The University of Sheffield
School of East Asian Studies

Professor Xiaowei Zang

BA (Xiamen), MA, PhD (UC Berkeley)

Photo of Professor Xiaowei Zang

Professor of Chinese Studies


Email: x.zang@sheffield.ac.uk

Profile

Professor Xiaowei Zang joined SEAS as Head of Department in September 2008. He worked in Singapore, Australia, and Hong Kong before joining the University of Sheffield. His research interests lie in the fields of ethnicity, gender, and social networks. He has produced more than 110 research outputs including authored books, review essays, and articles in referred journals including The China Quarterly and The China Journal. He received a number of research grants from the Flinders University of South Australia, City University of Hong Kong, the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong, and the Chiang Ching-Kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange respectively.
 

Professor Zang has read manuscript submissions to top journals including American Sociological Review, Social Forces and China Journal. He has been an International Referee for the Australian Research Council and the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong. He has been interviewed by the US, UK, United Arab Emirates, Australian, China, and Hong Kong mass media on his research on inequality and ethnic relations in China.

Professor Zang is also the Director of the Confucius Institute, University of Sheffield.

Teaching

EAS 135: Contemporary Chinese Politics
EAS 237: Social Transformation in China

My Teaching Philosophy

I am enthusiastic about teaching and enjoy professional interaction with students. I achieve satisfaction in teaching and promote student growth by helping my students develop critical thinking skills, problem-solving strategies, and multicultural competence. I expect them to have self-confidence, good interpersonal skills and life-long learning skills before they graduate. Being up-to-date with the latest information and keeping in touch with global issues are some of the ways for me to improve myself and stay two or three steps ahead of students. I am often engaged in informal exchanges with students to find out their interests and strengths and design lectures accordingly. I urge students to think independently and logically and use various methods and ask interesting questions to enhance student participation in classroom discussions.

PhD Theses Supervised

Professor Zang welcomes applications from prospective PhD students in the fields of elite studies, gender studies, social networks, and ethnicity in China.

Professor Zang is supervising seven PhD students in the School of East Asian Studies at the University of Sheffield:

  1. Tom Bannister (ESRC PhD studentship recipient), Aftershocks of Consciousness? Aftershocks of Consciousness? NGOs and the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in Sichuan Province, China.
  2. Fumi Kanda, The Policy of "Societalizing Social Welfare" and Its Impacts on the Voluntary Sector in China.
  3. Rongrong Lin (University of Sheffield PhD studentship recipient), Education and Elite Recruitment in China.
  4. Safarini Aidilla (self-funded), China-Indonesia Relations in the Cold War and the Post-Cold War Era.
  5. Wei Qin (receipt of Chevening Scholarship from the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office), Socioeconomic Changes and Cultural Reproduction in Two Tibetan Villages in Sichuan Province, China.
  6. Amy Walker (ESRC PhD studentship recipient), Women’s Agency and Empowerment in Okinawa, Japan.
  7. Stuart Wright (ESRC DTC PhD studentship recipient), Educational Attainment and Employment in China.

Editorial Boards

1.Book Series Editor, Routledge Studies on Ethnicity in Asia.
2.Sociological Focus.
3.The Open Political Science Journal.
4.Asian Ethnicity (April 2004—December 2008).
5.Asian Ethnicity (Review editor, 2006-08).

Research Interests

Elites and Development
Ethnicity in China
Gender in China
Inequality in China

Selected Publications since 2000

Authored Books and Edited Volumes

Zang, X. (ed.) 2014. Routledge Major Works Collection: Gender and Chinese Society (four volumes, London/New York: Routledge).

Zang, X. 2013. Ethnic Relations in Contemporary China (Cambridge: Polity Press).

Zang, X. 2011. Islam, Family Life, and Gender Inequality in a Chinese City (London/New York: Routledge).

Zang, X. (ed.) 2011. Understanding Chinese Society (London/New York: Routledge).

