By examining social transformation and political participation theories this book focuses on
the core concept of non-institutional political participation which is classified into two
types: induced participation and imposed participation. This classification has changed the
tradition of dichotomizing political participation as either legal or illegal and enriched the
conceptualization of political participation. Based on an investigation of the characteristics
of Chinese peasants and the relations between interests authority and political participation
the book examines the changes in interest structures and modes of control in rural China during
the transformation period and proposes a political participation model built upon mutual
benefits.
