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At present, with the sustained and rapid development of China, Chinese people’s pockets are getting bigger and bigger, their backs are getting harder and harder, but their hearts are getting more and more "fragile".

According to the random sampling survey of People’s Forum magazine, 45.1% of the party and government cadres considered themselves as "vulnerable groups". White-collar respondents reached 57.8%; Intellectuals (mainly employees of universities, scientific research and cultural institutions) accounted for 55.4% of the respondents; The online survey shows that as many as 70% think they are "vulnerable groups". Why do party and government cadres, white-collar workers and other "elites" feel "weak"? The existence of this universal emotion and the reasons behind it deserve further study.

In addition to extensive investigation, People’s Forum Magazine also invited many well-known experts to conduct in-depth discussions from multiple angles and levels:

For example, with the widening gap between the rich and the poor and the income gap in society, people have a sense of relative deprivation through social comparison.High house priceAnd the pressure of inflation has intensified this sense of deprivation.

For example, the relative concentration of power and capital leads to the formation of social exclusion system, which leads to the social phenomenon of "winner takes all" and "the poor get poorer", and the public mentality is inevitably unbalanced;

　For example, with the rapid transformation of China, the social strata are also rapidly divided, and the internal differentiation of any group and those in a relatively weak position will form a "weak mentality";

　For example, in some institutional designs, there is a lack of universal respect and protection for individual rights. Such institutional arrangements and the weakening of civil rights will inevitably form a "mutual harm" society;

　For example, vulnerability and marginalization are closely related to the changes of social values, and the criteria for judging success have long been changed into the amount of money or the size of power.

　… …

　What needs to be emphasized is that China is currently in a period of rapid transformation, with profound changes in social structure and profound adjustment of interest pattern, and the edge and center, weak and strong, mainstream and edge will constantly change. However, the phenomenon of unfair marginalization and weakness caused by institutional barriers, lack of rights and other reasons deserves our high vigilance. In this issue, experts put forward many countermeasures and suggestions.　　　　　　　　　　

　　　　— — "Special Planning" Section of People’s Forum

Investigation description

With the rapid development of China, Chinese people’s pockets are getting bigger and bigger, and their living standards have generally improved. However, material wealth has not brought spiritual prosperity. On the contrary, more and more people feel that they have become "vulnerable groups", such as white-collar workers, journalists and university professors, and even many officials call themselves vulnerable groups.

Some glamorous groups Why do many people have the same "weak" feeling? How many people feel "weak" under the condition of rapid social transformation? What is the degree? What is the reason for it In order to have a clear and objective understanding of these issues, People’s Forum Magazine conducted a questionnaire survey with a total of 6,235 people, specifically:

First, different groups of random sampling questionnaire survey. Party and government cadres, intellectuals (mainly employees of universities, scientific research and cultural institutions) and company white-collar workers were selected to conduct the survey. The effective survey numbers were 280, 213 and 325 respectively.

Second, the People’s Network and the People’s Forum Network launched an online questionnaire, with 5417 netizens participating.

On the basis of obtaining a large number of first-hand data and interview materials, the People’s Forum questionnaire survey center combed and synthesized according to statistical principles, and made a comparative analysis of the main options.

The "weakness" of elite groups is unexpected.

45.1% of the party and government cadres, 57.8% of the white-collar workers in the companies and 55.4% of the intellectuals considered themselves "vulnerable groups".

In the eyes of ordinary people, party and government cadres, intellectuals and company white-collar workers should belong to the elite, not the traditional vulnerable groups, but according to the random sampling survey results of the People’s Forum questionnaire survey center, 45.1% of party and government cadres consider themselves "vulnerable groups"; White-collar respondents reached 57.8%; Intellectuals (mainly employees of universities, scientific research and cultural institutions) accounted for 55.4% of the respondents. This result shows that with the gradual improvement of the social security system, although the traditional "vulnerable groups" are decreasing, the number of people with "weak psychology" or "weak feelings" has not decreased correspondingly, and even has a tendency to spread to some extent.

Why do so many people in the "elite class" consider themselves "weak"? The people’s forum questionnaire survey center conducted an in-depth interview.

