Modernization, marketization, policy fluctuation and development of civic associations: Political economy of associational revolutions in China

Civil associations have been a window to state-society relations in China, which catch eyes and minds of students of China since middle-1990. The theoretical perspectives always adopted include civil society and corporatism, which pay more attention to the political aspects of civic associations. Based on case studies, previous research does not explain the variations of civic associations both in time and spaces.; To fill in both empirical and theoretical gaps, my research intends to analyze the macro political economy of civic associations in China. After reviewing the history and mapping out the landscape of civic associations, I put forward a comprehensive theoretical framework integrating modernization, marketization, and policy fluctuation as independent variables to interpret the development of civic association in Reform China. It has been divided into two periods: 1978∼1991 and 1992∼2004.; In analyzing the first period, various sources of data are collected to verify the prevailing modernization hypothesis and transition hypothesis. Emphasis has put on the impact of political fluctuations in 1980s. Data shows, the higher level the association registered, the more sensible they are when facing the fluctuations. Based a time series comparison, the sensitivity to fluctuation is also a function of the types of associations. Business associations, recreational associations are more sensible than others. Marketization is closely related to the development of business associations and professional association. State played a key role in the development of them. Modernization is a key factor in the development of academic associations and recreational associations. However, in a cross-sectional analysis, modernization also accounts for a part of variations of associational density between different areas, but the correlation is weak. The balance of power between state and society brought by market transition shows no correlation with the difference of associational density in the cross-sectional analysis.; In understanding the development of associations in the second period, data comes from a nationwide sampling survey and the Statistical Yearbook of Chinese Civil Affairs. Comparing to the situation in 1980s type by type, it is shown that policy change and political fluctuation are the most important explanations for the development of associations in 1990s. It finds that during the re-registration and houseclean campaign, the total number of associations dropped greatly. But more grassroots association were accepted and the autonomy of civic associations are also strengthened. But a panel analysis of provincial associational density between 1992 and 2003 shows that economic development and marketization are positive to the associational density after controlling the policy fluctuations. But there is no significant relations between the social modernization and associational density. When a interaction between the covariates and the policy change are considered, all except the urbanization are not significant related to the associational density.; All in all, modernization, marketization, and policy fluctuation can explain the development and change of civic associations in 1980s and 1990s. The policy fluctuations plays the key, and has been more significant in the late 1990s. But as to the state-society relations, it also shows that it is not a zero-sum game, but a win-win game in recent years.