ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the informal and formal social sectors in Chinese business, and their relations to the state, broadening the idea of an "informal economic sector". The usual expectations of patriliny in China are giving way to a cognatic system, where people construct networks of relatives chosen equally through men and women in cities. Women's work was in theory confined to the domestic sphere; even when they produced commodities, men mediated access to the market. The chapter shows how Chinese and Taiwanese businesses are firmly embedded in informal social networks. It is just as important to understand how they are embedded in the state, because that has equally strong consequences for the development of a democratic civility. The chapter discusses these are the kinds of organizations—not explicitly designed as business associations—that were more important in Taiwan's democratic transition. The natural desire of business to influence policy is beginning to create a voice for business in government, even in China.
