12 Cover Story： Reviewing Bureaucracy

14 Bureaucracy in Chinas Xian-Level Governance and its Solution

Cao Dongbo Song Rui

The rational bureaucratic system is facing crisis of excessive rigidity and alienation in the era of information. In Chinas Xian-level governance， such bureaucratic conundrum calls for practical political wisdom which skillfully balances institutional rigidity and humanistic flexibility.

22 Formalism Extends into Society

Lu Weijing

Zhao Huanhuan

In order to embed market logic into rigid administrative system， Chinese government has been promoting purchase of services from social organization. But in practice， on the contrary， the government often embed bureaucratic logic back into the social field with its advantages in resource and power.

30 Absent Value and Excessive Interference： The Dilemma of Contemporary Bureaucracy

Zhao Dingxin

The strong-state and technological governance has endowed contemporary Chinese bureaucracy with the ability and self-confidence to expand beyond its applicable territory. Meanwhile， the absence of mainstream values is hindering bureaucracys self-reformation.

37 Bureaucracys Inherent Contradictions and the Multiple Aspects of Bureaucratism

Ke Guifu

Bureaucracy is a specialized， hierarchical， and institutionalized organization based on rational principles. While modern bureaucracy significantly raises organizational efficiency， it also brings problems such as formalism， instrumental rationality and excessive procedures. These problems are inherent in bureaucracys contradictory mechanisms.

47 Bureaucratic System and the Political Operation of Traditional China

Li Lei

The political operation of traditional China was based on the bureaucratic system. The convergence of different voices and the coexistence of complex political rules made the political space flexible enough to accommodate multiple stakeholders political demands.

Academic Reviews

58 The Alienation of Modern Political Power and the Dogmatization of Political Thinking： Masao Maruyamas discussion on De-Stalinization

Sun Ge

Xian Studies

70 Xian as a Method

Liu Yue

The study of Xian is not simply an extension of research field， but also needs to develop its own methodology. To understand the complex political field of Xian requires exploration into local political environment and empathy with local cadres life world.

79 The “Deindustrialization” of Central-Western Xian and its Social Impacts

An Yongjun

Xian is being deindustrialized. As a result， Xian economy is dominated by local small-scale peasant agriculture， with weak industry and commerce as its extensions. Such economic structure has shaped the social structure of Xian into an “expanded acquaintance society”.

Trends

88 Situationalism in the Digital Era

Xia Shu

“Situation” is a micro unit of human society. With the development of technologies such as 5G， artificial intelligence， virtual reality， blockchain， and big data， a new situationism in the digital age is emerging， which extends beyond traditional physical scenes to various virtual scenes in the cyberspace. This transformation is changing the business mode and peoples everyday life in the future.

Forum

98 Spirit is Tempered from History

Sha Ye

100 “Chinese Spirit” and the Chinese Spirit Reader

Wang Shaoguang

102 Rebuild Value from History and Classics

Yang Ping

Policy

104 What Fundamental Research Do We Need？

Sun Xi

Dou Xiaojian

A common misperception sees fundamental science research as the upper limit of technological innovation and the driving force of technological development. But in practice， science and technology are two independent fields that need “technological science” to bridge the gap.

Historical View

114 History Education as Nation-Building： Enlightenment from Qian Mus Historiography

Wang Rui

World View

124 Japans Transformation of Traditional Craftsmanship Into Modern Industry

Zhou Feifei

Under the impact of Western industrialization， Japans traditional craftsman made a successful transformation to modern industry while maintaining elements from traditional craftsmanship， business model， and mode of thinking. These traditions laid an important foundation for Japans modernization.

From the Field

132 E-commerce Economy and Chinas Soft Power

Qian Linliang