Access to housing of sufficient space and quality has been a central element in social stratification in urban China. We examine the sources of housing inequality in 1993 in Shanghai and Tianjin, when a market reform process had been underway in the national economy for nearly fifteen years. The Chinese housing allocation system favors people with political position and connections, those of higher socio-economic background, and those whose work units have greater organizational authority. There is only slight evidence that market reform has undermined this stratification order. To the contrary, there are reasons to believe that in some respects inequalities rooted in socialism are strengthened by institutional changes. These conclusions are reinforced by comparison to results of analyses of income inequality in the same cities. Copyright Joint Editors and Blackwell Publishers Ltd 1999.
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AbstractLevels of coresidence ofparents with adult children, particularly with married children, remain high and surprisingly stable over time in urban China. Analysis of new survey data reveals that in some ways coresidence is consistent with traditional patterns: it is patrilocal, and it responds more clearly to parents' needs than to children's needs. Nevertheless, researchers have shown that most parents and children do not prefer coresidence. State policies that reinforce gender bias, limit state supportfor social services, and reduce housing opportunities may be as important as traditional values in preserving olderfamilypatterns. Comparison of recent trends in Tianjin and Shanghai suggests that coresidence may decline sharply if external constraints on people's choices are relaxed. The impact of the one-child family policy will be felt at the turn of the century, greatly reducing the proportion ofparents who may live with their adult child, but the way thatfamilies deal with this change cannot beforeseen.The East Asian family is the cornerstone of social support for most Asians, more so than in the West, due to both cultural values and economic practicality. Yet the very fast pace of economic and social change in the region casts doubt on the
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