ABSTRACT
Although their new agricultural policies were undoubtedly popular and succeeded in raising rural incomes, nonetheless, in their pursuit of decollectivization, China's post-Mao leaders faced several problems: How could the abrupt change of policy be explained to the people and to the Party rank and file in acceptable value terms? How could some local resistance to the policies be overcome? How could the negative consequences for other policy arenas, such as birth control, be managed?
