Consumption Patterns in Urban and Rural Areas in the Emerging Mass Consumption Society of China

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The purpose of this study was to examine urban and rural consumption changes when China is transitioning into a "mass consumption" society. We conducted quantitative and qualitative analyses and found that the development of the "mass consumption" society in China is different from that in other advanced countries in Europe, USA and Japan. We also found the gap between urban and rural areas and changing characteristics of consumptions among income groups, saving behavior, and consumer cognition, many of which are difficult to be explained by traditional socioeconomic theories. Thus, our empirical analyses contributed to the development of relevant socioeconomic theories.