Zang, X. 2007. Ethnicity and Urban Life in China (London and New York: Routledge). This book was reviewed in China Journal, China Quarterly, and Asian Ethnicity.

Zang, X. 2006. Guest Editor, Special Issue on Social Change and Policy-Making in China. Policy & Society 25/2, Pp. 1-189.

Zang, X. and C. Mackerras, Guest Editors. 2005. Special Issue on Muslim Groups in Central and Southeast Asia. Asian Ethnicity 6/2, Pp. 69-140.

Zang, X. and C. Mackerras, Guest Editors. 2005. Special Issue on Muslim Groups in China. Asian Ethnicity 6/1, Pp. 1-68.

Zang, X. 2004. Elite Dualism and Leadership Selection in China (London and New York: Routledge). This book was reviewed in China Quarterly, China Journal, China Information, Political Studies Review, and Journal of Contemporary Asia.

Zang, X. 2000. Children of the Cultural Revolution: Family Life and Political Behavior in Mao’s China (Boulder and London: Westview). This book was reviewed in Journal of Asian Studies and China Journal.

Refereed Journal Articles

2014. Xiaowei Zang, Ethnic Variation in Network Composition in Ürümchi: Do State Policies Matter? (accepted for publication in Ethnic and Racial Studies).

2013. Xiaowei Zang, Major Determinants of Uyghur Ethnic Consciousness in Urümchi. (accepted for publication in Modern Asian Studies).

2012. Xiaowei Zang, “Uyghur Islamic Piety in Urümchi, Xinjiang.” (accepted for publication in Chinese Sociological Review).

2012. Xiaowei Zang, Age and the Cost of Being Uyghurs in Urümchi. (accepted for publication in China Quarterly).

2012. Xiaowei Zang, Scaling the Socioeconomic Ladder: Uyghur Perceptions of Class Status in Urümchi. (accepted for publication in Journal of Contemporary China).

2012. Xiaowei Zang, Gender Roles and Ethnic Income Inequality in Urümchi. Ethnic and Racial Studies 35/2: Pp. 238-58.

2012. Xiaowei Zang, Minority Threat and Ethnic Variation in Party Membership Attainment in China. Journal of Contemporary China 21/75: Pp. 519-30.

Zang, X. 2011. Uyghur-Han Earnings Differentials in Ürümchi. China Journal #65: Pp. 141-55.

Zang, X. 2010. Affirmative Action, Economic Reforms, and Uyghur-Han Variation in Job Attainment in Ürümchi. China Quarterly # 202: Pp. 344-61.

Zang, X. 2008. Market Reforms and Han-Hui Variation in Employment in the State Sector in a Chinese City. World Development 36/11: Pp. 2,341-52

Zang, X. 2008. “Gender and Ethnic Variation in Arranged Marriages in a Chinese City.” Journal of Family Issues 29/5: Pp. 615-38.

Zang, X. 2007. “Minority Ethnicity, Social Status, and Uyghur Community Involvement in Urban Xinjiang.” Asian Ethnicity 8/1: Pp. 25-42.

Zang, X. 2006. “Social Resources, Class Habitus, and Friendship Ties in Urban China.” Journal of Sociology 42/1: Pp. 79-92.

Zang X. and A. Kwan. 2006. “Modernization and Ethnic Variation in Marriage Timing in Malaysia.” International Journal of Sociology of the Family 32/1: Pp. 1-17.

Zang, X. 2006. “Technical Training, Sponsored Mobility, and Functional Differentiation.” Communist and Post-Communist Studies 39/1: Pp. 39-57.

Zang, X. 2005. “Ethnic Variation in Family Size in Urban China.” Sociological Focus 38/4: Pp. 223-39.

Zang, X. 2005. “Institutionalization and Elite Behavior in Reform China.” Issues and Studies 41/1: Pp. 204-17.

Zang, X. 2005. “Gender and Ethnic Variation in Love Marriage in Urban Malaysia.” International Journal of Sociology of the Family 31/2: Pp. 91-107.

