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01 October 2023, Volume 41 Issue 10 Previous Issue   

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Education and Income Distribution: Theoretic Logics and Actual Evidence Yuhong Du, Yanbin Guo 2023, 41 (10):  1-11.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.001 Abstract ( 434 )   HTML ( 32 )   PDF (1087KB) ( 701 )   Save There is an inconsistence between theory and fact in education and income distribution. Human capital theory including the marginal productivity, and the opinion of increasing income and further narrowing income gap by improving human capital level, and Kuznets Curve that market automatically solves income distribution problem constitute the theoretic logic of education and income distribution. The mass process of education democratization and popularization hasn’t narrowed the income gap in the past few hundred years history of western developed countries. The coexistence of education popularization level and income gap expansion, the coexistence of higher return of schooling and lower labor income share, and the coexistence of competitive education race and the lower share of education determining individual income since reform and opening-up disclose factual evidence inconsistent with theory expectations. Which type of education should be developed and how to provide environment with education is an explanation above inconsistency, and is also the future direction of solving income distribution via education: build compensative public education system based on life cycle to narrow education inequality; implement labor market reform and actual change of education opinion synchronizedly; complete and improve high level market and create the institution environment good for human capital. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The Unique Role of Education in Promoting Common Prosperity: Theoretical Oughtness and Empirical Reality Bin Huang, Bo Li, Chao Fang 2023, 41 (10):  12-26.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.002 Abstract ( 366 )   HTML ( 14 )   PDF (761KB) ( 374 )   Save Common prosperity is the essential requirement of socialism, and the promotion of common prosperity needs the help of education. Compared with other policy tools and means, education plays a unique role in promoting common prosperity in the five aspects. First, education is an essential national strategic investment to promote high-quality economic development. Second, the impact of education on social and economic development is long-term and has a complex mechanism. Third, education can adjust the income gaps three times. Fourth, education is not only the tool of development, but also the purpose of development. Finally, education can promote spiritual and material prosperity at the same time. From the perspective of historical evolution, this paper first summarizes the policy practice of promoting common prosperity through education in different historical stages in China from the economic system, distribution system and educational concept aspects. Then, from the theoretical oughtness and empirical reality aspects, this paper makes a systematic literature review on the unique functions of the above five aspects of education. Finally, this paper introspects the shortcomings of the existing research at home and abroad, and proposes six development directions of China’s future research on education promoting common prosperity. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Evidences and Policy Implications on Expanding Middle-Income Group through Education Chen Xie, Xiuxiu Yang 2023, 41 (10):  27-39.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.003 Abstract ( 258 )   HTML ( 32 )   PDF (1030KB) ( 410 )   Save The size and proportion of the middle-income group is an important sign of the realization of common prosperity, and is also related to whether China can successfully overcome the middle-income trap and enter a high-income society. From the overall and long-term perspective, the core of the strategy to expand the middle-income group is to improve its ability to create wealth by enhancing the human capital of the low-income group. Therefore, the determining factor for expanding the middle-income group lies in education. It is through the sharing of quality and fair educational opportunities and processes that the general public can improve their human capital and earning capacity and realize fundamental and sustainable common prosperity. Looking towards 2035, how should education help expand the middle-income group? This study, based on data from China Family Panel Studies, presents the trend of the proportion of middle-income group changing with the highest education level, the proportion of people with various educational backgrounds within the three income groups, and the trend of the proportion of middle-income group changing with the survey year and graduation years within each education level, to provide preliminary evidence for the ability of China’s educational system to cultivate middle-income group. Meanwhile, using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, this study shows the changing trend of the proportion of middle-income group in various educational groups during the process of doubling the middle-income group in the United States from 1976 to 1982, to provide reference for achieving the goal of doubling the middle-income group in China. Finally, based on the research results, policy implications are provided for the design and implementation of the goal to expand the middle-income group in China. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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An Empirical Study on the Role of Education in Promoting Urbanization Boshen Wan, Weifang Min 2023, 41 (10):  40-52.