The Role of Consultative Democracy under the Constitutional Framework and the Associated Rule of Law*

The logical sequence of China’s state governance is “governing party—consultative conferences—people’s congresses—the people.” The “governing party—consultative conferences” link in the chain involves political consultation through people’s consultative conferences. The “governing party—consultative conferences—people’s congresses” link involves a process of obtaining legitimacy for the Party’s views based on political consultations which are then translated into the national will by the system of people’s congresses. The “people’s congresses—the people” link involves the two-pronged logic of elections and governing the country according to law. The “governing party—the people” link is an illustration of the party’s mass line, which essentially involves social consultation. Consultative democracy usually includes the political consultation in the “governing party—consultative conferences” link and the social consultation in the “governing party—the people” link in the chain, both of which are connected through the system of people’s congresses. This logically determines the inner relations between the Party’s leadership, consultative democracy and the people’s congress form of representative democracy and shapes the institutionalization of consultative democracy. That is, in the process of democratic decision-making, a circular system consisting of “political consultation—legislative consultation—social consultation” is created to guide development of the actual system.     

修身、成圣与革命：五四时期道德主义者的激进化

五四运动后“救亡”与“启蒙”、“政治”与“文化”的交织与竞逐是我们理解中国近代史的一条线索。既有研究多将恽代英呈现为一个具有道德主义色彩和儒家伦理底蕴的五四知识分子，然而顺着这一思路，我们却难以理解他为何从温和的道德结社转向革命。本文认为，恽代英精神世界中的心学底色，以及他对青年会社会服务经验的借鉴，使他形成了与共产主义者相通的道德认知；道德结社的困境则促使他走向政党运动，以群众运动实践自己的道德理想。恽代英的早期经历为我们呈现了过渡时代具有儒学底蕴的知识分子面对现代政治秩序时的道德困惑，这有助于我们理解中国共产主义革命对德性的强调以及儒家中国的现代转化。     

The Communist Activities of the First International and the Logic of Socialist Party Politics

Against the backdrop of the 19^th century, the First International, guided by Marxism, emerged in the form of the early “International Socialist Federation.” It viewed the seizure of power as the great mission of the proletariat, actively struggled against bourgeois regimes, strongly responded to the call of times for the theoretical self-consciousness and organized struggle of the proletariat, and exerted a profound historical influence on the stirring inauguration and nationally oriented development of the international Communist movement of the 20^th century. From the socialist party political perspective, the First International, once the Communist League, had raised the curtain on socialist party politics, changed the political mode of capitalist party politics’ exclusive world domination through the interactive development of new organizational forms, theoretical viewpoints and political practice. It thus left an abundant historical legacy in terms of ideological creation and practical innovation for the subsequent Second International, the Communist International and the emergence and development of socialist party politics within nation-states. Although its socialist party political practice had an obvious “regional,” “preliminary” and “tentative” nature, the First International had foundation-laying significance and pioneering value for the development of socialist party politics, whether in terms of organizational vehicles, value orientation and activity content, or in terms of ideological guidance, practical patterns and strategic principles.     

从臣民到市民：韦伯著作中的城市类型学、城市的动态演变与非正当性支配研究

韦伯“正当性支配”的概念可分为“权威主义命令权”与“正当性信仰”两个要素。在现代政治秩序的视域下，二者的失调威胁到秩序的稳定，造成了“正当性危机”，而应对之道就是重新整合“正当性信仰”，同时避免过度整合带来的对“日常需求”的破坏。本文从韦伯“非正当性支配”入手，通过对中世纪西方城市的类型学比较以及对城市市民的身份特征、生活—工作风格、政治诉求、参与法律过程的分析，发现“非正当性支配”提供了一条西方文明特有的自下而上能够保全“日常需求”的路径，从而给“正当性信仰”的整合以及“正当性危机”的解决提供了新的可能性。     

