Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions is a joint effort of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
Author Sam Olsen interviews Scott Rozelle about the findings in his book "Invisible China: How the Urban-Rural Divide Threatens China's Rise."
The Economist included SCCEI Co-Director Scott Rozelle's newest book in their lineup of the best books of 2021. Here's what they had to say:
"Invisible China. By Scott Rozelle and Natalie Hell. University of Chicago Press; 248 pages; $27.50 and £22
The biggest obstacle to China’s development is that rural children—two-thirds of the total—do terribly in school, argues this stunningly researched book. Many are malnourished, lack reading glasses or suffer from energy-sapping intestinal worms. If these basic problems are not fixed, say the authors, China will struggle to reach its goal of broad prosperity."
See the full list: https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2021/12/11/the-best-books-of-2021
On December 11, 2021 The Economist published their list of the best books of 2021. Scott Rozelle's newest book, "Invisible China" was listed third on the line up!
Research continues to highlight the central relationship between caregivers’ mental health and their children’s development. This study examined the relation between primary caregivers’ mental health and school-aged children’s outcomes, including student mental health, resilience, and academic performance, in rural China. Using cross-sectional data from economically poor areas in the Gansu province, 2989 students (mean age = 11.51, 53.33% male, 46.67% female) and their primary caregivers (74.2% female) completed the 21-item, self-report Depression Anxiety Stress Scale. Students also completed the 25-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale and a standardized math test. The results indicated a high prevalence of caregiver depression (31%), stress (39%), and anxiety (24%). Characteristics that were significantly correlated with caregiver mental health issues included being a grandparent, having a low socioeconomic status and low education level, and living in a household with at least one migrant worker. Apart from caregiver stress and student resilience, caregiver mental health issues were negatively correlated with all student outcomes, including student mental health, resilience, and academic performance. Although additional empirical research is needed to investigate the associations between caregiver mental health and student outcomes, our results suggest that rural communities could benefit greatly from programs focused on improving the mental health of caregivers and this, in turn, may have a positive impact on student outcomes.
The Neue Zürcher Zeitung recently published an interview with SCCEI's co-director Scott Rozelle. The article was originally publshed in German and later translated to English. You can read the full article in either language online:
Katrin Buchenbacher from Neue Zürcher Zeitung interviewed Scott Rozelle about his recent book on China's rural population.
On November 15, 2021, the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions (SCCEI) launched its new impact initiative: the SCCEI China Briefs. The briefs translate data-driven social science research into accessible insights for those interested in China and U.S.-China relations. Released twice a month, the briefs cover timely issues that inform policy and advance public understanding of China and its role on the global stage.
This initiative targets one of SCCEI’s primary objectives: to inform public debates on U.S.-China relations with empirically-driven social science research.
On Monday, SCCEI released its first three China Briefs spotlighting findings central to China’s economy, U.S.-China trade competition, and their implications for U.S.-China relations:
In “Did ‘China Shock’ Cause Widespread Job Losses in the U.S.?” Stanford's own Nicholas Bloom and his co-authors find compelling evidence that import competition from China did not, in fact, cause aggregate employment loss in the U.S. – a finding that contradicts prevailing views. Read our brief for a fuller picture of how “China shock” impacted U.S. employment dynamics and how this might impact regional inequality and political polarization in the U.S.
Only a handful of countries have escaped the middle-income trap since 1960. In “Invisible China: Hundreds of Millions of Rural Unemployed May Slow China’s Growth,” SCCEI’s co-director Scott Rozelle finds that approximately 70% of China’s labor force – 500 million people – concentrated in rural areas do not have a high school education. Our SCCEI China Brief sheds light on why these statistics matter – not only for China, but for the rest of the world.
In “Rise of Robots in China,” SCCEI’s co-director Hongbin Li presents strong data revealing China’s global leadership in the use of industrial robots. What is driving this relentless growth of automation in China? What future trends and implications can we glean from China’s use and production of robots? Read our SCCEI China Brief to find out more.
Did "China Shock" Cause Widespread Job Losses in the U.S.?
Findings in this brief challenge prevailing views regarding net jobs lost in the U.S.
Invisible China: Hundreds of Millions of Rural Underemployed May Slow China's Growth
Education is the key for China to realize its goal of moving from a middle-income to high-income economy
Rise of the Robots in China
Data representative of China’s manufacturing sector reveals China’s global leadership in the use of industrial robots
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Findings in this brief challenge prevailing views regarding net jobs lost in the U.S.
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Education is the key for China to realize its goal of moving from a middle-income to high-income economy
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Data representative of China’s manufacturing sector reveals China’s global leadership in the use of industrial robots
The SCCEI China Briefs are short features that translate top-quality academic research into evidence-based insights for those interested in China and U.S.-China relations. Released twice a month, the briefs will cover timely issues that inform policy and advance the public understanding of China and its role on the global stage.
Authors Ryan Hass and Jude Blanchette highlight Scott Rozelle's research on the human capital criss in rural China.
The Los Angeles Times writes about China's new "common prosperity" campaign to narrow the gap between rich and poor. However Scott Rozelle doesn't think "any of these policies that they’re doing are addressing the real underlying issues.” Rozelle says they need to invest in rural education so that workers can move into higher-skill jobs.