Brokers as Entrepreneurs in Presocialist China

1984 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 614-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Mann
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Domestic Economy ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Foreign Markets ◽  
Peasant Worker ◽  
State Organization ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities ◽  
Rural Production ◽  
Mode Of Production

Brokers or middlemen have been called a key element in preindustrial economic development, facilitating the exchange of goods within the domestic economy and opening rural production systems to foreign markets. Though Chinese society historically boasted a vigorous brokerage system, many studies of Chinese brokers have viewed them as obstacles to the development of entrepreneurship and capitalist transformation. China's brokers were limited, it is argued, by larger structural constraints—the bonds of custom and community, a preindustrial mode of production, a particular form of state organization and ideology—that inhibited entrepreneurial activities. This view is best reflected in the writings of Marxist historians who claim that brokers in China's presocialist society were an integral part of a feudal system in which landlords and the state dominated the peasant/worker economy, preventing the flowering of the “capitalist sprouts” shooting forth from China's towns and villages.

scholarly journals Geography, poverty and development: an interdisciplinary debate

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-236
Author(s):  
Anand Prasad Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Development Studies ◽  
Multiple Routes ◽  
Contemporary Development ◽  
Tribal Region ◽  
Geographical Space ◽  
Mode Of Production

An emerging feature of contemporary development studies in India is the deployment of an interdisciplinary approach involving geographical location, level of poverty, nature of development and planning etc. The prevalence of poverty in a specific geographical location represents the evolving pattern of deprivation under a particular mode of production. The historicity of poverty in a geographical space needs an independent enquiry and identification of different production systems which are responsible for the problem of deprivation through multiple routes. The present paper is an attempt to initiate a debate on the issue of poverty, especially in a tribal region, through a multi-dimensional perspective, i.e. interrelation between geography, poverty, development and planning. The paper identifies one of the most poverty-stricken regions of India for a detailed discussion of the various casual factors which are apparently responsible for the poverty of that region. The paper also tries to explore the historical background of poverty in the study area (Babhani Block of Sonbhadra U. P.).

Changing Family Structures among the Rural Hausa

Africa ◽  
1973 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Goddard
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Economy ◽  
Family Farming ◽  
Family Structures ◽  
Family Unit ◽  
Agricultural Society ◽  
The Family ◽  
Common Unit ◽  
Leadership And Organization ◽  
Opening Paragraph ◽  
Rural Production

Opening ParagraphIn a predominantly agricultural society, the family unit has remained a fundamental element underlying economic organi2ation among the Hausa. There is, however, surprisingly little reference in the literature to the organization of this unit since it was described by Greenberg (1946; 1947) for pagan Hausa, and by Smith (1955) for Moslems. This paper discusses those aspects of the family structure which are directly related to the organization of rural production. In particular it is concerned with the family farming unit which may be defined as those members of a kinship group who combine their farming operations under a common leadership and organization, to form the basis for a common unit of domestic economy.

An Assessment of the Business Environment for High-Tech Industrial Development in Shanghai

10.1068/c0210 ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Hong
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Development ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Assembly Lines ◽  
Foreign Markets ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Regional Headquarters ◽  
Professional Systems ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities

The author presents the analysis of a survey of 500 high-tech enterprises in Shanghai which was designed to examine the local social, political, and economic environment in which high-tech enterprises operate and compete. Information sought in this survey comes in two kinds: the characteristics of high-tech enterprises; and their assessments of specified elements constituting their business environment. Survey findings suggested that state-owned or quasi-state-owned enterprises are still the leading players although local private enterprises and transnational corporations are becoming indispensable actors in high-tech industrial development in Shanghai. Among these enterprises, those which are locally based are mainly small and medium-sized enterprises and are in the start-up stage of business; they are domestically oriented and are not strong enough to exploit foreign markets. Foreign-based enterprises in Shanghai are, however, mainly subsidiaries, branch plants, or assembly lines, rather than regional headquarters, suggesting that Shanghai occupies a relatively low position in the international division of labor. The second part of the survey suggests that, in boosting the development of high-tech businesses, Shanghai achieves tangible objectives and improves the physical environment efficiently. Nevertheless, it is still quite weak in some soft dimensions, such as dynamic entrepreneurial culture, adequate business-support services, sophisticated educational and professional systems, comprehensive legal framework, etc. However, these dimensions are key components of innovative milieu in which technological innovation and entrepreneurial activities are facilitated and nurtured.

Observational Study of the Prevalence and Antibiotic Resistance of Campylobacter spp. from Different Poultry Production Systems in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 154-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
LINDA A. BESTER ◽  
SABIHA Y. ESSACK
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Observational Study ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Poultry Production ◽  
Free Range ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Rural Production ◽  
Campylobacter Spp

Campylobacter bacteria are important foodborne pathogens that cause acute diarrheal illness, and infection is often associated with contaminated poultry. In a blind observational study, the prevalence and resistance profiles of thermophilic Campylobacter strains collected from different poultry production systems were tested against the clinically used antibiotics ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, erythromycin, gentamicin, and streptomycin. Campylobacter strains were isolated from chickens in rural production systems, a free-range commercial facility, and industrially raised broiler and egg-laying chickens all situated in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Isolates were collected from the chicken cecae and were identified with conventional methods and tested for antibiotic resistance with the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute agar dilution method. The prevalence of Campylobacter spp. isolates in chickens was 68% (56 samples) in rural production, 47% (140 samples) in commercial free-range broilers, 47% (133 samples) in industrial broilers, and 94% (34 samples) in industrial layer hens. Isolates from the rurally raised chickens showed significantly (P < 0.01) less resistance against ciprofloxacin (7.9%), erythromycin (0%), and tetracycline (21.6%) than those from commercially produced chickens. Isolates from the commercially raised chickens (free range and industrial) were highly resistant to tetracycline (98.9 to 100%). The incidence of gentamicin and streptomycin resistance was 1.6 and 11.5%, respectively, in commercial free-range broilers, 1.7 and 16.4%, respectively, in industrially raised broilers, and 12.9 and 40%, respectively, in industrially raised layers. It is possible that variations among the poultry production systems, including antimicrobial usage, result in differences in antibiotic resistance profiles in Campylobacter.

scholarly journals Social Networks and Workers’ Earnings in Contemporary China

East Asia ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiong (Miranda) Wu ◽  
Michael Wallace
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
General Social Survey ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Social Significance ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Chinese Traditional Culture ◽  
Special Occasion ◽  
Chinese General Social Survey

Abstract Guanxi is the central form of social capital in Chinese society that provides access to resources, assets, and benefits that facilitate social status and social mobility. Substantial empirical research has documented the importance of guanxi networks in accessing resources for getting good jobs, moving up to better jobs, and achieving higher wages. Chinese Lunar New Year is a special occasion of cultural and social significance to cultivate and maintain guanxi networks. We thus conceptualize guanxi networks as the visiting networks during the Chinese New Year celebration. Using the 2008 Chinese General Social Survey, we construct five measures of the Chinese New Year greeting networks and assess their impact on workers’ earnings as well as gender differences in their effects on earnings. We also consider two major structural constraints—the hukou and social class—that affect the extent of one’s social networks and earnings. Our findings not only confirm the overall positive effects of the Chinese New Year greeting networks on earnings but also offer nuances that enhance the understanding of how guanxi networks as a manifestation of social capital embedded in Chinese traditional culture work in the contemporary era and intensify gender gaps.

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