Social Policy Research 2024

（Quarterly） 4

Vol.37 December， 2024

Theoretical Challenges in the Research of Social Work in China.........................................................................................................................................................Jing Jun 3

Abstract： The term "social work" in this article refers specifically to the professional field of social workin China， rather than the broader concept of social work. The main argument of this paper is that theprofessional education and research in social work in China have long faced theoretical challenges due to anover-reliance on Western theories. One strategy to overcome this challenge is to critically reflect on Westerntheories and build indigenous theories. Drawing upon Southern Theory can allow Chinese social work tobenefit more from diverse， local， targeted theoretical constructs that truly carry a global perspective. In thispaper， "Southern Theory" specifically refers to perspectives and theories from the "Global South，" includingChinese philosophical and social science theories.

Rural Vitalization from the Perspective of Chinese modernization................................................................................................................................. Xiang Deping， Fu Lili 25

Abstract： Comprehensively promoting rural vitalization is an inherent aspect of Chinese modernizationand a practical manifestation that distinguishes China's modernization from that of other countries. As ascientific， people-centered， innovative， and open theoretical system， Chinese modernization forms the coreand overall guidance of contemporary rural vitalization， driving the practice of rural development in Chinato new heights. Under the perspective of Chinese modernization， rural vitalization adheres to a peopleorientedapproach， strives for shared prosperity among rural residents， emphasizes coordinated internal andexternal development， and promotes the simultaneous protection and development of rural areas， upholdingan open and shared development philosophy. The key to fundamentally transforming rural vitalizationthrough the basic orientations of Chinese modernization lies in comprehensively improving the efficiencyof rural development， governance， and construction. At the practical level， there should be a greaterfocus on social policies， high-quality development， integrated urban-rural governance， and harmoniousconstruction. This path of rural vitalization with Chinese characteristics will create new opportunities forChinese modernization to engage in dialogue with global modernization efforts.

Research on Promoting the Development of Elderly Care Services withChinese Characteristics through Chinesemodernization

.......................................................................................................................... Yang Cuiying， Dong Ziyue 37

Abstract： Elderly care services with Chinese characteristics are a key component of the construction ofChina's social security system and an important aspect of building socialism with Chinese characteristics.The development of such services must adhere to the essential requirements of Chinese modernization.Since entering the new era， China has embarked on new practical explorations in promoting high-qualitydevelopment and common prosperity within its elderly care services. Significant achievements havebeen made in service concept innovation， function enhancement， model innovation， and standardizedmanagement. However， there remains a substantial gap between the current state and the goal ofdeveloping elderly care services with Chinese characteristics. Issues include insufficient systemintegration， fragmented resource supply， lack of policy coherence， wide variations in local practices，and weak service provision and affordability. Overall， the system is characterized by being "scattered，""fragmented，" and "weak." Therefore， it is essential to promote the comprehensive enhancement of elderlycare services with Chinese characteristics based on the core principles of Chinese modernization. Thisinvolves centering on the needs of the elderly， aiming for common prosperity and sustainable development，and using efficiency improvements in management as a key driver. Optimizing system integration，strengthening resource coordination， promoting balanced regional development， and encouraging jointefforts from the government， society， and the market to create supply will ensure high-quality services forthe elderly.

Optimizing the Pension Security System Based on Common Prosperity................................................................................................................................................He Wenjiong 52

Abstract： Pension security is the most widely inclusive， the most capital-intensive， and the most sociallyfocused type of social security program. An effective pension security system contributes to the increaseof social wealth， the sharing of social development achievements， and the comprehensive developmentof individuals， thereby promoting common prosperity. Since the reform and opening up， China’s pensionsecurity system has made remarkable achievements， but there remains a gap between its current stateand the requirements for solidly advancing common prosperity. The existing pension system strugglesto meet the needs of the elderly and its contribution to macroeconomic growth and income distributionimprovements is insufficient. Therefore， it is necessary to continue deepening reforms， enhance the antipovertyfunction of the pension system， improve its income redistribution capabilities， and strengthen its adaptability to economic and social development. By optimizing the structure of the pension securitysystem， improving the design of basic pension schemes， and innovating the operational mechanisms ofpension security， we can build a fairer， more sustainable， and more efficient pension system that makes apositive and active contribution to the realization of common prosperity.

