The transition to a state led market economy in China: the impact of social change and the commodification on disabled people

Shi, Cunqiang 2022. The transition to a state led market economy in China: the impact of social change and the commodification on disabled people. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

Preview	PDF (Thesis) - Accepted Post-Print Version Download (1MB) | Preview
	PDF (Cardiff University Electronic Publication Form) - Supplemental Material Restricted to Repository staff only Download (231kB)

Abstract

This thesis explores the mechanisms behind the devaluation of Chinese disabled people’s labour and in doing so develops a lens to study disabled people’s experiences during China’s transition from a strict state-controlled society towards a hybrid model with the introduction of some market mechanisms. Data, based on 48 semi-structured interviews found that Chinese disabled people have distinctive labour market experiences affected by their social, spatial, cultural, and political status, but the character of economic transformation is also highlighted as significant. The thesis contributes to knowledge in the field of business, management, and disability studies in three important respects. Firstly, it reveals how deeply rooted ableist practices and norms in traditional social and cultural values interact with contemporary economic processes, leading to the exclusion and marginalisation of disabled people in the labour market. Secondly, it contributes to an understanding of the important role that the commodification of labour market relationships in China during its transition from a predominantly collective agricultural economy to a marketized economy, has played in disabled people’s lives. Comparisons between different cities/regions and private/public sectors are made to fully reflect the sectoral and spatial effects of commodification of impaired labour. Finally, it addresses how changes in the nature of work and job design have specifically impacted on disabled workers. Drawing on debates developed by UK disability studies scholars who argue that changes in the means of production from feudalist to a capitalist free market economy had a negative impact on people with impairments, this thesis, explores the relevance of these European arguments to the Chinese context. Through disabled participants’ experiences in different forms of employment, it evaluates whether impaired labour has come to be devalued in different employment sectors that currently co-exist in the Chinese economy. This contributes to the broader business management literature by highlighting how different kinds of work organisation and production relations affect disabled people’s labour market opportunities. Key words: China, commodification of impaired labour, disability employment, social transition.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Business (Including Economics)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	China, commodification of impaired labour, disability employment, social transition, social model of disability
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	14 August 2023
Last Modified:	14 Aug 2023 09:14
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/161663

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item