New Trends of Social Stratification in Rural China

本文采用CSS2008-2015数据以及相关田野调查资料对当代中国农民的社会分层进行研究。研究发现：第一，农民分层呈金字塔型，从高到低分别是农村干部、农村企业主、农村个体户、打工者、兼业务农者、纯务农者和无业者。第二，纯务农者比例逐年减少，兼业务农群体扩大。第三，代内流动有向上的路径，但农村干部存在一定的阶层固化。第四，农村个体户和打工者向下流动相当普遍。第五，阶层的代际传递主要通过教育产生间接影响。这些特点显示，过去十多年农民的社会分层并没有完全定型，还存在从纯务农向非农的向上流动的机会和空间，农民兼业成为明显的社会阶层现象，但这个机会和空间又显得比以前局促。整体来看，对作为社会身份的农民而言，其内部的分层并不能有效地改变其整体的社会经济地位。

This study uses data from the Chinese Social Survey (CSS 2008-2015) and ethnographic data to explore the new trends of social stratification in rural China. The results identify five trends. Firstly, the social stratification in rural China has a pyramid-shaped hierarchical structure. From the top stratum to the bottom one are cadres, entrepreneurs, self-employed business owners, full-time workers, part-time peasants/workers, full-time peasants, and the unemployed. Secondly, the proportion of full-time peasants decreases and the proportion of part-time peasants increases every year. Thirdly, there is an upward trend for intragenerational mobility. However, little mobility is observed for cadres. Fourthly, downward mobility is widely observed for self-employed business owners and full-time workers. Fifthly, the intergenerational transmission of social status is mainly achieved indirectly through education attainment. These new trends suggest that there have been opportunities and spaces for full-time peasants to attain higher social status over the past decades. The upward mobility from full-time peasants to part-time peasants/workers is a typical pattern. However, the scope of this mobility is very limited and insufficient to change the overall pyramid-shaped hierarchical structure. Self-employed business owners and full-time workers, although having medium social status in rural China, are not more satisfied with their situation than before. In general, the rural population is still restricted by their hukou identity. Therefore social mobility within the rural society cannot effectively change the socioeconomic status of the rural population as a whole.

王春光、赵玉峰、王玉琪

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