Social Attitudes in Contemporary China

Unlike many studies of social attitudes, which are based on large scale quantitative surveys, or focus on the attitude of elites, this book considers the views of ordinary people, and is based on in-depth, qualitative interviews. This approach results in rich, nuanced data of attitudes on a range of subjects of current importance, including views on nationalism and internationalism, housing preferences, and educational ambitions. Throughout, the book explores how far attitudes are influenced by traditional Chinese values or by the neo-liberal outlook fostered by recent reforms, and concludes that materialism and individualism have increased.

Yu Chen is a researcher at Shaan’xi Provincial Institution of Educational and Scientific Research, China.

Wei Fang is a researcher at Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.

Liqing Li is a freelance researcher and writer, formally of the University of Bristol, UK.

Paul Morrissey is a freelance researcher and writer, formally of the University of Bristol, UK.

Chen Nie is a lecturer and researcher at Beihang University, Beijing, China.