Deng, Q.; Xiang, S.; Chen, B. Rural Land Consolidation and Social Consciousness Change: A Case Study of a Land Consolidation Program in Rural Chongqing, China. Sustainability2023, 15, 15853.
Deng, Q.; Xiang, S.; Chen, B. Rural Land Consolidation and Social Consciousness Change: A Case Study of a Land Consolidation Program in Rural Chongqing, China. Sustainability 2023, 15, 15853.
Deng, Q.; Xiang, S.; Chen, B. Rural Land Consolidation and Social Consciousness Change: A Case Study of a Land Consolidation Program in Rural Chongqing, China. Sustainability2023, 15, 15853.
Deng, Q.; Xiang, S.; Chen, B. Rural Land Consolidation and Social Consciousness Change: A Case Study of a Land Consolidation Program in Rural Chongqing, China. Sustainability 2023, 15, 15853.
Abstract
With the changing relationship between urban and rural areas in China, the rural areas are experiencing rapid social transformation. To ensure successful implementation of the rural revitalization strategy, land consolidation has become a major measure of rural economic reform. Existing research focuses on quantitative studies exploring the relationship between land consolidation and rural economic development, but there is a lack of studies on the relationship between land consolidation and social change. In this study, Jin’an Village is selected as the research area, using semi-structured interviews and semi-participatory observation to obtain original materials, aiming to make a detailed description of the specific practice of land consolidation, and to analyze the impact of land consolidation on the transformation of rural social consciousness. The study found that rural land consolidation involves villagers in the land consolidation process, which can effectively stimulate villagers’ participation in public affairs. Concurrently, the interaction between villagers and outside investors disrupts the conventional socialization model in rural areas and motivates villagers to act in accordance with contractual agreements. The conclusion is that land consolidation in rural areas can enhance the political democracy and legal consciousness of local villagers, which can lead to a change in local social consciousness. Our findings also emphasize the crucial necessity to grant rural villagers with improved accessibility to professional services and information, coupled with the continued promotion of land consolidation to advance modernization in these areas.
Keywords
land consolidation; social consciousness; modernization; governance; rural China
Subject
Social Sciences, Geography, Planning and Development
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.