating prevalent sources indoors. Many compounds detected have not, to our knowledge, been measured in homes in China. Some compounds (e.g., octanal, heptanal, ⍺-cedrene) were specific to the indoor environment, a few were ubiquitous (e.g., acetaldehyde, formaldehyde), and others were detected infrequently. These compounds may originate from consumer products, solvents, vehicle emissions, a hexane source, wooden products, and cooking. Filtration may improve air quality indoors by lowering concentrations of some VOCs, and, specifically, contributions related to solvents and consumer products.

Residential landscapes in suburban China from the perspective of growth coalitions: Evidence from Beijing

Residential landscapes in China manifest characteristics different from those seen in Western countries: high density, facilities improvement, and good quality. This study investigates residential landscape by developing a novel framework to capture a growth coalition that is composed of local government and real estate enterprises. Stemming from institutional insights, this study assumes that the growth coalition in China attempts to acquire residential land far from built-up areas to reduce costs, increase the floor area ratio and the green rate, and promote accessibility and walkability to improve housing prices. Taking Beijing as a case, we first identify the residential expansion type (renewal, infill, edge, outlying). Then, two models are created: the land acquisition cost model and the housing price model. The results provide a good argument in support of our hypothesis. This study contributes institutional knowledge to support an understanding of residential landscapes and urban sustainability in China.

Measuring the effect of agricultural cooperatives on household income: Case study of a rice‐producing cooperative in China

AbstractAgricultural cooperatives in China, known as “Farmers’ Professional Cooperatives” (FPCs), are becoming popular and have been intensely promoted by the Chinese government to improve the economic welfare of small farmers. However, few studies on FPCs have measured the benefits to gain farmers who participate in FPCs after controlling for observable attributes of farmers. This paper investigates the treatment effect of participation in a rice‐producing cooperative in suburban China using the propensity score matching (PSM) method. Estimated results show that a significant difference is observed between participants and nonparticipants of the cooperative in terms of net income from rice production. In addition, there is significant heterogeneity of the treatment effects between large and small farmers. Therefore, we can conclude that the participation in agricultural cooperatives is more beneficial to relatively small farmers who are subject to suffer from higher transaction costs. [EconLit citations: Q12, Q13, O13]

Institutional changes, land use dynamics, and the transition of rural settlements in suburban China: A case study of Huishan District in Wuxi city

The significant impacts of restructuring on the transition and land use dynamics of rural settlements in China has long been a subject of academic inquiry. We applied a conceptual framework encompassing relations between institutional changes, actors' behaviors, and land use changes to investigate the dynamic trajectories and institutional mechanisms of rural land use in Huishan, a suburban district located in eastern China. We argue that by reshaping local actors' behaviors, institutional changes and national strategies have significantly influenced the transition of China's rural settlements. Over a period of about two decades, rural settlements in Huishan underwent expansion followed by shrinkage in recent years, which has resulted in a gradual decrease in the total scale of land use. A parallel trend of rural economic diversification has prompted a shift in the previously residential land-based structure of land use toward a more diversified structure mainly entailing residential and industrial land. However, with the macroeconomic downturn and the return of migrant laborers to their home regions, rural hollowing and the reluctance of local actors to consolidate residential land may pose severe future challenges for these settlements. In conclusion, we suggest that appropriate regulatory policies for rural settlements in transition that incorporate key requirements such as increasing employment and rehabilitating derelict rural construction land are required.

Variation in characteristics of air concentrations of NH3, NO2 and O3 induced by applications of urea in soils of plastic greenhouses in suburban China

Few studies have been carried out so far for measuring concentrations of NH3, NO2 and O3 in plastic greenhouses. In this study, NH3, NO2 and O3 concentrations were measured with passive sampler technology in a plastic greenhouse located in the Changsha suburb in southern China over a one and a half month period (November 30, 2008 to January 11, 2009). Soil in the greenhouse was subjected to four treatment (T) types (no N fertilizer T1, common urea T2, coated urea T3 and common urea with nitrification inhibitor dicyandiamide (DCD) T4. The average concentrations (μg/m3) of NH3, NO2 and O3 in descending order was: T4 (31.66) > T2 (25.93) > T3 (23.52) > T1 (7.96), T2 (10.99) > T3 (8.16) > T4 (7.48) > T1 (5.20), T2 (75.05) > T3 (64.20) > T4 (63.85) > T1 (49.02), respectively. This implied that photochemical reactions took place and that harmful gases accumulated after application of N fertilizer in the plastic greenhouse. DCD inhibited the conversion of ammonium to nitrate, increased NH3 volatilization and decreased NO2 level. The coated urea decreased the emissions of NH3 and increased nitrogen use efficiency. We found significant positive correlations (p < 0.01) between temperature and both NH3 and NO2 levels. Correlations between soil pH and both NH3 and NO2 concentrations were also significant (p < 0.01). The O3 average concentration from March 31, 2009 to April 10, 2009 in the higher latitude of the Yinchuan suburb in northern China was two times greater than that in the Changsha suburb in southern China. The O3 daily concentrations in the Yinchuan suburb exceeded 160 μg/m3 (i.e., China's Grade I standard), and the maximal value 214.83 μg/m3 exceeded 200 μg/m3 (i.e., China's Grade III standard).

