New Mentalities of Government in China examines how the privatization and professionalization of ‘public’ service provision is transforming the nature of government and everyday life in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The book addresses key theoretical questions on the nature of government in China and documents the emergence of a range of ‘new mentalities of government’ in China. Its chapters focus on areas such as clinical trials, conceptualizing government, consumer activity, elite philanthropy, lifestyle and beauty advice, public health, social work, volunteering; and urban and rural planning.
Offering a topical examination of shifting modes of governance in contemporary China, this book will appeal to scholars in the fields of anthropology, history, politics and sociology.
David Bray is Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Sydney, Australia. He is the author of Social Space and Governance in Urban China: The Danwei System from Origins to Reform (2005).
Elaine Jeffreys is Associate Professor, School of International Studies, University of Technology Sydney, Australia. Her recent publications include Prostitution Scandals in China: Policing, Media and Society (2012, Routledge).