The Implementation of Institutions: Constructing the Hierarchical Order and Cultivating Social Capital of Community Under the "Self-Promotion-Cultivation" Framework — a Field Study of 10 Women's Councils in Central China

As an innovative system of grass-roots governance to cultivate community social capital in China, how does the women's Council come into being in the absence of resources? What is the micro-mechanism of cultivating community social capital? Based on the in-depth investigation of 10 women's councils in central China, this paper holds that the root cause of the system's coming into being lies in the construction of the hierarchical order of community, and the formation of a micro-mechanism from pushing people from one's own will to pushing people to educate themselves. In the first stage, the Women's Council leaders shift from an atomized "self" to forming a differential association structure centered around the leaders. The "self" initially recruits administrative personnel and elite residents along both horizontal and vertical dimensions to form a core group. They also seek guidance from higher authorities to navigate the initial lack of experience, then attempt to organize deliberation and actions. In the second stage, the differential structure, with council representatives at its centers, extends outward to include ordinary women residents, ultimately leading to collective community identification. During this phase, the Women's Council employs two key strategies to reach the broader community: allowing non-council residents to participate in meetings and establishing collaborative mechanisms with other community organizations. Through these approaches, the council fosters community identification by promoting norm-based credibility, interest-based incentives, and interaction-based engagement. Based on these findings, this paper develops a "self-promotion-cultivation" framework that integrates the hierarchical order, community governance, and grassroots women's participation, offering a new perspective for mutual learning and reference.