A QUANTITATIVE STUDY OF THE IMPERIAL EXAMINATION SYSTEM AND SOCIAL MOBILITY (1723-1795): A SOCIAL NETWORK ANALYSIS BASED ON 10,892 JUBILEE DOCUMENTS

This study systematically deconstructs the intrinsic mechanism of the imperial examination system affecting social mobility by constructing a structured database of 10,892 imperial examination zhu scrolls between the first year of the Yongzheng reign and the 60th year of the Qianlong reign, and by comprehensively applying social network analysis, spatial measurement, and survival analysis models. The study found that: 1) there were significant class barriers in the imperial examination advancement, and the success rate of the success rate of the official's family was 2.73 times higher than that of the commoners; 2) educational resources showed spatial agglomeration, and Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions occupied 46.7% of the places for entering the imperial examination with 18.2% of the population; 3) academic factions formed a network of knowledge monopoly, and the probability of the disciples of the Tongcheng faction of winning an entrance examination reached 5.23 times higher than that of the non-members of the faction. members of the Tongcheng Sect. The quantitative analysis reveals that the imperial examination system combines the dual attributes of a social mobility channel and an elite reproduction tool, providing a new perspective for understanding the logic of governance in traditional China.