THE MEXICAN STATE AND THE AGRIBUSINESS MODEL OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE GLOBALIZATION ERA

This article analyzes the relationship between the State and transnational capital manifested in capitalist agribusiness schemes in Mexican agriculture. It illustrates a model that has privileged one type of development in detriment to other forms of organizing rural agricultural production and labor (Real 1997). Current agricultural development in México is linked directly to the “Green Revolution”, México being prominent as its birthplace. Ironically, the Green Revolution contributed to a massive displacement of rural population to cities as human labor was replaced by machinery (1992). Development of capitalist agriculture in México and Latin America is closely related to the effects of the transnationalization of agroindustry. The importance of agribusiness has expanded in recent decades through a series of events, including the substitution of basic crops for more profitable ones and the contribution to the “new international division of labor” (Sanderson 1990). Recent trilateral transnational political and economic changes are linked to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between México, United States and Canada (Kearney 1995). In the case of agriculture, Palerm and Urquiola (1993) believe the relationship between United States and Mexico to be bimodal. From a perspective of Social Anthropology we provide firsthand information about two areas of agroindustry: production of vegetables for export and production of poultry where participation by different social actors was observed. Agro‐industrial entrepreneurs depend upon agricultural workers who wish to conserve a peasant way of life.     

Racial Threat or Racial Contact? How Race Affected Third‐Party Presidential Voting in the Antebellum North*

Objective. In this study, the “racial threat” and “racial contact” hypotheses are evaluated in relation to voting for the Liberty and Free Soil Parties in the North during the 1840s. Methods. Regression models are used to predict the effect of county‐level black populations on Liberty and Free Soil vote percentages in relation to types of employment. Results. Racial threat occurred in high manufacturing counties, but racial contact/threat emerged in more agricultural counties. The effects vary by party and region of the North. Conclusion. The effects of racial context on political behavior during this era are mixed, much like modern political studies have uncovered.     

The electoral consequences of alienation: Nonvoting and protest voting in the 1992 presidential race

This article focuses on the context of the 1992 national elections in order to determine why certain alienated individuals chose to stay home on election day while others responded by voting for a third party Presidential candidate. Two dimensions of alienation, internal and external political inefficacy, are linked to lower levels of voting, as is consistent with previous research on voting behavior. In addition, we find that, among those who voted, those individuals who expressed political cynicism or external inefficacy were more likely to vote for Ross Perot. We conclude that, while many alienated individuals do not vote, the Perot candidacy in 1992 led certain alienated individuals to engage in “protest” voting by casting their vote for an unlikely winner in the presidential race.     

The science of republicanism: Hobbes and Publius

Sheldon S. Wolin in “Hobbes and the Culture of Despotism,” asks a most important question: “is there a political element embedded in the social representation of scientific knowledge, such that to think in certain representational terms is to re-describe certain political postures, depending on the political character of the representations?” (1961). In this paper I examine this observation and outline the sense in which the scientific enterprise influences both Hobbes and Publius and how Hobbes is a stepping stone for Publius in the construction of a commercially grounded, constitutionally based republican system.     

“开禁”还是“飨宴”？--汉唐北宋赐酺举措缘起、背景与施行动因的再探讨

汉唐北宋时代的“酒禁”政策并不能直观地理解为“禁民饮酒”。“禁群饮”之举在当时虽有发生,却始终并非一项整体与长期的国家政策,在其已然宣布的时期之内,执行与贯彻的力度也大可存疑。笼统地以“酒禁”或“禁群饮”政策的存在来解释赐酺举措发生和存续的合理性缺乏说服力。酺会在汉唐北宋的不断发生、持续流行,根本原因在于其最为核心的内容与意义是飨宴欢会。其给民众带来更热烈的欢宴体验、更加丰富的公共活动内涵以及更为广大的社交活动平台,同时为统治者提供得力的政治工具。赐酺之举的丰富功能使得其能够横历不同王朝,长期存在。     

后苏联时代初期政治改革的非道德性及其后果

后苏联时代初期的社会政治体系的形成和发展都具有明显的非道德特色,多党派发育方式的非道德化、政党行动的自我利益中心化、政治实践过程的实用主义化、种族和边疆地区政治活动的分裂化、对特殊人群和阶层安置问题上的非人道化是其集中表现。非道德的政治改革导致社会陷入全面混乱、国家政治发展失去价值指引、政权的不稳定性极度增强等后果。     

A Tale of Two Seasons: Participation and Medal Counts at the Summer and Winter Olympic Games*

Objectives. This article examines all postwar Summer and Winter Olympic Games in order to investigate the economic and political determinants of participation and medal‐winning success. Methods. Using newly compiled data, regression analysis gives intuitive results with surprisingly accurate predictions beyond the historical sample. We also estimate the rise in income per capita required to send an extra participant, and the “cost” in GDP per capita of an extra medal. Results. Compared to the Summer Games, Winter participation levels are driven more by income and less by population, have less host nation bias, and a greater effect of climate. Single‐party and communist regimes win more medals in both seasons. Conclusion. Although their effects differ with the season of the Games, socioeconomic variables explain Olympic participation and success remarkably well.     

