Abstract

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Title:: Social Composite Subject as an Innovation in Urban Public Governance Structure: Taking the Case of Hangzhou City as Example

Keywords:: urban public governance; social composite subject; equal relational structure; normative institutional structure

Abstract:: Nowadays, the management of urban public affairs becomes so complex that much of the experience acquired by the government in the past is now facing difficulties in the new situation. Thus urban governance innovation becomes a necessity. In such a context, the City of Hangzhou tries to resolve the dilemma by implementing the mode of social composite subject. However, people focus mainly on the construction of the conception and value of this totally new policy and pay little attention to its underlying institutional structure and relational structure. In fact, through the analysis of many cases, we have found that the social composite subject is characterized by its co-governance structural properties, i.e. equal relational structure and normative institutional structure. The successful operation of the social composite subject shows that co-governance is determined by the fact that the government embraces a forward-looking concept of innovation and an open democratic value orientation, rather than by the adequacy of social capital and the public spirit.