Following the Money: Corruption, Conflict, and the Winners and Losers of Suburban Land Acquisition in China

AbstractLand acquisition in suburban China is not merely the administrative means through which land is transferred from collectively owned rural land to state‐owned urban land; it is also a process of unlawful profit grabbing by rent‐seeking stakeholders. This licentiousness has been the source of intense controversy in recent years, becoming a major source of social unrest in contemporary China. Although standards of compensation are legally governed by strict policies, these standards are rarely followed as prescribed. As a result, we know very little about how revenue from land acquisition is shared in practice. This is because, as a contentious political issue rife with corrupt practices, accurate data are extremely difficult to obtain. This paper aims to address this vast empirical gap by tracing the flow of profit proliferation and distribution in a land acquisition case, using a suburban village in Shandong province, China, as an example. To expedite the drawn‐out acquisition process, the local government permits the corrupt behaviour of the village party secretary, who exploits his position to amass a great personal fortune. In contrast to previous research, which emphasises low compensation standards or excessive profit grabbing by local government, we find that villagers' protests are triggered by the corrupt practices of the village party secretary.

Community-Based Mobility Services as Part of a Sustainable Transport System for Suburban China: The Example of Shared Shuttles (banche) in Shanghai

Community-Based Mobility Services as Part of a Sustainable Transport System for Suburban China: The Example of Shared Shuttles (<i>banche</i>) in Shanghai

What is absent from the current monitoring: Idleness of rural industrial land in suburban Shanghai

Rapid urbanization has generated an excessive demand for land in suburban China, while the supply is limited. Concurrently, prevalent land idleness in rural areas has received little political and academic attention. Drawing on evidence from suburbs of Shanghai, this paper examines the monitoring of idle rural industrial land. We argue that idle rural industrial land is absent from the current monitoring, and that the ambiguous collective ownership in rural China has not only prevented effective management of idle land, but also imposed the greatest obstacle to the redevelopment of these idle sites. Hence, the clarification of collective ownership will help to achieve more efficient use of rural land in suburban China.

Creating and defending concepts of home in suburban Guangzhou

This paper uses the concept of “home” to analyze recent urbanization processes in suburban China from a cultural geography perspective. Urban growth, land development, and human mobility have had great impacts not only on land use and the built environment, but also on people’s concepts of identity and belonging. As the current Chinese leaders have turned to explicitly viewing urbanization also as a social project, we need to understand better how it works as a social and cultural process. While Chinese societies have always conceived of “home” as something very stable, we now see this concept challenged in two ways: by human mobility and by the transformation of the places themselves. Suburban Guangzhou is a case in point. There are three population groups – the residents of gated communities, villagers, and rural migrants – that are all displaced in different ways. They settle side by side at the fringes of a city which most of them do not fully consider as their home yet. Interesting in this situation are their competing and interrelated claims of home. Being local or migrant, rich or poor, and urban or rural people, each of these groups has different resources and different strategies to construct, reconstruct, and defend their sense of home in this transient and contested space. Based on many years of research in Guangzhou, the authors try to disentangle these strategies and resource configurations. One aspect receiving particular attention is the role of spatial boundaries and of processes of exclusion and inclusion in this context.

I Want To Be Expropriated!: the politics of xiaochanquanfang land development in suburban China

This paper analyzes the ‘Minor Property Housing’ (XCQF) phenomenon. XCQF is an illegal residential building, constructed on rural collective land in suburban areas by a joint land development of township and village governments, land developers, and peasants for selling and renting to non-local urbanites. We argue that XCQF became a fait accompli not to be demolished nor legalized by higher authorities because the interests of lower-level governments and those non-elites converge. As a result, they jointly defy the central government and higher-level governments' land policies. It brings a rare opportunity for grassroots officials, entrepreneurs, and ordinary citizens to find a manner of co-existence, shaping this positive-sum coalition game unlike the near zero-sum game of other exploitative land developments. The XCQF phenomenon suggests that other patterns of coalition building, beyond what is in the current literature of ‘rightful resistance’, exist.

Political Machinations in a Rural County

The article discusses corruption and selective policy implementation as general phenomena, related to the configurations of political power and the behavior of key actors in a specific rural county, Benghai County of Anhui Province. The County government only takes up initiatives in which three conditions are met, which are highlighted.

Study of arsenic removal by nanofiltration and its application in China

Arsenic contamination of groundwater and associated health risks have been reported in many parts of China. Nanofiltration (NF) is a promising technology for arsenic removal since it requires less energy than traditional reverse osmosis membranes. In this study, the removal of arsenic from synthetic waters by nanofiltration (NF) membranes was investigated. Arsenic rejection experiments included variation of arsenic feed concentration, pH, and existence of other ionic compounds. The possible influence of natural organic matter on As (V) rejection by nanofiltration membranes was also explored. The study shows the nanofiltration point-of-use (POU) systems were particularly suitable to treat arsenic-rich groundwater in suburban China.