Sponsorship as a double-edged sword: Political contingency and mobility dynamics in the Chinese bureaucracy.

This article develops a theoretical model on the role of sponsorship in organizations as a double-edged sword. We highlight the political nature of sponsorship that is entrenched in formal authority relations, as it signals employee allegiance and affects career advancement through strategic appointments. We further distinguish the effect of sponsorship from that of sponsorship loss, highlighting the precariousness of sponsorship contingency in the face of leadership successions. The negative effect of sponsorship loss is mitigated by diverse networks, however, which dilute the loyalty affiliation to a particular sponsor and provide "robust action." The theoretical model is empirically tested in a study of mobility patterns in a large, multi-layered Chinese bureaucracy of over 32,000 officials during a 19-year period, from 1990 to 2008.

From institutional segmentation to market fragmentation: Institutional transformation and the shifting stratification order in urban China.

Focusing on the changing roles of organizations, this study develops an institutional framework to examine the shifting stratification order since the mid-1990s in urban China. We argue that, after the mid-1990s, the Chinese state led a dual process of institutional transformation. On the one hand, the state dismantled the socialist redistributive system and broke down institutional segmentation based on organizational ownership and bureaucratic rank. On the other hand, the state developed different markets with various paces and strategies, resulting in fragmented market environments. In this context, reformed organizations interacted with heterogeneous market conditions to exert different impacts on multiple dimensions of social inequality. We draw empirical evidence from two national survey data collected in 1994 and 2003 during a critical period. Our findings show that the foundation of the stratification order has shifted from institutional segmentation to market fragmentation in urban China. This study calls for substantive institutional analysis to better understand the intricate landscape of social inequality in transitional economies.