FILE PHOTOS: (LEFT) Compilation of Chinese Social Thoughts    

(RIGHT) Chinese Sociology: The Origin and Sustainability

General Secretary Xi Jinping places great importance on the development of sociology with Chinese characteristics. In his speech to a symposium on philosophy and social sciences on May 17, 2016, he identified sociology as one of the critical supporting disciplines for philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics. During his speech at the Symposium of Experts in Economic and Social Fields in 2020, Xi urged scholars to “start from China’s national conditions. Start from China’s experience, and end with China’s experience. Write your papers on the expansive terrain of the motherland, make your theoretical and policy innovation fit China’s reality and have Chinese characteristics, and continuously develop political economy and sociology for socialism with Chinese characteristics.”

Xi described the Chinese civilization as consistent, original, unified, inclusive, and peaceful when speaking at a symposium on cultural heritage and development at the Chinese Historical Research Institute on June 2nd, 2023. This understanding reflects a comprehensive grasp of traditional Chinese culture and a high-level theoretical assessment. He emphasized the need to promote cultural prosperity and develop a great culture in China from a fresh perspective. He also discussed the importance of the “two combinations” for the evolution of 21st-century Marxism and contemporary Chinese Marxism, presenting them as crucial tools for success. His speech serves as a guiding document for the advancement of cultural civilization in China in the new era.

Sociology’s contribution

When applying sociology with Chinese characteristics to preserve and advance China’s ancient and modern culture, three key aspects are crucial. First, we must adhere to Xi’s thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, conducting thorough studies of Chinese modernization and aiming for the first “combination.” It’s vital to create scholarly works that align with China’s unique circumstances, fostering the growth of sociology with Chinese characteristics.

The Institute of Sociology has always been committed to beneficial academic research. Since its inception under director Fei Xiaotong, the institute has served the Party and state’s decision-making processes, contributed to national economic and social development, and prioritized people’s well-being. It has upheld the principle of enriching the populace and dedicated itself to localizing sociology. In response to Xi’s call, we’ve summarized past practical experiences, focusing on three key areas.

The first is to start from the needs of China’s social and cultural development, build high-quality disciplines related to sociology, and continuously optimize the institute’s discipline layout. We institutionalized research related to the development of cultural traditions and modern civilization, thus casting a sustained and solid guarantee. To begin with, we are constantly adjusting and improving the research topics and directions of existing disciplines according to the trend of academic theory and the needs of socio-economic development. From 2019 to 2020, with the help of the momentum of disciplinary adjustments by CASS, the institute redefined the research scope and direction of each research department based on extensive research. 

We’ve consistently focused on practical needs while adjusting and optimizing our disciplinary layout. Initially, the Institute comprised only a handful of research groups. Over 40 years, we’ve created over ten research departments. Since 2019, following the Academy’s Party Group’s discipline adjustment plan, we’ve standardized research department names, adjusted existing departments, and established new ones. In the past three years, we’ve formed three new departments, covering disciplines like social work, welfare sociology, economic sociology, sociology of science and technology, sociology of consumption, and cultural sociology. This year, under the Party Group of CASS and President Gao Xiang’s direction, we’ll establish a new gender sociology research department. This forms a new disciplinary layout, with research on social and cultural development becoming a key focus.

We established a research platform that connects theory with practice, strengthening the Institute’s research foundation for the first “combination.” Recently, the Institute collaborated with local counties and cities, establishing over 20 research bases in various fields such as national conditions, rural revitalization, common prosperity, county modernization, private economy, integrity, and social mentality. Moving forward, we will maintain the stability of the existing disciplinary layout while prioritizing major national issues and addressing new needs and challenges arising from China’s economic and social development. This involves updating discipline topics, proposing new tasks, and gradually adjusting the primary direction of disciplinary development. Our goal is to better serve the decision-making processes of the Party and the state and contribute to the modernization and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

The second experience involves addressing China’s historical missions in modernizing society, culture, and civilization. We enhanced research on China’s social mentality shifts and delved into network culture, consumer culture, marriage, family, and gender culture changes. Social psychology, youth, and educational sociology disciplines have gained prominence in China’s sociology. Guided by Xi’s speeches, we’ll further investigate core issues in contemporary Chinese social and cultural changes.

The third experience is creating a comprehensive academic resource platform. As the internet advances, the Institute prioritizes developing academic resources and survey databases. Currently, five databases, including the Chinese Social Survey and Chinese Social Mentality Survey, are accessible to academia nationwide. These databases offer valuable data for studying Chinese modernization aspects, such as social structure, social life, cultural development, social mentality, and value orientation shifts. We’ll continue improving data collection systems related to economic and social development, people’s livelihood, and social mentality and value changes.

