本文探討中共建政五十年來中國大陸的社會結構與制度變遷，兼而比較對岸台灣的發展經驗。本文首先比較兩岸社會的不平等結構，發現近二十年來，中國大陸城鄉差距與財富不平等益形擴大，相形之下，台灣的不平等結構主現穩定平衡的形態。就社會流動而言，中國大陸主現了市場與官僚並存的二元模式，一方面人力資本影響了個人的工資收入和流動機會，但同時政治資本也可以轉換為市場資源，直接梓益了個人的財富所得。相對而言，台灣社會流動的機制基本上由教育成就主導，流動的管道和方式也受到族群和既有政經結構的影響。中國大陸尚未具備明確且共同遵守的市場規範和法律章法，面臨九0年代的經濟形勢挑戰，社會發展刻正面臨另一波的制度危機。在城市地區，單位制的涵蓋面和滲透力逐漸式微，農村地區共黨官僚逐漸喪失執行國家代理人任務的權威。值此國家無法專制統治，市場機能不健全之際，人際關係成為社會互動與獲取資源的主要憑藉。樂觀論者認為新興的民間社團組織可以調和國家與人民的緊張關係'但是如果中國大陸的政治制度缺乏相應的制度變革，社會的制度危機終將愈演愈烈。

This paper examines the institutional transformations， particularly in the aspects of inequality and stratification mechanisms， in the course of Chinese reforms over the past two decades. Itexamines the increasingly inegual income distribution in China that has occured since reforms started in 1978. The increase in China's Gini coefficient has been much larger than that of Taiwan. The stratification mechanisms in China are institutionalized through market institution and bureaucratic coordination， with human capital and political capital providing access to opportunities. The dual upward ladder sees both official corruption and open competition in the market. As the workplace system retreats in urban areas and command authorities fade out in the countryside， China is facing challenges to rebuild a stable state-society relationship and to moving toward further institutional transformation.