45.1% of the party and government cadres interviewed consider themselves as "vulnerable groups", and their "vulnerable" mentality mainly comes from the following aspects: First, in the face of fierce official competition, strict accountability system and strong network supervision, some officials have become "frightened birds", fearing that they will become targets of public criticism because of doing something wrong or saying something wrong, and they are cautious and treading on thin ice every day; Second, although the reform of the cadre and personnel system is gradually advancing, there is still a phenomenon of seniority in some places, even "hidden rules"Prevailing, many officials" don’t run, don’t send "because they have no background, and they are in the dilemma of" ceiling ",and they can’t be reused and promoted, and become" vulnerable groups "in officialdom; Third, the official business is complicated. It is necessary to have political achievements that can be seen by superiors and popular support projects that can satisfy the people. It is difficult to make a difference. Many officials even have anxiety and feel "weak"; Fourth, the wage income of civil servants in some poverty-stricken areas is limited. In the context of the rapid rise in prices, especially housing prices, they can only "look at the house and sigh".

An official, who asked not to be named, said in an interview with the People’s Forum reporter that the public often pays attention to those officials who hold real power or have leadership positions, but pays limited attention to ordinary non-leadership officials, who are the majority of officials. In the bureaucratic structure, these people actually have very limited resources to mobilize, but when they are dissatisfied with their superiors and work units, they often can’t "jump ship" and walk away, so they often rely on "forbearance".

Faced with the "weak psychology" of officials, some netizens pointed out that the process of officials moving from excessive strength to relative "weakness" is exactly the process of disenchantment of a group. Putting power into a cage has always been the hope of the people. Only when the power is restricted enough can the "weak" officials be truly safe.

A sample survey of intellectuals shows that as many as 55.4% of the intellectuals interviewed consider themselves "weak". After more than 30 years of reform and opening up, although the status of intellectuals has been greatly improved, and they are getting richer economically, compared with some real estate agents and invisible corrupt officials who are rich and famous, many intellectuals "cry weak" and "cry poor" first because they are dissatisfied with their own situation, and this dissatisfaction is obtained through comparison. Facing the current marriage of economic capital (wealth) and political capital (power), For example, A Yi, an associate professor at Peking University, once complained about his salary in his blog, claiming that the salary made people "unable to live" and was supported by many well-known professors.

Many university teachers said in an interview with the People’s Forum reporter, "Our heads are rich, but from an economic point of view, we are out and out ‘ Vulnerable groups ’ " .

Secondly, the "weak psychology" is particularly strong among intellectuals in basic and unpopular disciplines. Their teaching and research tasks are very heavy, but their pay is relatively low. Researchers in many popular disciplines such as "Economics" and "Management" have all kinds of opportunities to make public appearances, but for those basic and unpopular scholars, due to the limitation of their majors, such opportunities are relatively few, and many people feel marginalized when they sit on the cold bench and concentrate on learning.

Third, for a period of time, the society respected "knowledge is power", intellectuals were highly respected, and in the wave of marketization, people’s value orientation was also changing. At present, the impetuous society prevails, the evaluation criteria are utilitarian and unitary, and the amount of power and money is often regarded as the only criterion for success, which makes many intellectuals feel disrespected and lonely.

The results of a sample survey of white-collar workers in the company show that 57.8% of the white-collar workers surveyed consider themselves "vulnerable groups". "Doing more and earning less" is the common feeling of many white-collar workers in the interview and investigation. In first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, white-collar workers are busy with their work and the competition in the workplace is fierce. Moreover, they don’t have stable positions like party and government cadres and university teachers. Facing the endless stream of newcomers and strict performance appraisal, they have to devote themselves to fighting. For this reason, many people are in a sub-health state. For white-collar workers, the unbearable professional pressure is behind the material enjoyment of scenery, and the sense of identity anxiety is behind the decent social status.

Expert analysis pointed out that the current society is in a period of rapid transition, and social classes are also rapidly divided, and some classes lack a sense of stability, especially the white-collar middle class that is currently forming. Under the impact of inflation, the middle class that everyone envied in the past also experienced an unprecedented feeling of "weakness". Some experts pointed out that there is division and competition within the middle class at present. In the process of doubling the average wage level, some people’s income grows rapidly, while others’ income grows slowly. The former can bear higher prices and living costs and is in a favorable position in the competition for resources, while the latter will feel heavy pressure of life.

The middle class, officials and other groups in the collective "cry poor", it is inevitable that people feel melodramatic, but this can not deny the sense of powerlessness of these people in specific situations. In view of the phenomenon that party and government cadres, intellectuals, white-collar workers and other "elites" consider themselves vulnerable groups, experts pointed out that a harmonious society needs a stable expectation, and the lack of rigid systems and fair procedures is the source of insecurity in China. Under the current transformation conditions, this insecurity exists not only in the traditional vulnerable groups, but also in such groups as officials and white-collar workers, which is why different groups have the same psychological background of "weakness". In addition, "weakness" is relative. You are strong in this link, and you may be weak in the next link. However, the prevalence of social injustice and unfairness makes everyone suffer, and the "weakness" mentality naturally spreads.

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