Socio-cultural Segment

With changing of all kinds of the social system, for example the deepening of reforming and opening up in China and the adjustment of the construction of the industry, a striking class -white collar- is appearing in our modern society. They are on the middle level in income, function, social status, social influence, and they have an important function as the valve of the society safe. While they are now growing up and booming in the number, they are becoming a new striking social phenomenon and make attractive to many social science scholars owning to their special value, consumption style different of traditional life. Now china is in period of social transition, professional life is the center of social life, white-collar who is the future main force of the Chinese possess the magnitude meaning in consumption style. Especially people pay much attention to their avant-courier consumption style. The white-collar's behavior, consumption mode, consumption value, and the consumption culture are not only related to themselves development, but also to guiding the social fashion and life style, and even to the development of the social economy and stability of the society. Their consumption behavior reflect the social cultural connotation which show white-collar's life situation, and come down to the change of social construction and social stability and some important theories and practical problem.This study integrated to case interview, literate study and participant observation relative to sociology and anthropology's study method, and I made a comprehensive investigation about to unmarried white-collar living in xuante district in Beijing. By understanding and describing their daily consumption behavior, consumption life style, and with supplement of the relative knowledge of economy, consumption sociology and economic anthropology, I am tried to discuss the social connotation behind the consumption behavior and their social distinction different from the others, try to understand their cultural trait, and finally find that consumption is not only a trade of pursuing the maximal avail or purity rationally calculation, but also embody the cultural option. Consumption individuals will display their own social hierarchy by consumption behavior. Those behaviors on the one hand can have the effective of communicate among the same class and enhance the self-identity of each other, and on the other hand can different the difference class and form the difference social distinction.