TY - JOUR
T1 - Hukou stratification, class structure, and earnings in transitional China
AU - Wu, Qiong
AU - Wallace, Michael
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - The massive economic transformation in China has triggered a vigorous scholarly debate on whether the persistent power of the state or the increasing market liberalization is the main driving force of inequality. In this article, we attempt to understand this debate through the lens of two coexisting stratification systems––the longstanding hukou (household registration) system and an emerging class structure. Using data from the Chinese General Social Survey from 2008 to 2015, we develop new typologies for hukou stratification and class structure and examine their relative contributions in determining workers’ earnings. We further investigate differences in their effects between the Inland and Coastal regions. We find that class ranks ahead of education and hukou as the strongest determinant of earnings in China as a whole. Regionally, hukou and class are strong determinants of earnings, but hukou has a relatively stronger effect in Inland China. The findings shed light on the changing stratification dynamics in transitional China and contribute to the literature on the market transition debate.
AB - The massive economic transformation in China has triggered a vigorous scholarly debate on whether the persistent power of the state or the increasing market liberalization is the main driving force of inequality. In this article, we attempt to understand this debate through the lens of two coexisting stratification systems––the longstanding hukou (household registration) system and an emerging class structure. Using data from the Chinese General Social Survey from 2008 to 2015, we develop new typologies for hukou stratification and class structure and examine their relative contributions in determining workers’ earnings. We further investigate differences in their effects between the Inland and Coastal regions. We find that class ranks ahead of education and hukou as the strongest determinant of earnings in China as a whole. Regionally, hukou and class are strong determinants of earnings, but hukou has a relatively stronger effect in Inland China. The findings shed light on the changing stratification dynamics in transitional China and contribute to the literature on the market transition debate.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85102311712&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/21620555.2021.1878019
DO - 10.1080/21620555.2021.1878019
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85102311712
SN - 2162-0555
VL - 53
SP - 223
EP - 253
JO - Chinese Sociological Review
JF - Chinese Sociological Review
IS - 3
ER -