From workers to capitalists in less than two generations

A study of Chinese urban top group transformation between 1988 and 2013

Datos Bibliográficos

ID5609744
AutoresLi Yang (0000-0003-3852-3651, Paris School of Economics and INSEAD Paris France, autor de correspondencia), Filip Novokmet (0000-0001-9352-0344, Institute for Macroeconomics and Econometrics University of Bonn Bonn Germany), Branko Milanovic (0000-0002-7906-5696, Graduate Center City University of New York New York NY USA, autor de correspondencia)
Año2021
Volumen72
Número3
Páginas478-513
Fecha de publicación2021-06-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaBritish Journal of Sociology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0007-1315 • E-ISSN: 1468-4446
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1468-4446.12850
PMID33969881
OpenAlexW3161716022
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas10
Referencias citadas52

Economic and social transformation of China during the past 40 years is without precedent in human history. While the economic transformation was extensively studied, social transformation was not. In this paper, we use for the first time harmonized household surveys covering the period 1988-2013 to study the changes in the characteristics of the richest 5 percent of China's urban population. We find that it changed from being composed of high government officials, clerical staff, and workers in 1988 to professionals and small and large business owners in 2013. The educational level of the top group increased substantially. Membership in CCP has a positive (albeit small) effect on one's income but is particularly valuable to large business owners

Business · China · Demographic economics · Economic growth · Economics · Government (linguistics · Political science · Population · Social change · Social transformation · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Transformation (genetics · China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance · Demography · Law · Political Influence and Corporate Strategies · Social Capital and Networks