中共十四屆五中全會做出西部大開發的決策，目前許多大型的公共工程與交通建設，在政府主導下，構築出美麗的硬體輪廓。然而，在華麗的文辭建構與硬體外衣下，隱藏的仍是極難處理的方向抉擇。如果良好的經濟發展是需要穩定和諧的社會環境為基礎，那麼大西部開發目前究竟建築在何種社會環境之上？本文就社會中的不平衡與不平等（所得分配的惡化、階層發展與衝突）、三農（農民、農村、農業）問題、社會穩定與社會整合狀況（社會發展與價值認同、族群衝突與族群發展）、全球化的影響等面向對大西部社會結構做一統整性之觀察，研究發現當前之社會結構的危機對大西部經濟發展是嚴重的負向拉扯，中共必須及早對社會發展與經濟發展的整合做出更好的方向抉擇。
Abstract The CCP made a decision to strongly develop west China several years ago. A lot of huge public hardware structures had been build up, policies had been made to enhance the economic growth, too. But behind the economic part, does the social structure good enough to afford a stable basis in development? This article try to check several social structure in west China region: resource distribution, social stratification, the peasant's problem, social integration, and the globalization issues. And find out that the social structure in west China is in crisis. It is suggested that policy- makers in China should realize the dilemmas in their developing way, and try to seek another way that could solve the problems both in economic development and social development.