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.004 Abstract ( 553 )   HTML ( 23 )   PDF (836KB) ( 755 )   Save Urbanization is not only a way that a country must go through for modernization, but also an important driving force for economic growth and common prosperity. It could promote new rural construction and develop modern agriculture, thus raising farmers’ income and allowing them to enter the secondary and tertiary sector of the economy with higher productivity through better education. Based on the provincial-level panel data of China from 2005 to 2020, by using a two-way fixed effects model, this study finds that: first, education investment could accelerate urbanization; second, economic growth and technological advances could also promote urbanization process; finally, regional development could moderate the educational effect on urbanization. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Early Childhood Development and Social Mobility in China Xiaogang Wu, Xin Li 2023, 41 (10):  53-65.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.005 Abstract ( 427 )   HTML ( 22 )   PDF (1258KB) ( 571 )   Save The process and mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of socioeconomic status have been an enduring topic in social science research. Recently, attention has gradually shifted to the early stages of the life course. Infancy and early childhood are critical stages for the development of cognitive and socioemotional skills, which are predictive of subsequent academic success, employment outcomes, and ultimately, socioeconomic achievement. While early childhood investment can yield substantial returns to human capital, it can also exacerbate economic inequality. Empirical research, both domestically and internationally, have revealed that nurturing quality is increasingly divergent among social classes, leading to intergenerational accumulation of advantage/disadvantage, declining social mobility, and class differentiation. This article systematically reviews relevant theories and empirical research in China and provides a preliminary findings of early childhood education investment in Chinese families using the data from the Chinese Family Panel Studies (CFPS). Specifically, the article focuses on the differences in early childhood education investment and child development among families of different socio-economic statuses and discusses the potential impact of these differences on children’s future development. The article concludes with a comprehensive analytical framework for the study of early childhood development and social mobility to gain scientific evidence to promote human capital investment and advance social mobility through practices and policies. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Education Quality and National (Regional) Income Gap: Construction of the Global Education Quality Index Yan Cao, Guoyang Zhang, Xinyue Yao 2023, 41 (10):  66-79.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.006 Abstract ( 356 )   HTML ( 23 )   PDF (1141KB) ( 1248 )   Save The relationship between education development and economic distribution has always been a hot topic in the field of education economics. This study is based on the background of achieving common prosperity, using global education and economic development data from 2000 to 2018 to construct a global education quality index, and based on the index, explores the relationship between education quality and income inequality. The study found that : first, China’s education quality index is at a medium level globally, with the quality of school education operation ranking top, but the competitiveness of the basic education assurance quality index and the quality of secondary and higher education development index is relatively low. The reasons for this are twofold: on the one hand, China’s expansion of higher education came later, making young people the main holders of secondary and higher education degrees. Under the influence of the aging population structure, the proportion of people with secondary and higher education degrees is low, directly lowering China’s index of secondary and higher education development. On the other hand, compared with other countries, China’s public education expenditure ratio is relatively low, coupled with poor completion rate in primary school, which indirectly lowers the quality index of basic education assurance in China. Second, by constructing a two-way fixed effect model to explore the relationship between education quality and national income inequality, it was found that the higher the overall education quality and school education operation quality of a country, the lower the degree of income differentiation, indicating that the improvement of national education quality can to a certain extent promote the realization of common prosperity. Based on the above findings, the study suggests the following: first, consolidate the attainable indicators of basic education, increase the investment in public education funds to meet the minimum targets, and strengthen the guarantee of basic education. Second, continue to leverage the advantage of the quality of school education operation and promote the attainment of graduation standards for secondary school graduates through both academic and vocational tracks in order to improve the whole skill of China’s reserve workforce. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Spatial Spillover Effects of Public Education Expenditure under the Vision of Common Prosperity Chunjin Chen 2023, 41 (10):  80-91.