Family Care Conflicts for Rural Elderly from the Perspective of FamilyPolitics： A Field Study Based on Rural North China.........................................................................................................................................Wang Xiangyang 65

Abstract： In recent years， family care conflicts among elderly parents in rural areas， particularly in multichildfamilies， have become increasingly frequent， with the elderly facing significant care crises， severelyimpacting their quality of life. Existing research from the perspectives of ethics and social structure hasstruggled to explain the specificity of elderly care conflicts occurring in particular rural areas and thecomplexity of family politics in multi-child family structures. From a "family politics" perspective， thisstudy finds that mutual shirking of responsibilities among children is a typical feature of family careconflicts for elderly parents in rural areas. The local social culture， characterized by weak ethics and strongpolitical dynamics， fails to suppress the spillover of family care conflicts. Multi-child family structures oftenbecome a catalyst for such conflicts and a space for intra-family bargaining. Intergenerational competitionfor resources and the evasion of caregiving responsibilities further shape the primary logic of actionfor individual families. In response to the growing demand for family elder care， the current models—government-funded welfare institutions， market-driven care facilities， and village-based mutual aid eldercare—face multiple constraints such as high financial input， low affordability， and lack of organizationalincentives. Village-community-based， endogenous elder care homes， which are deeply embedded in thefamiliar social networks of rural villages， cater to the elderly’s preference for aging in place， and align withthe payment capacities of rural families， are expected to become a crucial solution to the aging problem inmost rural areas.

The Significance and Basic Approach to Social Enterprise Legislation...................................................................................................................................................Jin Jinping 78

Abstract： As a new type of organizational form， the core essence of social enterprises lies in their abilityto sustainably maintain and achieve their social objectives. In practice， social enterprises have developedrapidly， with growing maturity in private certification systems and the gradual introduction of local policies.However， there has been little progress at the legislative level. Social enterprise legislation must address and respond to the "externalities" brought about by social enterprises， to prevent their undue impact onmarket order and the allocation of public resources. The focus of social enterprise legislation should first beon the selection of its foundational organizational form： for nonprofit social enterprises， regulation shouldprioritize preventing the introduction of commercial mechanisms that could compromise their nonprofitnature; for for-profit social enterprises， the emphasis should be on necessary regulations concerningpurpose， profit distribution， asset lock， and governance structure through special legislative means. Afeasible model for social enterprise legislation in China is to enact a Social Enterprise Promotion Law，adopting a rational and restrained legislative approach to promote the healthy and orderly development ofsocial enterprises.

Research on the Constraints and Potential Risks of the New Real Estate DestockingPolicy.....................................................................................Chen Youhua， Yang Huikang 91

Abstract： The introduction of the current round of real estate de-stocking policies is deeply rooted inboth industry and policy cycles， and differs significantly from the previous de-stocking measures. It ischaracterized by broader coverage， stronger regulation， and more innovative initiatives. In terms of expectedoutcomes， it appears unlikely that the new policies will achieve their goals in the short term， as the previousround did. Besides current market characteristics， factors outside the market， such as demographic changes，urban differentiation， housing condition improvements， weakened consumer expectations， income levels，and leverage ratios， limit the effectiveness of the policy. The real estate de-stocking policy is neutral andmay marginally improve the supply-demand situation in the current market. However， specific regulatorymeasures such as "increasing leverage，" "lowering interest rates，" and "government land purchases" maybring unexpected consequences and risks during implementation， which deserve our attention， caution， andfurther research.

Medical Resource Sharing and Improvement of Doctor-Patient Relations：An Examination Based on Urban Medical Consortiums.................................................................................................... He Qinghong， Zhufengmei， Wang Zhen 105

Abstract： Building harmonious and friendly doctor-patient relationships is a crucial path to advancing theHealthy China initiative and an important condition for promoting coordinated development in healthcareand improving public health. Using the construction of urban medical consortiums as a case study， thispaper examines the impact and mechanisms of medical resource sharing on doctor-patient relations， basedon annual report data from medical institutions in three prefecture-level cities between 2012 and 2022.Employing a difference-in-differences model， the study finds that the implementation of urban medicalconsortiums led to a significant 15.8% reduction in medical disputes. Mechanism analysis reveals that theconstruction of these consortiums significantly enhanced the medical service capacity， clinical standards，and management efficiency of secondary and lower-tier hospitals within the consortium through technicaland managerial effects， contributing to improved doctor-patient relations. This research provides empiricalevidence on how regional medical resource sharing can help improve doctor-patient relations.

Reshaping and Differentiation： A Cluster Analysis of Social InvestmentWelfare States （1990–2019）............................................................................. Yuan Xiaoliang 119

Abstract： Since the 1990s， social investment has emerged as a new paradigm guiding the economic andsocial transformation of welfare states. To capture the similarities and differences among social investmentwelfare states， this paper constructs a panel dataset of 19 welfare states from 1990 to 2019， using theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development （OECD） social expenditure database. Afterclassifying all policy expenditures of welfare states into compensation and investment categories， the studyfinds that compensation policy expenditures are more than twice the size of investment policy expendituresin the sample countries. Through hierarchical clustering analysis based on policy expenditure， policyoutcomes， and a combined expenditure-outcome variable， the welfare states are consistently clusteredinto "five worlds." This clustering reflects the reshaping of European and East Asian welfare states underthe social investment paradigm， while also identifying the differentiation of Japan， Portugal， and theNetherlands within this framework. However， these five clusters do not entirely break away from thetraditional welfare regime classifications， indicating that while welfare states have undergone reshaping anddifferentiation under the social investment paradigm， the transformation remains incomplete.