Chinese Journal of Sociology

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A Study on Residential Committees’ Community Power and Prestige in the Transformation Period                

Min Xueqin   

  • Online:2009-11-20 Published:2009-11-20

Abstract:

In the transformational period of the urban society, residential committees’ community power and prestige are being unprecedentedly challenged. The survey of the random sample from 61 residential communities in District BX in Nanjing demonstrates that the residential committees’ executive power still primarily comes from the government’s designation. Their resources for their residents’ most desired autonomous power, cogovernance and supervision power, and emergency management power are, however, insufficient. Other types of profit and nonprofit community organizations have taken away some of the residential committees’ power during their direct participation in community services and management, and thus have impacted the committees’ prestige as well. With further differentiation in the economic and sociocultural areas among the community dwellers, the power and prestige of the residential committees will also be differentiated among those living in different communities.

Key words: community power , community prestige , residential committee
,
age of first marriage , educational attainment ,  occupation , family socioeconomic characteristics,