Abstract:

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC proposed constructing a new structure of grassroots social governance. By exploring the new patterns of social governance, it is possible to see that local objectives for grassroots social governance present multiple innovations. They have their own appeal and use their own tools. Therefore, to understand the different logics behind them, a new theoretical framework is required. Using two variables of government, responsibility and governance technology, this paper combines local innovation practices to reveal the inner mechanisms and logics of social governance innovations. The four innovative paths of grassroots governance—government governance, shadow governance, cooperative management, autonomous governance—make up the “New Pattern of Social Governance”.

Key words: social governance, innovation, logic, explanation