Abstract
Rural revitalization has been a top priority in China since 2018. This study compares the developmental decisions of Village Regeneration and Rural Revitalization from an institutional perspective. It is believed that the core of Village Regeneration lies in “demolish-redevelop” model such as the construction of new socialist countryside in early 2000, while development decision for Village Revitalization, a more comprehensive and systematic approach, no longer just focuses on village-scale demolition and re-construction, but expands to a regional one, which takes regional characteristics into more comprehensive consideration. Based on three surveys, this study employs sociological research methods including discussions, interviews and questionnaires. With Taiyuan villages as examples, it analyzes the diversified models for rural development under the concept of Village Revitalization. Besides, a comprehensive evaluation is made concerning the 835 administrative villages in 6 districts, 3 counties and 1 city of Taiyuan, followed by the idea of differentiated development, which not only enriches the theoretical connotation of Village Revitalization, but also provides guidance for practice.
