ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the Pearl River Delta region of Guangdong province in southern China, which is one of the most important contemporary examples of rapid economic growth. The region is, most importantly, marked by rapid industrialization, massive and accelerating foreign investment and dramatic social and economic change. The Indicators Study Group of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences is the pioneer of Chinese research on social indicators. Recognition that per capita income is not an adequate indicator of aggregate well-being has led to the development of a range of socio-economic indices for assessing the quality of life. Detailed investigation of human development of a country is required, and more in-depth socio-economic indicators have to be measured to obtain a more accurate measure of human development. Sitting across the border from Hong Kong, Shenzhen represents the triumphant economic success of China's economic reforms in the South.
