Based on Bourdieu's concepts of "capital" and "habitus" in his class theory, this paper examines the differentiation of capital investment and parenting habitus on children's education between the Chinese urban middle class and lower class. By analyzing 2009 survey data of students in grades 4 and 8 in urban areas, the authors found that middle-class parents had significant advantages in capital investment, but showed no significant differences in parenting attitudes when compared to lower-class families. This finding indicates that the current Chinese middle class largely relies on capital possession, but displays few differences in class habitus compared with the lower class. The so-called class crystallization is maintained primarily through economic capital, but not through distinctions of inner dispositions.

Suitable allocation of residential public services is vital to realizing sustainable communities and cities. By combining network big data and spatial analysis, we developed a composite spatial accessibility assessment method for residential suitability of urban public services covering healthcare, leisure, commerce, transportation, and education services. Xiamen City, China is the test site. We found that although most facilities were concentrated on Xiamen Island, there were shortages in the per capita transportation and education service supplements compared with the average performance of Xiamen City because of the high local population. Meanwhile, Tong’an had advantages in the amount of public facilities due to its long history of regional development. However, high-quality facilities were deficient there as well as in other off-island districts. The residential communities surrounding transportation, commerce, and healthcare facilities had a similar allocation pattern in Xiamen City, whereas the residential accessibility of education and leisure services showed regional differences. Due to unbalanced regional development, evident inequality could be witnessed by comparing the composite assessment results of residential suitability between the communities on Xiamen Island and those in the off-island Areas. Our study hopes to provide dedicated support for designing sustainable communities and cities, especially for those in developing countries.

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In previous studies on social stratification and mobility in China, education is considered as the core mediatory factor in social reproduction and mobility. This paper, however, investigates how childhood health affects social stratification. Using data from Urbanization and Labor Migrant National Survey (2012), this study examines the effects of nutrition, hygiene, and health before age 14 on adult socioeconomic status attainment, including education,  the international socioeconomic indexes of first job and current job, and family income per head. The structural equation model  results show that the nutrition intake (whether one experienced starvation and the frequency of fish and meat intake) and hygiene (indicated by the source of drinking water and the toilet type) have significant effect on adult socioeconomic status attainment. However, the effects change at different life course stages. Moreover, childhood health (indicated by adult height) has significant impact on adult socioeconomic status attainment, but no significant impact on the international socioeconomic indexes of first job and current job. We conclude that investment in childhood health is an important mechanism affecting social class reproduction and mobility. Therefore, health intervention for children from poor and disadvantaged families are necessary. It will benefit children’s education and encourage upward mobility.