Modern Shandong Rural Socio-Economic Research

Author: Tang Zhiqing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-07-01
Features: The author attempts in this book to explore the rural land relations and the socio-economic development trajectory of Shandong through several case studies of the regional economy in Shandong, reconstructing an analytical model for the rural economy of Shandong. At the same time, the regional research on Shandong provides a wealth of systematic and precise archival materials, previously unpublished, for the study of history, rural studies, economic history, and sociological research both domestically and internationally. Using this substantial and convincing evidence, it compares and evaluates the research achievements of the 20th century both at home and abroad, discarding the old and introducing the new, proposing a series of new perspectives on rural, agricultural, and peasant issues in Shandong that align with or approximate historical reality. In terms of research methodology, the study adopts households and natural villages as units and unit systems, conducting micro-level research starting from the productivity conditions of households and villages. I believe that the issue of peasants is primarily a land issue, and the core of the land issue lies in developing productivity and achieving agricultural modernization, with all other socio-economic issues being derivative and defining its nature. Employing theories from multiple disciplines such as history, sociology, and economics, and using econometric methods and historical comparative methods, the book categorizes more than 40 counties and 100 typical villages across various economic zones in Shandong, exploring the structure and constraints of the rural socio-economy in Shandong, as well as the development status of rural productivity. The book is divided into eight chapters, sequentially describing the natural environment and social environment of Shandong agriculture (including the village system), traditional economic forms in Shandong, rural land systems, agricultural productivity and agricultural operations, tax and labor systems, rent and lease systems, employment systems, and rural interest-bearing borrowing systems.