Zang, X. 2004. “Ethnic Differences in Marriage and Household Structure in Urban China.” New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies 6/1: Pp. 64-82.

Zang, X. 2003. “Ethnic Differences in Neighboring Behavior in Urban China.” Sociological Focus: Pp. 197-218.

Zang, X. 2003. “Network Resources and Job Search in Urban China.” Journal of Sociology 39/2: Pp. 115-29.

Zang, X. 2002. “Labor Market Segmentation and Income Inequality in Urban China.” The Sociological Quarterly 43/1: Pp. 27-44.

Zang, X. 2001. “Educational Credentials, Elite Dualism, and Elite Stratification in China.” Sociological Perspectives 44/2: Pp. 189-205.

Zang, X. 2001. “University Education, Party Seniority, and Elite Recruitment in China.” Social Science Research 30/1: Pp. 62-75.

Zang, X. 2000. “The Intercorporate Ties in Singapore.” International Sociology 15/1: Pp. 85-103.

Zang, X. 2000. “Ecological Succession and Asian Immigrants in Australia.” International Migration 38/1: Pp. 109-25.

Visiting Fellowships

July2009—August 2013, Visiting Professor, Xian Jaotong University, Xian, China.

April 2009—Visiting Professor, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China.

2003—2007—Guest Professor, People’s University, Beijing, China.

June 2005—K.C. Wong Visiting Professor, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.

Invited Talks

1.“Scaling the Socioeconomic Ladder: Uyghur Perceptions of Class Status,” University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia January 31-February 2, 2011.

2.“Autocracy and Economic Growth in China,” International Conference on Elites and Governance in China, National University of Politics, Taiwan, November 6-7, 2010.

3.“Uyghur-Han Differences in Arranged Marriages in Xinjiang,” Contemporary China Centre, Westminster University, London, 15/10/2010.

4.“Ethnic Variation in Network Composition in Urban China.” London School of Economics and Political Science, July 6, 2010.

5.“Ethnic Variation in Schooling in Urumchi: A Gender Perspective,” White Rose East Asia Centre workshop on Gender Perspectives and Practices in East Asia, University of Sheffield and University of Leeds, June 17, 2010.

6.Keynote Speech, “Ethnic Minority Issues as a Challenge to Capacity Building for Governance in China,” International Conference on Public Administration and Policy in China, Sun Yat-Sen University, Xian Jiaotong University, and the Association of American Chinese Scholars on Public Administration and Policy, May 28-30, 2010;

7.“Uyghur-Han Differences in Network Composition in Ürümchi.” Networks in Chinese Society: An Interdisciplinary Faculty-Student Workshop, April 13-14, 2010, Pembroke College, Oxford University.

8.“Gender Role Ideology and Marital Power in Urban China,” Workshop on Transforming Urban Space in China, the General Meeting of the European Consortium for Asian Field Study, Hamburg University, Germany, January 2010.

9.“Why Do the Elite Promote Economic Growth in China?” The China Seminars, School of Contemporary Chinese Studies, University of Nottingham, UK, November 2009.

10.“Ethnic Differences in Network Ties in China.” International Conference on Relational Sociology in China, Institute for Empirical Social Science Research, Xi’an Jiaotong University, China, October 2009.

11.“The Elite’s Interests and Capacity in Governing Growth in China,” Conference on The Role of Elites in Economic Development, World Institute for Development Economics Research, United Nations University, Helsinki, Finland, June 2009.

12.“The Entrepreneurial State in China.” Center for Public Administration Research, School of Government, Sun Yat-Sen University, China, April 2009.

13.“From Mao to Markets: Chinese Society in the 1970s,” Conference on The Crisis of Socialist Modernity: the Soviet Union, China and Yugoslavia in the 1970s, Institute for Advanced Studies, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Germany, March 2009.

Media Expertise

Professor Zang has experience of both press and broadcasting, having previously been interviewed by BBC Scotland Radio, The Russian Journal, The Chinese Social Science News, and several media organizations in Australia and the US.