From Social Psychology to Educational Stratification: In-Depth Qualitative Insights under the Wisconsin Model in Mainland China

In contemporary China, where the emphasis on higher-education construction has been steadily increasing, a substantial body of research has incontrovertibly demonstrated that objective factors, including family background, educational environment, and parental educational attainment, play a pivotal role in influencing the stratification of higher education. This influence can further permeate into the realm of social stratification. The in-depth analysis of these objective factors holds paramount significance for the formulation of China's higher - education policies. Notwithstanding, within the corpus of relevant Chinese research, the exploration of the mechanisms through which these factors impact educational attainment and career access remains conspicuously scarce. Consequently, there exists an acute exigency within the academic community for in-depth investigations to comprehensively explore the underlying influence processes. From the vantage point of social psychology, this study deploys the Wisconsin Model to augment and elaborate on this under - explored area. Qualitative data are meticulously collected through in-depth interviews with dozens of respondents hailing from diverse provinces across the nation. Employing thematic analysis as the methodological approach, the study delves deep into the exploration of how socio - psychological factors impinge upon the stratification of higher education. The research findings are anticipated to not only enhance the extant research from the perspective of qualitative research but also to broaden the application of the Wisconsin Model within the Chinese context. This expansion enriches the theoretical framework and proffers novel decision-making insights for the future policy evolution of China's higher education. Moreover, it furnishes both theoretical and practical underpinnings for the realization of the goal of higher-education modernization in China.