Abstract
This article examines the formation of social capital and the relevance of guanxi (a Chinese concept closely related to that of social capital), among ethnic minority students and Han students in a Chinese university. Using data from 42 semi-structured interviews with university students, our study demonstrates that three distinct student categories (Min Kao Min, Min Kao Han, and Han students) access social capital in similar ways, including via the Chinese class-based cohort model, faculty and staff, engagement in social media and online platforms, and other on and off-campus social connections. However, these three groups of students showed significant differences in the formation and use of social capital. Due to the influence of pre-college education and Internet literacy, MKM and MKH students are relatively restricted in using social media and other online platforms to obtain social capital. The varying awareness of and attitude towards the concept of “guanxi” affect its formation and utilization, with many ethnic minority students viewing it as a cultural symbol of Han society and more likely to form bonding social capital within their own ethnicity. This shows that though the diverse campus environment effectively reduces the physical space between students of different ethnicity, it does little to break through the cultural barriers, making it challenging for minority students to form cross-ethnic bridging social capital.
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This article was supported by Zhejiang Philosophy and Social Sciences Planning Project in 2023 “Research on University Knowledge Spillover Promotion Mechanism - An Exploration Based on Zhejiang Province” (23NDJC277YB).
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Appendix
Appendix
Tables of participants’ detailed information
MKH students interviewed
Student No. | Ethnicity | Academic major | Home origin | Parental occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tu | Financial Management | Rural | Farmers |
2 | Uyghur | Political Science | Urban | White collar workers |
3 | Zhuang | Economics | Urban | White collar workers |
4 | Miao | Ethnic Language and Literature | Urban | White collar workers |
5 | Miao | Finance | Urban | Blue collar workers |
6 | Tujia | Accounting and Business Administration | Urban | Blue collar workers |
7 | Mongolian | Computer Science | Urban | White collar workers |
8 | Yi | Ethnic Minority Language and Literature | Rural | Blue collar workers |
9 | Hui | Kazakhstan Language and Literature | Urban | Blue collar workers |
10 | Xibo | Tourism Management | Urban | White collar workers |
11 | Hui | Politics and Administration | Urban | Farmers |
12 | Mongolian | Pharmaceutical Engineering | Urban | Blue collar workers |
13 | Tibet | International Economy and Trade | Urban | White collar workers |
14 | Hui | Business Administration | Urban | Self-employed business owners |
Han students interviewed
Student No. | Ethnicity | Academic major | Home origin | Parental occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Han | Cultural Heritage and Museology | Urban | Self-employed business owners |
2 | Han | Public Finance | Urban | White collar workers |
3 | Han | Biotechnology | Urban | White collar workers |
4 | Han | Political Science | Rural | Farmers |
5 | Han | Economics | Urban | Blue collar workers |
6 | Han | Advertisement | Urban | White collar workers |
7 | Han | Chinese Language and Literature | Urban | White collar workers |
8 | Han | Environmental Science | Urban | White collar workers |
9 | Han | Ecology | Urban | White collar workers |
10 | Han | Japanese | Urban | White collar workers |
11 | Han | Public Affairs Administration | Urban | White collar workers |
12 | Han | Advertisement | Urban | White collar workers |
13 | Han | Philosophy | Urban | Blue collar workers |
14 | Han | Financial Management | Urban | White collar workers |
MKM students interviewed
Student No. | Ethnicity | Academic major | Home origin | Parental occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mongolian | Mongolian Language and Literacy | Rural | Farmers |
2 | Tibet | Tibetan Language and Literature | Rural | Farmers |
3 | Mongolian | Mongolian Language and Literature | Rural | Blue collar workers |
4 | Uyghur | Uygur Language and Literature | Rural | Farmers |
5 | Uyghur | Uygur Language and Literature | Rural | Farmers |
6 | Tibet | Tibetan Language and Literature | Urban | Self-employed business owners |
7 | Tibet | Tibetan Language and Literature | Rural | Farmers |
8 | Tibet | Tibetan Language and Literature | Rural | Farmers |
9 | Kazakh | Kazakhstan Language and Literature | Rural | White collar workers |
10 | Tibet | Tibetan Language and Literature | Urban | White collar workers |
11 | Uyghur | Uygur Language and Literature | Urban | White collar workers |
12 | Uyghur | Uygur Language and Literature | Urban | Self-employed business owners |
13 | Korean | Korean Language and Literature | Urban | Self-employed business owners |
14 | Korea | Korean Language and Literature | Urban | White collar workers |
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Sun, X., Hu, D., Wang, Y. et al. An exploration of guanxi: a type of social capital, among Chinese Min Kao Min, Min Kao Han, and Han students. High Educ 87, 365–380 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-023-01011-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-023-01011-1