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.007 Abstract ( 300 )   HTML ( 8 )   PDF (857KB) ( 306 )   Save Whether the sustained increase in the proportion of public education expenditure can significantly promote the common prosperity within the region, or rely on the spatial spillover effects of neighboring regions, is a key issue related to the effects of education fiscal policy. Using China’s provincial panel data from 2011 to 2020, this paper constructs spatial Durbin models that combine static and dynamic, and examines the spatial spillover effects of public education expenditure on the common prosperity. The study found that the increase in the proportion of public education expenditure has a direct and significant effect on promoting local common prosperity. However, the spatial spillover effect on adjacent areas is not significant, and the short-term effects are stronger than the long-term effects. The marginal effect shows that every 1% increase in public education expenditure will boost the common prosperity index of local residents by 0.203. Every 1% increase in the proportion of public education expenditure in neighboring regions will bring a spillover effect of 0.049 to the region’s common prosperity. The heterogeneity test shows that the spatial spillover effect of public education expenditure on common prosperity in the eastern region is the largest, followed by the western region, and the central region is relatively weak. The policy implication derived from the above findings is to consolidate and improve the guarantee mechanism for local fiscal education funding. In terms of policy, it is necessary to break the barriers to the flow of high-quality resources between regions, promote the balance and integration of education development within the region, and then promote the new pattern of development of the joint construction and sharing of high-quality educational resources. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Charity Education is an Important Supply Side to Achieve Common Prosperity Jialiang Xu, Lijiao Cheng 2023, 41 (10):  92-103.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.008 Abstract ( 210 )   HTML ( 10 )   PDF (874KB) ( 233 )   Save At the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the common prosperity of all people was regarded as one of the symbols of achieving Chinese style modernization. Common prosperity in the new era has the characteristics of being all-inclusive, comprehensive and shared. Its realization requires the complementarity and integration of multiple supply mechanisms. This study takes the supply side as theoretical perspective and believes that the administrative supply side, the market supply side, the charity supply side and the mixed supply side play a bottom-up, fundamental, enhancing and complementary role in the process of promoting common prosperity, and multiple supply side work together to meet the challenges. Charities play a positive role in promoting common prosperity, such as wealth distribution, subject incentives, response issues, and atmosphere building. Due to the limitations of the traditional public perception of charity, the inadequate supply of charity education, the lack of external resources in the discipline of charity education, and the lack of universal charity education, charity has not yet achieved high-quality development. It is necessary to improve the charity education system by enhancing the sense of mission of developing high-quality charity education, promoting universal charity education, increasing the supply of social forces, accelerating the training of compound talents, and strengthening the accumulation of local knowledge. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Does High-quality Higher Education Better Enable Top Managers to Promote Corporate Participation in Public Good: Evidence from Chinese Listed Companies Xiaolan Zhou, Kailin Wu 2023, 41 (10):  104-115.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.009 Abstract ( 218 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF (751KB) ( 183 )   Save To achieve common prosperity for all the people is the strategic goal of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and higher education is one of the important drivers towards the goal of common prosperity.The sense of social responsibility cultivated in higher education and the public benefits promote the sharing of achievements and economic growth, and is reflected in the promotion of enterprises’ participation in public good by top managers. We use the data of listed companies in China from 2012 to 2020 to investigate the impact of top managers’ high quality university educational backgrounds and their native places on Chinese enterprises’ participation in public good. Our results show that higher education plays an important role in the promotion of public good. From the perspective of behavior and intensity, high-quality higher education highlights a unique role in the depth and intensity of corporate philanthropy.There are regional heterogeneity among top managers in promoting enterprises’ participation in public good. Top managers who were born in the midwest are more likely to promote enterprises’ participation in public good. Our results have the following policy implications. The government should encourage top managers to actively assume social responsibilities with preferential policies, improve the quality of higher education to promote the in-depth development of public good, expand the opportunities of quality higher education in central and western regions, give full play to public benefits and better achieve the goal of common prosperity. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Higher Education Expansion, Human Capital Transmission and Achieving Common Wealth Yaozong Hu, Hao Yao 2023, 41 (10):  116-130.