Chinese Journal of Sociology ›› 2010, Vol. 30 ›› Issue (1): 22-45.

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Frame Alignment in the Election Mobilization: A Case Study of the Officer Election for Yinxing Residential Committee

 LiuChunrong   

  1. Dept of Politial ScienceFudan University
  • Online:2010-01-20 Published:2010-01-20
  • Supported by:

    This research was supported by National Social Science Foundation 08CZZ008 and Shanghai Pujiang Talents Plan Project KBH3056565

Abstract:

Studies on the “shifts in culture and constructivism” in social movements and collective actions have highlighted frame alignment as an important mechanism for bottomup mobilization, but few have devoted to examining this process in topdown massive actions. In addition, there is a need to further understand the driving mechanism of frame analysis at middle levels. This paper uses a case study of an election of officers for a Shanghai residential committee to explore the frame formation and alignment in the election mobilization. It demonstrates that the election committee and its affiliated activists’ network shaped an inclusive mobilization structure that strategically synthesized the policy language from the state and the residents’ varying attitudes toward the election, and also aligned the expressive frames of democratic rights, neighborhood nostalgia, and community identity at every phase in the mobilization, which consequentially led to greater consensus and participation. This finding indicates that frame alignment and social structure are inseparable and that frame aligning is grounded in specific social networks.

Key words: income inequality, relationship trust, relative deprivation, influence mechanism, happiness,