Strengthening social development is an essential requirement of Chinese modernization. From the exploration of social service practices to the improvement of the social welfare system, from the evolution of social management models to deep institutional reforms, and to the innovative development of contemporary social governance, this process has given rise to a tripartite structure of government, market, and society, as well as the “Five-Sphere Integrated Plan” that promotes economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological progress. Chinese modernization requires that Chinese social development continuously pursue indigenous theoretical and practical innovations. This article proposes a dynamic holistic theory of social development, which emphasizes that social development is simultaneously ecological and psychological in nature, and unfolds through dynamic evolution. The theory consists of one core, two goals, and five key factors.

Distinctive features: holism and dynamism

The holistic nature of Chinese social development is reflected in its balanced emphasis on ecology and psychology. Ecologically, social development cannot be discussed in isolation, as it is integrated with economic, political, and cultural development. Psychologically, the central task is to achieve integration at the level of social mindset. Social development is always in a state of dynamic evolution. Through long-term exploration and practice, Chinese modernization has adhered to the universal principles of modernization seen around the world while remaining consistent with China’s national conditions. Overall, Chinese social development has been gradual and cumulative—guided by a philosophy of prudent, steady, and orderly progress and following a practical logic of trial and error, adjustment, and optimization.

One core and two goals

People-centeredness is the core and fundamental value orientation of China’s social development. It entails respecting the central role of the people in social development and stresses the basic principle that development is by the people, for the people, and its fruits are shared by the people. Therefore, progress in social development should be measured against the people’s sense of fulfillment, happiness, and security.

Chinese social development has dual goals: responding to the people’s aspirations for a better life and building a robust society. In the new era, the Chinese people aspire to lives of comfort, health, and well-being, with diverse and multi-layered needs. In response, social development must improve service quality and effectiveness while addressing imbalances and inadequacies in development. At the same time, social development should complement an “effective market” and a “well-functioning government” with a “robust society.” Structural transformation and optimization should be pursued in three areas: vitality, balance, and solidarity.

Five key factors

The holistic nature of Chinese social development is further reflected in the following five key factors.

People’s well-being: Social development should strive to deliver tangible benefits, address people’s concerns, and meet their expectations in areas such as employment, education, elderly care, healthcare, and social security. It should ensure that every child is nurtured, every student receives education, every worker is fairly compensated, every patient receives medical treatment, every family has housing, and every vulnerable group receives support.

Structural optimization: The key to structural optimization lies in curbing polarization, maintaining the size of the middle-income group, and providing more pathways and opportunities for low-income groups to join the middle-income category, thereby advancing common prosperity. At the same time, the rights and interests of low-income groups must be effectively protected through comprehensive social safety nets.

Social governance: Modernizing the national governance system and capacity requires building collaborative governance mechanisms involving multiple stakeholders, refining the governance framework of co-construction, co-governance, and shared benefits, regulating channels for expressing public demands, improving mechanisms for coordinating rights and resolving disputes, and using legal instruments to ensure the smooth functioning of governance channels.

Psychological order: In the Chinese context, social mindset is a modern expression of the traditional political concept of “public opinion and popular will.” Ongoing changes in social structure are closely intertwined with shifts in mental and cognitive patterns. The report to the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China stated: “We will improve the system of public psychological services, and cultivate self-esteem, self-confidence, rationality, composure, and optimism among our people.”

Social civilization: Five characteristics—people-centeredness, shared development, public spirit, fairness and justice, and social solidarity—form the core of contemporary Chinese social civilization. This constitutes a coherent chain of logic: people-centeredness establishes the value foundation of civilizational development; shared development addresses practical contradictions in resource allocation; public spirit provides a shared value system and ethical guidelines for action; fairness and justice ensure the legitimacy of institutional design; and ultimately, social solidarity enables the organic integration of social structures.

He Xuesong is a professor from the School of Social and Public Administration at East China University of Science and Technology.