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.010 Abstract ( 286 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF (1546KB) ( 530 )   Save The key point of achieving the goal of common prosperity lies in increasing residents’ income and narrowing the income gap, and how higher education expansion through the transmission of human capital can make sense in this process deserves more exploration. Based on panel data from 31 provinces in China from 2003-2019, by using panel regression models, beta convergence analysis and panel threshold regression model tests, this article found higher education expansion, structural changes and quality improvement all had significant impacts on the realization of common prosperity. Moreover, the expansion of undergraduate and postgraduate education, the improvement of the postgraduate proportion and the increase in per capita funding which is one of the main characteristics of higher education quality all significantly contribute to the increase of the per capita disposable income. Meanwhile, there is a nonlinear relationship between the growth of the graduate student scale and the change of structure and the residents’ disposable income. The impact of higher education expansion on income growth increases with the size and proportion of postgraduates, and the expansion of higher education increases per capita disposable income by raising human capital. Higher education expansion also drives the convergence of inter-provincial disparities in human capital, creating an economic catch-up effect in disadvantaged areas. The expansion also drives the convergence of inter-provincial disparities in human capital, creating an economic catch-up effect in disadvantaged areas, thereby reducing the absolute inter-provincial disparity in residential income, as well as the threshold effects of human capital size and human capital concentration. The policy implications of this study are to implement the strategic goal of common prosperity based on the new historical orientation of higher education expansion on science and technology innovation and talent supply, to initiate planning for the gross enrolment rate of higher education to 80% by 2035. Moreover, through optimizing the layout of higher education, cultivating regional innovation human capital, this study tries to find a way to narrow the regional residents’ income gap and improve the institutional mechanism of diversified investment in higher education funding, actively face the human capital agglomeration phenomenon and stimulate the role of clustering and leading of national major strategic regions to promote the realization of common prosperity. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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How Undergraduate Colleges Affect Urban Income Disparity under the Background of Enrollment Expansion Peizhen Jin, Xinyan Liu, Siyu Wang 2023, 41 (10):  131-149.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.011 Abstract ( 198 )   HTML ( 12 )   PDF (1159KB) ( 776 )   Save The expansion of college enrollment, which began in 1999, accelerated the transformation of China into a country with large human resources. The upsurge of newly-established colleges has also affected the urban income distribution. Based on the college data of 278 cities in China and the nighttime lighting data, this study found that, first, with the expansion of colleges, the income disparity in inland cities with public college has been significantly reduced, and the impact of policies has a longer decay period. Robustness tests such as parallel trend test, placebo test, eliminating the factors of city size and controlling the influence of graduates’ cross-regional employment still support this conclusion. Second, compared with public colleges, the contribution of private colleges to narrowing the urban income disparity in China has not yet been revealed. Third, the accumulation of human capital, the increase in the average wage of staff and the enhancement of technological innovation ability are the internal mechanisms for the newly-added colleges to curb the income disparity. Finally, the effect of narrowing the urban income disparity with key colleges is more significant. The reallocation of higher education resources measured by the construction of first-class universities and disciplines of the world is a beneficial policy to adjust the income distribution. The above conclusions have important implications for how to optimize the spatial allocation of higher education resources, and also provide a basis for realizing the path of regional common prosperity. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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How Digital Economy Adjusts the Impact of Higher Education on Common Prosperity? Yupeng Zhang, Qian Wang 2023, 41 (10):  150-163.  doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2023.10.012 Abstract ( 339 )   HTML ( 7 )   PDF (877KB) ( 317 )   Save The development of higher education has been playing a significant and unique role in the historical process of promoting common prosperity. At present, the development of digital economy and common prosperity have strong compatibility with the times. How does the digital economy adjust the impact of higher education on common prosperity? To answer this question, this paper first constructed the provincial, urban and rural common prosperity indicators based on two dimensions of development and shared benefits. Then, from the provincial, urban and rural levels, the influence effects of higher education enabling common prosperity were examined empirically using provincial panel data from 2011 to 2020. Furthermore, this paper investigated impact of digital economy on common prosperity and how the digital economy could affect the effect of higher education on common prosperity. The results are as follows. First, the increase of higher education share significantly promotes the development of common prosperity. The same is true for province, urban and rural. Second, the development of digital economy significantly promotes the development of rural common prosperity. Finally, the development of digital economy could strengthen the effect of higher education on common prosperity at the provincial and urban levels. The above conclusions have reference significance for exploring how to promote common prosperity in China. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics