Leisure and Work in China

This is the first book to explore the meaning and significance of leisure in Chinese society, as well as the relationship between leisure and work that reveals so much about a society's cultural values. Exploring philosophical and theoretical concepts from a Chinese perspective, the book also presents a series of cutting-edge case studies of leisure and work life that add a new dimension to our understanding of contemporary China. Featuring the work of leading Chinese researchers, the book examines key concepts and theories in contemporary leisure studies, including workleisure relationships, free time, freedom, labour alienation, leisure alienation, the impact of technology on leisure and work, and subjective well-being and health. It also presents an important snapshot of life in contemporary China - and contemporary Leisure Studies in China - at a moment in which China's society and economy are adjusting to a new post-COVID reality. This book is fascinating reading for anybody with an interest in leisure studies, sociology, Asian studies, and cultural studies.

Huimei Liu is Professor in the School of Philosophy at Zhejiang University, China. She has been instrumental in establishing 21st-century leisure studies in China. Integrating philosophical, socio-psychological, and cultural perspectives, her key research areas encompass leisure's relationship with happiness, work, ethics, identity, education, and health. Her work has appeared in a wide range of leisure journals, and Huimei has held visiting scholarships at Pennsylvania State University, USA (2007-08) and the University of Alberta, Canada (2012-14, 2016). She is currently Managing Editor of Leisure Studies, Associate Editor of the Journal of Leisure Research, Associate Editor of Leisure Sciences, and Editor of the International Journal of the Sociology of Leisure.

Introduction, 1. The Evolution of Work and Leisure in China: A Historical Analysis of Vacation Policies, Leisure Practices, and Ideological Influences (Pre-Qin to 1949), 2. Fundamental Issues in Understanding Leisure and the Shift of Research Paradigms in Leisure Studies, 3. Critique of Modern Society and Aesthetic Critique: Two Possible Approaches to Leisure Research and Their Implications on Leisure and Work, 4. Free Labour and Contemporary Leisure Forms in China, 5. A Marxist Labour Value Theory Perspective on Work and Leisure, 6. Reshaping the Concept of Leisure and Labour in the Era of Post Covid-19, 7. The Coupled Logic of Labour and Leisure in the Digital Era: Playbour, 8. Leisure and Labour: The Debate between Arendt and Byung-Chul Han on "Leisure", 9. The Relationships between Leisure and "Lying Flat" Phenomenon: An Emerging Chinese Societal Issue, 10. From Serious Leisure to Devotee Work: An Exploratory Study of Yoga, 11. Work and Leisure in Taiwan: Examining the Antecedents and Consequences of Work-Leisure Conflict, 12. An Examination of the Influence of Social Support on Work-Leisure Conflict: A Case Study of Frontline Hotel Employees, 13. An Examination of the Impact of Leisure Participation on Knowledge-based Workers' Work Passion: The More Leisure, the More Passion?, 14. An Exploratory Study of Work-Leisure Relationships during the Covid-19 Lockdown