Abstract:

This paper examines the issue of family modernization through the lens of policy-driven relocation. During the 12th Five-Year Plan period, policy-driven relocation in Ningxia created an objectively favorable environment for modernization development, yet the migrants experienced a sense of unease amid family changes. This research finds that this sense of unease does not arise from the damage to individual interests within the family, nor is it equivalent to the economic pressure exerted on individuals by the maximization of family development interests; instead, it stems from individuals' praxis of embodied reflection on the self and relationships. On one hand, the interest basis of the praxis of embodied reflection is not self-enclosed, so the interests of family members will naturally influence their risk perception, leading to anxiety derived from self-attribution for their children's development issues. On the other hand, the praxis of embodied reflection is not only a rational understanding of relationships but also an empathic resonance with others' attitudes. Consequently, migrants not only feel confused due to the contradictions of family responsibilities but also fall into doubt about relationships when family members reveal selfish tendencies in the process of adjusting responsibilities. However, while this process catalyzes a sense of unease, it also prompts individuals to take inward-directed actions, ultimately resolving the unease. This study argues that the praxis of embodied reflection is not an outward reflection starting from and ultimately returning to self-interest, but a process in which each family member-grounded in an open-ended stance of interest-comes to embody an awareness of others' responsibilities, dispositions and attitude amid family changes, and finds action choices that grant them peace of mind. The subject engaged in this praxis is an expandable self, which transcends the individualistic conception of the person in Western family theory. This reconceptualization allows the relationship between the individual, family, and society to be reimagined under a framework of mutual extension rather than opposition.

Key words: praxis of embodied reflection, policy-driven relocation, sense of unease, expandable self