Social Network Analysis of Actors in Rural Development: A Case Study of Yanhe Village, Hubei Province, China

Agricultural production, rural areas, and farmers are three key aspects of agriculture related to sustainable economic and social development in China. Rural development is a process of multi-participation, which involves actors from governments, village committees, villagers, rural economic cooperatives, enterprises, financing institutions, and non-government organizations (NGOs). Based on social network analysis (SNA), this article analyzes the social network structures and characteristics of various actors in different stages of rural development in Yanhe village, Hubei Province, China. The results show that both the village committee and villagers have great influence on rural development; NGOs are the leaders of rural environmental improvement; village cooperatives are the promoters of rural economic development; enterprises are the accelerators of rural construction and development. The study outlines the rural development model in Yanhe village where the village committee is the leader and multiple forms of participation and cooperation are present; there are excellent partnerships and communication mechanisms among the participants. The endogenous and sustainable development model identified from Yanhe village is valuable for other villages in China to adopt.