The Intergenerational Transformation Of Social Capital And Class Solidification

The concepts of social stratum structure and social mobility are alwaysimportant research topics in sociology. The former is used to analyze the socialstructure in a static way and the latter analyzes the social structure in a dynamic way.The research of social stratum structure in China can be divided into two partsaccording to the policy of reform and opening up. In the first period from thefounding of the PRC to the reformation, social stratum structure always beenconsidered to be political in nature and the social mobility was under strict control.That is to say the urban-rural social structure is a kind of typical identity system. Thesecond period is from the reformation up to the present. Since the Reform andOpening-up, China＇s social class structure has been changed dramatically. Theeconomic factors including market modernization is attacking the original politicalsocial structure. The political power and market principle affect the process of socialmobility together. It is true that the bottom of the society flowed upward easily at thebeginning of the reformation. However as the development went into deep, the socialclass solidification has turned up again. There have been more inequalities ofopportunity and it is harmful to the virtuous cycle of social mobility.This paper pays close attention to the second generation of phenomenon duringthe period of transformation in China from the perspective of social mobility andsocial stratification and believes it is the reflection of class solidification. By thequantitative method, the writer gives statistical analysis upon the CGSS2006database.According to the research hypothesis raised above, the result highlights thecorrelation between the intergenerational transmission of social capital and classsolidification. Through the data model, family social capital has a strong influenceupon the individual occupation development. So it has realistic significance andtheoretical value to analyze the second generation of phenomenon. Drawing aconclusion about how the situation of class solidification appeared has been necessary. To look back to the theoretical controversy about the elite stratum during the period oftransformation in China, this paper gives a conclusion in four aspects. The culturaltradition, the national policy, the general capital and the security system have moldedthe social stratum structure together. The pattern of difference sequence affects thesocial interpersonal relationship and consolidates the biological relations. Thegovernment-oriented reform policy provides convenience to the cadre elite andpolitical power embedded into the market. The general capital strength the elitegroups into a total bloc. The lack of security system and legal supervision system alsocatalyze the inequality between the bottom of the society and the upper classes. Theinterrelationship of these four aspects above has a major affect. That is to say thetheoretical innovation which the paper attempt to achieve is to present integrated andcomprehensive conclusion about the current situation of class solidification.