Engaging in and Bridging Groups Within Localized Civic Association: Navigating Heterogeneity in “Semi-Acquaintance” Society

• In Event: 20420 - Section on Sociology of Culture Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 9: Culture in Civic Life

Abstract

How do civic associations grow and thrive within a meso-level social context? While most studies focus on different organizations’ interaction styles relative to their context, few focus on internal heterogeneity within civic organizations. By investigating an education civic association in a Chinese county, this paper explores how heterogeneity is manifested and managed and the nature of its effects. Faced with locals holding diverse perspectives on civic action and education, this civic association develops divergent interaction styles among four types of participants, enabling sustained involvement from a wide range of local residents. The paper argues that the overlap among local social circles in this “semi-acquaintance” society allows different groups to gain a certain understanding of each other’s motivations and underlying perspectives. Meanwhile, the local social norms of reciprocity and the social pressures within a specific social circle reduce free-riding behaviors, allowing the organization’s flow of resources to function. This study also points out the potential to transform the perspective of their participants based on cross-circle structure and the long-term interaction of heterogeneous groups within the civic association. Theoretically, this paper underscores the complexity of local contexts, cultures, and networks by conceptualizing a “semi-acquaintance” social structure, thereby illuminating diverse civic association modes and varying “context–interaction–outcome” pathways.

Author

• Beichen Fang, Rutgers University-New Brunswick