Current Institutional Affiliation
Associate Professor, Geography, University of Oregon

Award Information

International Dissertation Research Fellowship 1998
Institutional Affiliation (at time of award):
Geography, University of California / Berkeley
'Constructing China' Capitalism, Connecting Shanghai's Urban and Rural Industries

This research will provide the first systematic study of the networks connecting Shanghai's urban state-owned enterprises and rural township- and village-owned enterprises. These networks have been formed during the past fifteen years, and are crucial to understanding the kind of capitalism that is emerging in China. Drawing from the New Institutionalism in economics and sociology, economic geography, and agrarian studies, I argue that industrial structures are structures of power. A processual analysis of how networks have been constructed and maintained will elucidate the contours of power in China's industries and clarify how inter-firm interactions are mediated through combinations of market, contractual, and bureaucratic mechanisms. Highlighting urban-rural connections will illuminate how agricultural decollectivization created the conditions in which urban industrialization has taken shape. Data collection will consist of following at least two commodity chains in each of three industries -- air conditioners, automobiles, and refrigerators -- by visiting and interviewing about thirty-five enterprises from each chain. Data will be recorded on a flow chart that will "map" the location of firms along their commodity chains and their interactions with other firms. This will allow comparison of the interactions of firms at similar positions along their commodity chains, across several chains within three industries.

Menu