Abstract

Since the beginning of reform and opening up，danwei and danwei system have been changed profoundly，both at the macro and micro level. Through the case study about the workplace and authority structure in a public danwei named Jing College，we find that limited dependence is the core characteristic in danwei，which is very different from Walder’s patron-client model. It is expressed through the relationship between danwei and the state，the relationship between individuals and danwei，and the relationship between individuals and leaders in danwei. In all of these levels there are some basic institutional arrangements and？action mechanisms in the operation of institutions in public danwei，including a certain limited degree of autonomy，taking the leadership of CPC，a stable？foundational democratic system and a vertical boundary structure emerges which lead to a complex？relationship of cooperation？and competition between？the leadership and the masses. All of these complex features reflect the asymmetry change of the core institutions and marginal institutions in the reform process，due to the fact that they are deeply embeded in the social structure，and environment，and which leads further to path dependence as an unavoidable behavioral inertia and profound ideology.

First，danwei is only partially dependent on the state. On the one hand，the state owns the properties of danwei，and makes it the basic unit of political domination. So danwei needs to rely on the state for resources. On the other hand，danwei gains more and more autonomy in many respects，which means it can freely make many decisions in terms of internal affairs on the condition of obeying the unified management of the state. These result in the “new identity system” in the employment system and the differentiation of the system within the distribution.

Second，individuals are partially dependent on danwei. Since more and more non-state economy organizations are emerging，people can get resources and job opportunities outside danwei，so they are not completely dependent on danwei. However，due to the slow reform of household registration system and many other practical factors，such as job shortage，people are still constrained by danwei in resources distribution and job selection.

Third，individuals are only dependent on leaders within the distribution of scarce resources，however，for the allocation of conventional resources allocation it follows egalitarianism. These are the basic authority structures in danwei. Within the conventional resources allocation such as personnel assessment，reward and punishment，it shows a strong egalitarian and patriarchal domination character. While as to the distribution of scarce resources such as promotion，leaders always have the final authority no matter what methods are taken. So the relationship between individuals and leaders has both the liberal side in the daily life and the tight side when it comes to the distribution of scarce resources.

The emergence of limited dependence is caused by the asymmetry change of the core institutions and marginal institutions in the reform process. In danwei，socialist public ownership and political domination are two core institutions. Other institutions are all marginal institutions around them. However，the current danwei reform just takes place in the marginal institutions such as financial，personnel and income distribution，which are not core institutions. There are many profound reasons behind this phenomenon. The reform itself is embedded in the basic political system of China，so upholding the socialist public ownership and Party leadership are the most important principles. Besides，the reform has a unavoidable behavioral inertia to the existing choices which is known as path dependence. In addition，the mainstream ideology，which emphasizes that people are the masters of the country and we must uphold Party’s leadership，provides a strong ideological foundation.