The Changing Mode of Legal Regulation of Labor Relations in China

At present, Chinese labor relations operate under a unitary model of legal regulation in which labor law is applied to workers “as a whole, with everyone treated equally.” This causes a number of problems. In reality, due to constantly changing modes of employment and the flexibility of workers’ “affiliation,” forms of employment are highly diverse. In addition to regular employees, there are also “quasi-employees” (employee-like persons) whose affiliation is quite weak, and other special employees. This necessitates the updating of the legislative thinking behind labor laws. While holding fast to the assumption that workers are a vulnerable group, we should review the differences between different types of employee and draw up the corresponding regulations on the basis of specific situations. Where legislative technique is concerned, we should do away with the traditional one-size-fits-all legislative model in favor of a dedicated model that targets particular types of subject and particular circumstances. We should abandon the traditional old-fashioned model in which “all labor law provisions apply” or “no labor law provisions apply” and categorize employees in such a way as to provide special rules for quasi-employees, special employees and employees of special employers. The legal regulation of labor relations should be based on categorization and differential treatment.     

20世纪50年代的妇女解放和男女义务平等：中国城市夫妻的经历与感受

毛泽东时代的妇女解放和男女平等实践在中外学术界引起很大争 议。一方面人们看到共产党运用法律、行政和舆论手段以确保妇女与 男子享有平等的权利和机会,大大缩小了妇女在婚姻、就业和受教育程 度等方面与男子的差距;另一方面也指出上述方面持续存在的种种不 平等以及平等措施后面隐藏的事实上的不平等。1令学者困惑的是,20 世纪50年代,男女在婚姻、就业和受教育程度等差距最大,但是中国妇 女,尤其是城市妇女对妇女解放的认同感却最强(Croll,1995;Rofel,     

Asian‐Pacific‐American Partisanship: Dynamics of Partisan and Nonpartisan Identities*

Objectives. This article seeks to understand the development of partisanship among Asian Americans since a significant portion do not choose either major party affiliation, but select an independent or a truly nonpartisan status. With a rapidly growing Asian‐American population, examining its pattern for both partisan and nonpartisan identification has been ignored. This research took a developmental process in which acquisition of any partisan affiliation/identification is a critical juncture for Asian‐American political incorporation. Therefore, considering contributing factors that affect the acquisition of any partisan affiliation as a precursor to specific Asian‐American partisan affiliation/behaviors is our direction. Methods. Using a logistical regression model and data from the Pilot National Asian American Political Survey, a category of variables, including sociodemographic, Asian‐American subgroup status, U.S. political orientations and attitudes, and experiences with U.S. society, are used to understand a partisan and nonpartisan affiliation. Results. This study reveals that aspects of socioeconomic status, political attitudes, and immigrant experiences are important, in varying degrees (especially Asian subgroup status) to understand partisan acquisition for Asian Americans. More so, Asian‐American subgroups, persons with lower educational and income levels, and participants in the labor force are less likely to assume a partisan affiliation. Levels of interest in U.S. politics and length of time in the United States do contribute to a partisan affiliation. Conclusions. Viewing partisan affiliation as a developmental process is an important research avenue to approach the Asian‐American community. The inclusion of not only sociodemographic variables, but experiences and evaluation of the U.S. political system, as well as recognizing the political “culture” of Asian‐American subgroups, provides a more complete understanding of the partisan acquisition process.     

论政治文明的文化选择

文化即人化,它是人类所创造的精神成果和物质成果的总和;文明是文化的结晶,是文化主体对人类文化中野蛮性、愚昧性不断扬弃的结果,是人类有目的、有选择地过滤人类文化、形成合理文化内核的过程。中国当前的政治文明建设,需要走出“精华”和“糟粕”的简单二分的误区,用外来文化中国化、传统文化现代化,来开辟中国文化发展之路。弱化暴力色彩,强化仁政效应,构建中国特色的政治文明。     

Hybridization in China's elder care service provision

Although the party‐state has embarked on a mission to increase elder care services, evaluating this development according to different sectors demonstrates certain challenges. Official statistics do not include sector‐specific information, and while provider websites suggest that elder care services are largely in public hands, Chinese experts argue that they are mostly “civilian‐run.” How can we explain these discrepancies in data on Chinese elder care? Drawing on the concept of hybridization and triangulating quantitative and qualitative data, I argue that the party‐state's efforts to “socialize” elder care provision has resulted in hybridization within the industry which blurs the line between care providers and obfuscates the stark role of the state in elder care service provision. During the implementation of state‐initiated hybridization, providers misclassify their ownership type to benefit from financial incentives or circumvent political control, resulting in even greater hybridization and fragmentation on the ground.     

