Neighborhood Space:The Rise Of Resident Self-governance

The "resident self-governance" is a kind of democratic form of grass-roots social governance, which is also a kind of way to deal with public affairs under the leadership of the party and government. Resident self-governance’s rise is accompanied by the construction of urban community. During the period of the unit system, the government swept all the public functions, and that did not leave autonomy space for residents. With the transformation of economic system, social structure transformed from a centralized state to a tri-polarized one which consist of state, market and community correspondingly. The unit system gradually tends to collapse, which leads to a failure in function of management. For the huge changes in the grassroots community, the streets Office and the city community residents committee are unable to do what they hopes in dealing with emerging social problems.As a result, when the urban grass-roots society can be regarded as a kind of social life space and organization which constructed by different individual and group, and designed to supply social service to satisfy the needs of individuals, the expression of their demands prompt the formation of community and organization. At the same time, they will meet their own interests adversely. By organization of residents, the collective behavior of governance and activities will create new neighborhood space which is a new social space. And the new space will continue to shape the individual’s behavior through their own norms and operations, and make it into a self-sustaining state. This article lays focus on exploring of how social group organize individuals and play an important role in governance which related to residents through collating of knowledge in traditional mutual assistance and governance of residents’ affairs which lies in neighborhood space.Thus, as for self-governance of urban community,this article will give a definition to it based on theory of governance of organization:During a corresponding range of time and space, the stakeholders govern their affairs through democratic consultation, mutual trust, cooperation and resources sharing, not the intervention of outside powers to achieve the governance of collective affairs, and gradually make it into a self-sustaining state. To implement autonomous process, the following factors should be included: stakeholders, collective interests, democratic consultation and sharing of costs and benefits.