Market or State? Post-Reform Distribution of Sociology Faculty at Chinese Universities

Qingyu Bu; Mengzhu Hang; Danxia Xing; Kevin Leicht; Liyuan Zhang; Qianyi Lu

doi:10.25159/1947-9417/15439

Authors

Qingyu Bu Shanghai Normal University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1119-5734
Mengzhu Hang University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Danxia Xing Hangzhou Dianzi University
Kevin Leicht University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8110-1203
Liyuan Zhang Yangtze University
Qianyi Lu University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7820-9942

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25159/1947-9417/15439

Keywords:

higher education , market reform, regional inequality, faculty mobility, Chinese universities

Abstract

Neoliberal policies since 1978 have caused severe regional inequality in China. Cities in regions with high levels of marketisation attract top academic experts due to their proximity to economic incentives and prestigious universities. However, little is known about how economic reform has shaped the distribution of experts in the social science and humanities disciplines as they are less in demand on the market and often rely on support from the state. Using sociology as a unique case, this study investigates market and state influences on the regional distribution of sociology experts in Chinese universities based on city-level measurements. Sociology has a unique historical and paradigmatic connection with the state of China, which complicates any straightforward relationship between neoliberal policies and higher education inequality in sociology departments. Through a manual collection of 1,041 faculty profiles from 66 university websites, it was determined following the fractional logistic regression method that both the market and the state facilitate distribution. The city’s marketisation increases the internationalisation of faculty members in sociology departments, while the city’s position in the state’s administrative hierarchy maintains the sociology departments, regardless of the city’s marketisation. In general, the state still plays an important role in shaping academic expert distribution after 40 years of market reform in China.

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Author Biographies

Qingyu Bu, Shanghai Normal University

Qingyu Bu is an associate professor from Shanghai Normal University, Sociology Department. He recived his PhD degree in Sociology from University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 2022. His research interests include Sociology of Education , Class Conflict and Marketization.

Mengzhu Hang, University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Mengzhu Hang is a PhD student from School of History, University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Her research interests include Chinese Education and History

Danxia Xing, Hangzhou Dianzi University

Danxia Xing is a lecturer at Hangzhou Dianzi University. Her recent research interests include Educational Management and Sociology of Education. She is the corresponding author for this paper.

Kevin Leicht, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Kevin T. Leicht is Professor and former Head of the Sociology Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is the past editor of Research in Social Stratification and Mobility and The Sociological Quarterly. His research interests include Quantitative Methods and Organizational Sociology.

Liyuan Zhang, Yangtze University

Liyuan Zhang is a assistant Professor from Yangtze University. Her research interests include Business Application and Organizational Structure in Education.

Qianyi Lu, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Qianyi Lu is a PhD student from Sociology Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her research interests include Chinese Society, Urban Studies and Urban Development.

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