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This introductory chapter establishes the theoretical and historical context for understanding the profound transformation of General Public Policy (GPP) in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and its critical implications for the professional field of social work. The chapter posits that the PRC has transitioned from a purely “Economic State,” defined by its singular GPP focus on economic construction, into a nascent “Post-Economic State” era. This new era is characterized by a strategic shift toward “comprehensive, dynamic, and balanced social development based on economic construction,” as necessitated by the “main contradiction” redefined by the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC/CCP) in 2017 [Chen (Social Work Profession, Education, and Research: US-China and Asian Pacific Island Perspectives. Springer Nature, 2025a); Chen (Leadership Science Forum: National Governance Review 2:5–15, 2020)]. This ideal trajectory toward balance, however, has been profoundly complicated by contemporary challenges, specifically a global resurgence of geopolitical confrontation with the West and a domestic return to re-politicization, both of which have introduced extremist tendencies that threaten the desired GPP balance. Within this fraught environment, the social work profession faces a twin crisis: the conceptual confusion regarding Shehui Gongzuo (SG) and identity dilution caused by the politicized/administrative, CPC/Party-led initiative known as “society work,” and the practical challenge of securing adequate resources for professional growth amid a national economic downturn. These tensions have cast a shadow of tremendous uncertainty over the future of both China’s GPP and the social work profession. Nevertheless, the legacy of the “open door” policy and the rebuilding of professional social work since the mid-1980s have created a robust foundation that, unlike the catastrophic ideological purges of the 1950s, cannot be easily dismantled. The path forward, symbolized by the pragmatic metaphor of “Crossing the River by Feeling the Stones,” requires social work professionals and researchers to utilize the sophisticated analytic lens of GPP theory and the “Problem-GPP-ism” triple prism, extract from and of the policy systems perspective, to promote the profession, ensure its professional standards, and champion the core values of social justice and human diversity [NASW (NASW code of ethics. 2017); Chen (Sino-American Social Work Coop, 2021)] necessary for achieving genuine, sustainable balanced development.

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Social Policy of the Post-Economic State and Chinese-Style Social Work: A New Era of Crossing the River by Feeling the Stones

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年

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  • Sheying Chen

摘要

This introductory chapter establishes the theoretical and historical context for understanding the profound transformation of General Public Policy (GPP) in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and its critical implications for the professional field of social work. The chapter posits that the PRC has transitioned from a purely “Economic State,” defined by its singular GPP focus on economic construction, into a nascent “Post-Economic State” era. This new era is characterized by a strategic shift toward “comprehensive, dynamic, and balanced social development based on economic construction,” as necessitated by the “main contradiction” redefined by the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC/CCP) in 2017 [Chen (Social Work Profession, Education, and Research: US-China and Asian Pacific Island Perspectives. Springer Nature, 2025a); Chen (Leadership Science Forum: National Governance Review 2:5–15, 2020)]. This ideal trajectory toward balance, however, has been profoundly complicated by contemporary challenges, specifically a global resurgence of geopolitical confrontation with the West and a domestic return to re-politicization, both of which have introduced extremist tendencies that threaten the desired GPP balance. Within this fraught environment, the social work profession faces a twin crisis: the conceptual confusion regarding Shehui Gongzuo (SG) and identity dilution caused by the politicized/administrative, CPC/Party-led initiative known as “society work,” and the practical challenge of securing adequate resources for professional growth amid a national economic downturn. These tensions have cast a shadow of tremendous uncertainty over the future of both China’s GPP and the social work profession. Nevertheless, the legacy of the “open door” policy and the rebuilding of professional social work since the mid-1980s have created a robust foundation that, unlike the catastrophic ideological purges of the 1950s, cannot be easily dismantled. The path forward, symbolized by the pragmatic metaphor of “Crossing the River by Feeling the Stones,” requires social work professionals and researchers to utilize the sophisticated analytic lens of GPP theory and the “Problem-GPP-ism” triple prism, extract from and of the policy systems perspective, to promote the profession, ensure its professional standards, and champion the core values of social justice and human diversity [NASW (NASW code of ethics. 2017); Chen (Sino-American Social Work Coop, 2021)] necessary for achieving genuine, sustainable balanced development.