Social Capital and the Growth of the Nonprofit Sector*

Objectives. This article examines the extent to which nonprofit organizational foundings are determined by various forms of social capital. Our hypothesis is that, controlling for other relevant social, political, and economic factors, communities with higher levels of social capital should experience more extensive growth in their nonprofit sectors. Methods. Using data derived from the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey and the IRS “charitable organization” Business Master Files, we test our hypothesis using a negative binomial event count regression on nonprofit organization foundings in 284 U.S. counties in the year 2001. Results. We find that two core dimensions of social capital—political engagement and “bridging” social ties—have a significant impact on county‐level nonprofit foundings. Surprisingly, a key element of social capital in the literature, the level of interpersonal trust, does not lead to an increase in foundings of new not‐for‐profit organizations. Conclusions. This study provides further evidence of the strength of political engagement and bridging ties for the vitality of the community. It also shows that the different dimensions of social capital do not manifest a uniform effect on nonprofit sector growth. These results further demonstrate that the growth of a community's not‐for‐profit sector is dependent on a mix of ecological and environmental factors, especially preexisting organizational density, median household income, unemployment, and levels of governmental spending. Overall, social capital can usefully be seen as another key “environmental” factor in explanations of organizational foundings.     

情感劳动中的积极体验:深层表演、象征性秩序与劳动自主性

情感劳动研究的一个重要取向是从组织心理学的视角探究情感劳动对从业者造成的负面影响及形成原因，但对其可能带来的积极体验没有给予足够关注。本文以月嫂为例，从文化社会学的视角探索情感劳动从业者如何通过边界工作创造积极的工作体验。研究发现，能够获得积极体验的月嫂会采用“深层表演”策略主动破除边界，将工作关系拟亲属化，并进行一定程度的“慈善”劳动。她们还通过打造“育儿专家”的形象来建立象征性秩序，以便在与雇主的互动中争取主动。这两种策略都是劳动者通过构建象征性边界来挑战社会性边界的过程。本文认为，情感劳动的“自主性”应纳入关系视角，关注劳动者建立平等而有意义的社会关系的能力，而非仅强调边界清晰的独立“自我”和对劳动过程的自主控制。     

Corporate Governance and Firm Performance: A Sociological Analysis Based on Chinese Experience

Based on the 1997-2007 panel data of 676 listed companies and in-depth interviews with the senior executives, independent directors, fund managers and securities analysts of these companies, this paper tries to analyze the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance from a sociological perspective. The results show that the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance in the Chinese institutional environment is sharply different from the predictions of the agency theory. The empirical findings from China lend strong support to the new institutional argument that “best” corporate governance practices are socially “constructed” by various social forces and interests groups in specific social, political and cultural contexts, and how “good” a corporate governance practice is depends to a large extent on whether it fits in with the institutional environment in which it is embedded. There exists no universally “best” model of corporate governance across the world. Our empirical sociological study based on Chinese experience offers new perspectives and evidence for deconstructing the global myth of corporate governance.     

Deliberate Trust and Intuitive Faith: A Dual‐Process Model of Reliance

Drawing on the dual process framework from social and cognitive psychology, this paper reconciles two distinct conceptualizations of trust prevalent in the literature: “rational” calculative and irrational “affective” or normative. After critically reviewing previous attempts at reconciliation between these distinctions, we argue that the notion of trust as “reliance” is the higher order category of which “deliberate trust” and “intuitive faith” are subtypes. Our revised approach problematizes the conflation of epistemic uncertainty with phenomenological uncertainty while providing sound footing for a key sociological insight: that reliance on the routine social order is both the cognitive default and based on substantial practical evidence. We develop two broad suggestions for future research from these implications: (1) sociological research should examine the role of intuitive faith—as opposed to deliberate trust—in late modern societies, and (2) analysts should challenge the role of deliberate trust as the “modal” form of reliance in contemporary research.