Information inequality in contemporaryChinese urban society: The results of a cluster analysis

Having reflected on the theoretical tradition of previous information inequality research that treats society's information rich/poor as identical with its socioeconomic rich/poor, this study examines the informational structure of contemporary C hinese urban society through a cluster analysis of a sample of 3,361 urban residents measured by a holistic informational measurement developed around the concept of “an individual's information world.” It finds that, first, 4 groups, instead of a binary “haves versus have‐nots,” best characterize C hinese urban society informationally; second, the distribution of people among these groups conforms to normal distribution, in striking contrast with the pyramid‐shaped socioeconomic structure of C hinese society; third, although the demographic characteristics of these groups suggest a significant correlation between people's informational and socioeconomic statuses, the 2 are far from identical; fourth, although the 4 groups differ in all aspects investigated, they differ most notably in information assets and the range and type of materials they choose as their regular information resources; fifth, although the 4 groups vary significantly, each differs from the others in its own way. This study concludes that society's informational and socioeconomic structures are 2 related but distinctive structures, and that the informational structure is characterized by highly complicated textures of inequality.