Advancing the Evolutionary Logic of Agricultural Land Reform : A Grounded Analysis of Rural Reform Pilot Areas

• In Event: Student Research: Comparative Public Policy

Abstract

Empowering rural development through land reform is an essential strategy for promoting agricultural transformation, advancing rural modernization, achieving rural revitalization, and fostering shared prosperity. This study develops a three-dimensional policy analysis framework for land reform governance, encompassing "Policy Tools (X) - Policy Content (Y) - Policy Objectives (Z)". Grounded in grounded theory and content analysis, it focuses on policy texts related to land reform issued by 66 rural reform pilot areas in China from 2014 to 2023. Utilizing Nvivo12 qualitative analysis software, the study identifies four types of policy tools: protective, driving, regulatory, and incentive; five categories of policy content: land ownership system, land supply system, land allocation system, land operation system, and land management system; and five policy objectives: prosperous industries, livable ecology, civilized rural culture, effective governance, and shared prosperity. The study constructs a theoretical model of "policy network governance – policy content distribution – policy tool selection – policy objective realization" for land reform. Through analysis of policy-making entities, the study quantitatively examines the characteristics of policy tools, policy content, and policy objectives. The findings indicate that China’s land reform institutional structure has matured, with policy-making entities exhibiting a networked structure characterized by multi-departmental collaborative governance. The implementation of policies aimed at diverse policy subjects demonstrates a spectrum of policy tools, a blueprint of policy content, and multidimensional policy objectives. Strong interactive relationships exist among the four dimensions of entities, tools, content, and objectives. Specifically, driving policy tools predominate, with regulatory tools serving as supplementary. Regulatory controls account for 17.64% of the most frequently used tools, supplemented by incentive and protective tools. Policy content focuses on land ownership and land management systems, while policy objectives emphasize both efficiency and equity, contributing to the deepening development of land reform. Further cross-analysis reveals uneven policy text distribution, with the land supply system showing low text density. Issues of adaptability and synergy between policy tools, objectives, and entities also emerge. Based on these findings, this study suggests optimizing land systems through balanced adaptation and collaborative governance. It advocates for the optimization of the combination of policy tools and enhanced synergy between them; promoting balance and coordination in land system content; leveraging policy linkages; and ensuring equitable attention to vulnerable groups such as small-scale farmers. From a meso-level perspective, this study explores how policy-making entities operate within policy networks, thereby influencing land development. The research offers significant insights for further refining the top-level design of land reform and provides a comprehensive "toolbox" for policy implementation, addressing the "tool blind spot" in land reform.

Author

• Yifang Zhou, Beijing Normal University, School of Government
  Presenting Author