THE SOCIAL SPACE OF GUANGZHOU-CITY, CHINA

Principal components analysis and cluster analysis we used to analyze the urban social spatial structure of socialist China, using the city proper of Guangzhou in 1984 as the study area Unlike the urban social spatial structure in Western cities, which are commonly differentiated by socioeconomic status, family status, and ethnicity, it was found t hat the main components of social space in Guangzhou are population de nsity, educational level, employment, housing quality, and household c omposition. Five types of social areas are identified: (1) high densit y, mixed function areas, (2) cadre (government worker) areas, (3) work er areas, (4) intellectual areas, and (5) scattered agricultural areas . The spatial pattern of the social areas of Guanghou has a concentric elliptical shape. The city is composed of a high-density, mixed-funct ion center surrounded by consecutive rings of workers' residences and agricultural land, with a cadre sector abutting the northeastern edge of the city center and two intellectual clusters within the worker are as. The urban social spatial structure of Guangzhou reflects the histo ry of urban development, the housing allocation system, and socialist urban land use planning. Occupation and the location of employment wer e the major determinants of residential location and the social spatia l structure of Chinese cities.