Recently, the National Office for Philosophy and Social Sciences released the list of major projects funded by the National Social Science Fund of China (NSSFC) in 2025. The project "Research on the Dynamic Trends and Impact of Digital Economy Development and Social Wealth Distribution" (25&ZD159) hosted by Professor Sun Qunli, Deputy Director of the Center for International Cooperation and Disciplinary Innovation of Income Distribution and Public Finance (111 Center) of Zhongnan University of Economics and Law (ZUEL), as the chief expert, has won approval and received funding.
This approval indicates the 111 Center's research strength in the frontier intersection field of "digital economy and social wealth distribution." During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, the 111 Center has been approved for a total of 7 major projects funded by the NSSFC. The research focuses on key issues such as income distribution, wealth redistribution, digital fiscal and taxation governance, and common prosperity, which are closely aligned with the strategic deployment of improving the distribution system, promoting high-quality development, and fostering common prosperity in the "14th Five-Year Plan Outline." As the "111 Plan" talent introduction platform of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the 111 Center relies on the national key discipline of finance, adheres to the concept of "Being Based on the Practice with Chinese Characteristics and Embracing a Vision of Global Governance." It continues to strengthen organized scientific research, deepens interdisciplinary collaboration and international exchanges, strives to produce original, forward-looking, and policy-influential landmark results, and actively builds an academic and think tank highland with Chinese characteristics and international influence.
Chief Expert Profile:
Sun Qunli, Ph.D. in Economics, is a second-level professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of Public Finance and Taxation, ZUEL. He serves as the Deputy Director of the 111 Center under the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. He has long been committed to research in fiscal theory and policy, income distribution and wealth accumulation, digital economy, etc.
At present, he has presided over the "Research on the Dynamic Trends and Impact of Digital Economy Development and Social Wealth Distribution" (25&ZD159), a major project funded by the NSSFC. He has also completed two annual projects funded by the NSSFC and two projects funded by the Hubei Provincial Social Science Fund. Professor Sun has also participated in the research of major projects of the Ministry of Education, projects of the NSSFC, and general projects of humanities and social sciences under the Ministry of Education. He has successively published more than 60 papers and six monographs in journals such as Economic Research Journal, Journal of Management World, and Public Finance Research. His main views and research conclusions have been cited and reprinted by Chinese Social Science Digest, China Social Science Excellence, and Chinese Social Sciences Today. A number of his consultative achievements have been adopted by the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, the General Office of the State Council, the Office of the Ministry of Education, and the Hubei Provincial CPC Committee and People's Government. His research achievements have won many national, provincial, and ministerial awards, including the First Prize of the 6th Outstanding Scientific Research Achievements Award of Higher Education Institutions of China (Humanities and Social Sciences), three first prizes, three second prizes, and four third prizes at other provincial and ministerial levels.
Project Overview:
As a new economic form driven by the new generation of information technology, the digital economy has become an important engine to promote China's high-quality development. However, while its rapid development creates enormous social wealth, the inequalities it causes, such as skill premiums, platform monopolies, and digital divides, may exacerbate wealth differentiation, thus altering the pattern of wealth distribution. In response to the profound changes and challenges in the distribution of social wealth in China during the digital economy era, this project focuses on the dynamic trends of digital economic development and social wealth distribution, as well as the far-reaching impacts arising from it.
To this end, this project aims to research and address the following three progressively interconnected issues:
1. Expanding Distribution Theory: It will advance Marxist distribution theory by constructing a dynamic analytical framework for the "technology-distribution-institution" co-evolution in the digital economy era, thus exploring the distribution connotations of data elements and algorithmic power.
2. Revealing Trends and Analyzing Mechanisms: It will accurately depict the dynamic trends and fluctuation characteristics of social wealth distribution, spatial differentiation, and group polarization in China over time. This involves an in-depth analysis of the transmission mechanisms by which core elements such as data elements, digital technologies, digital industries, and digital infrastructure drive the accumulation of social wealth.
3. Optimizing Policy Framework: This project proposes collaborative pathways from the perspectives of initial distribution, redistribution, and tertiary distribution. It has designed a four-dimensional collaborative governance system that encompasses national governance, regional coordination, corporate responsibility, and individual empowerment. On this basis, it evaluates the regulatory effectiveness of policy systems and constructs an inclusive digital governance framework to provide a scientific basis and practical solutions for regulating wealth accumulation mechanisms and achieving common prosperity in the digital economy era.
This project has designed five topics: Theoretical expansion research on social wealth distribution in the digital economy era, multi-dimensional characteristics and dynamic trends of wealth distribution patterns under the digital economy, research on the wealth distribution driving effects of core elements in the digital economy, research on the transmission mechanisms and dynamic monitoring of wealth distribution influenced by the digital economy, and policy framework design and implementation path research for wealth distribution in the digital economy era.