The social representation of the identity perception among China’s new social strata: a central nucleus analysis

TL;DR

This study explores how China's new social strata perceive identity, revealing a tripartite network influenced by institutional systems like the household registration.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel tripartite network model of identity perception among China's new social strata using K-core decomposition.

Findings

The identity perception of China’s new social strata includes a primary component and three K-core sub-networks.

Key elements like 'Status' and 'ID Card' are central to the core identity system.

Institutional mechanisms such as the household registration system shape subjective identity perceptions.

Abstract

China’s new social strata represent a critical demographic for social governance, with shared identity perceptions serving as a cohesive force for group solidarity and behavioral regulation.

This study employed a word association task with 256 participants from China’s new social strata, followed by lexical network analysis including K-core decomposition to uncover hierarchical identity structures.

The social representations of “identity” among this demographic comprise a primary component and three K-core sub-networks. The central core identity system contains 37 pivotal elements classified into categorical identity, relational identity, and symbolic identity, with “Status” and “ID Card” as the most central elements.

The new social strata perceive identity across three interconnected dimensions forming a “periphery-margin-core” tripartite network model. This structure reveals how institutional mechanisms, particularly China’s household registration system, shape subjective identity perceptions in contemporary society.

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