This book examines the evolution of China’s rural land system through an integrated lens of institutional and behavioural economics. It traces seventy years of reform, from collective farming to market-oriented land transfers, to explain how central policy, local implementation and farmers’ responses interact to shape institutional change. Moving beyond standard accounts focused on property rights and transaction costs, the book introduces a dynamic framework based on Prospect Theory, incorporating cognitive biases, social norms and bounded rationality. Drawing on two large-scale rural household surveys, the book combines empirical analysis with historical case studies to explore how reforms were received, adapted and resisted.
This book will benefit researchers, policymakers and graduate students interested in institutional change, land policy or Chinese rural development. It offers new tools to understand policy implementation in environments marked by uncertainty, decentralisation and informal constraints. By highlighting how behavioural factors mediate formal rules, the book provides insights that extend beyond China, informing the design of effective land and property rights reforms globally.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: New Institutional Economics and Behavioural Economics
Chapter 3: A Theoretical Framework for China’s Rural Land Institutional Reform
Chapter 4: Seventy Years of China's Rural Land Institutional Reforms
Chapter 5: Government Behaviour in Land Use Right Reform I - Household Responsibility System Reform
Chapter 6: Government Behaviour in Land Use Right Reform II - No Land Reallocation Reform
Chapter 7: Farmers’ Attitudes and Expectations: No Land Reallocation Reforms
Chapter 8: Farmers’ Behaviour in Land Use Right Reform: Decision Biases in Land Transfer Pricing
Chapter 9: Farmers and Governments in Land Use Right Reform: The Role of Social Capital
Chapter 10: Land Transfer Right Reform I: Balancing Efficiency and Equity
Chapter 11: Land Transfer Right Reform II: The Three Pilots Reform
Chapter 12: Conclusions
Biography
Helen Bao is a Professor in the Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge, UK.
Lei Feng is a Professor in the Department of Land and Real Estate Management, School of Public Administration and Policy, Renmin University of China.
