Author Description
In 1979, The Chinese Government Famously Introduced The Single Child Policy To Control Population Growth. Nearly 40 Years Later, The Result Is An Estimated 20 Million Missing Girls In The Population From 1980-2010. In Lost And Found, John James Kennedy And Yaojiang Shi Focus On Village-level Implementation Of The One-child Policy And The Level Of Mutual-noncompliance Between Officials And Rural Families. Through In-depth Interviews With Rural Parents And Local Leaders, They Reveal That Many Had Strong Incentives Not To Comply With The Birth Control Policy Because Larger Families Meant Increased Labor And Income. In This Sober Exploration Of China's Single Child Policy Throughout The Reform Period, The Authors More Broadly Show How Governance By Grassroots Cadres With Greater Local Autonomy Has Affected China In The Past And The Challenges For Resolving Center-versus-locality Contradictions In Governance That Lie Ahead.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This book investigates the mechanisms of village-level implementation of China's One-Child Policy and the resulting systemic noncompliance between local officials and rural families. The authors, John James Kennedy and Yaojiang Shi, utilize extensive field research and qualitative interviews to analyze how economic incentives for larger families in rural areas undermined national population control mandates. By examining the tension between central directives and local autonomy, the work provides a framework for understanding the governance challenges inherent in China's administrative structure during the reform period.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Analysis of the One-Child Policy implementation from 1980 to 2010.
- Examination of the socioeconomic incentives for rural families to maintain larger households.
- Qualitative data derived from in-depth interviews with rural parents and grassroots cadres.
- Discussion of the structural contradictions between central government policy and local administrative execution.
Scope Limits
- The study focuses primarily on rural village-level dynamics rather than urban population centers.
- The analysis is restricted to the period of the reform era and does not cover post-2010 policy shifts in exhaustive detail.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Experts recognize this work as a significant contribution to the study of Chinese grassroots governance and the practical limitations of state power. Readers frequently note the academic rigor of the research and the clarity with which the authors explain the complex relationship between local officials and the populations they manage.
Page Count:
256
Publication Date:
2019-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
019091744X
ISBN-13:
9780190917449
History
China Studies
Public Policy
Sociology
Demography
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