Second combination

Guided by Xi’s Thought, we will strengthen the study of Chinese traditional social thought and social views, advancing the “second combination” in developing sociology with Chinese characteristics. Xi emphasized that the “second combination” represents another emancipation of the mind, enabling us to fully utilize the valuable resources of traditional Chinese culture in a broader cultural space and explore theoretical and institutional innovations for the future. 

To embody Xi’s vision and foster the development of sociology with Chinese characteristics, it is crucial to comprehensively study Chinese social thought from a long-term and historical perspective. Additionally, we must delve into the historical and theoretical insights gained from the hundred-year evolution of Chinese sociology since the modern era. This research will serve as the foundation for the “second combination” in sociology, allowing us to build upon past achievements and further advance the field in alignment with China’s unique sociocultural context.

In the 1990s, Fei proposed that China should develop its own cultural consciousness, understanding the significance of cultural heritage within the Chinese nation and using it as a guiding principle for contemporary Chinese sociological research. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the Institute of Sociology has intensified its efforts to study traditional Chinese social thought and social views from a sociological perspective. Under the leadership of Lu Xueyi, a major project funded by the National Social Science Funding Projects was undertaken, bringing together experts from across China to study the topic. The project resulted in the publication of a selection of historical materials titled “Materials on Chinese Social Thought,” which spans from the pre-Qin dynasty to the Republic of China era. This comprehensive work is divided into six volumes and contains over 3.5 million characters.

Building upon this research, Jing Tiankui organized young and mid-career scholars to study the history of Chinese sociology, focusing on the concept of “group learning.” Their work resulted in the publication of two volumes titled “Chinese Sociology: The Origin and Sustainability,” along with other significant academic works totalling nearly one million characters. These publications systematically review the origins and evolution of Chinese sociology throughout history, refining over 30 fundamental concepts, categories, judgments, and propositions. By combining theories of order, norms, and governance from modern sociology, they comprehensively demonstrate the origins and characteristics of the discipline of Chinese sociology.

The study of social development, starting with Xunzi, can be seen as an exploration of Chinese social thought and sociology from a macro-historical perspective. It is crucial to emphasize the study of Chinese sociological development over the past century and the process of constructing an independent sociology knowledge system with Chinese characteristics. Moving forward, our research will focus on investigating the history and patterns of social structural changes in China, the development processes and laws governing social life, the evolution of social governance and its underlying principles, as well as the historical development of social culture and its governing laws. By integrating insights from the past and present, our aim is to enhance the three major systems of sociology with Chinese characteristics and further advance our independent knowledge system.

Talent pool

We also strengthened our talent pool. It is important to reinforce education and training in Marxist thought, theory, and methodology. We need to delve into the study and explanation of Xi’s Thought and the spirit of Xi’s speeches at the symposium on the development of culture and inheritance. We should enhance the Marxist sociological theoretical literacy among middle-aged and young scholars to consolidate the foundation of their research, strengthen their theoretical basis, and affirm a sense of cultural confidence.

Next, we should emphasize the education and preservation of the research institute’s academic traditions. Inviting senior scholars and experts to give specialized lectures and discussions allows the older generation to impart their wisdom and pass on their invaluable traditions of the sociological research institute, which are characterized by academically rigorous and socially useful research. This tradition encourages an academic ambition and sentiment that serves the Party and the country’s decision-making, national economic and social development, and the betterment of people’s livelihoods.

Meanwhile, we should offer more opportunities for middle-aged and young scholars, particularly the latter, to showcase their talent and ascend to key positions. The institute has always focused on nurturing discipline leaders. Currently, most directors and deputy directors of the institute’s 12 research departments are under 45, with five departments led by those born in the 1980s. In the next year, we’ll adjust director positions in two research and two editorial departments, considering scholars born in the 1980s for these roles. The institute is also restructuring personnel in nine institute-level research centers, most of whom are young scholars born in the 1980s.

To incentivize scholars to achieve higher productivity and quality in their research, we have implemented a refined reward and punishment system. One notable initiative is the establishment of a research overproduction reward system, which utilizes internal resources. Under this system, 30% of the annual performance assessment from the innovation project is allocated for coordinated use at the institute and department levels. This encourages researchers to actively participate in collective research at these two levels and to undertake tasks assigned by their superiors, thus strengthening the collective consciousness of all, especially among young scholars. Regarding research achievement evaluation, we continue to adjust the weight of high-quality academic research results while also optimizing the weight of applied countermeasure research results. These measures have all yielded positive results. We have implemented the management regulations to penalize laziness. We will continue to be guided and led by the “two combinations,” further enhancing research on the history and reality of China’s social and cultural development, making greater contributions to the development of China’s modern culture and civilization.

Chen Guangjin is the director of the Sociological Research Institute at CASS.

Edited by WENG RONG