What makes the middle class tick

"Private companies would be appealing as employees for these people because in many cases salaries are based on performance," says Zhang Haidong, a researcher who worked on the survey, and who is a professor in the School of Sociology and Political Science at Shanghai University.

Despite those incentives in the commercial world, working for State-owned enterprises remains a popular choice because of the security of tenure, decent salaries and high social status, he says.

But none of this should be taken to mean that the middle-class thinks and acts as a single-minded beast. For example, the researchers say that Beijing's middle-class denizens lead lives that are more fast paced and full of pressure than their counterparts in Guangzhou, who lead relatively leisurely lives and have more time to take care of their families.

The lifestyle ascribed to the middle class in Guangzhou seems counter-intuitive, given the highly commercial and competitive nature of the city, reflected in the fact that on average its middle-class respondents in the survey said they had income of 39,900 yuan a year related to activities outside employment.

The middle-classers looked at in the survey also seem to attach great importance to healthy diet and nutrition, 65.1 percent saying they often eat environmentally friendly food.

The researchers also asked respondents about social justice, trust in society and their satisfaction with life. On these issues, the replies of the middle-class respondents were more positive than others, the researchers said, and more of those in the middle class than those not in it said they took part in public service activities and social events, and discussed political issues.

The middle-class respondents were more involved with charity than the non-middle class ones, their activities including making monetary or other donations to charities.

"The middle class are well-educated, with great vision and rational thinking," says Zhu Di, an associate professor at the Institute of Sociology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "As the backbone of society they play an important role in the formation of core values."

Though the middle class in cities tend to pamper themselves by using expensive products to look after their physical condition and to take part in cultural and leisure activities, this is done to take care of their need to be happy in themselves rather than to show off, she says.

Comparing leisure-time activities of the middle class and the non middle class, she says the former are more likely to play computer games, surf the Internet, travel and go to the cinema or a concert, while the latter tend to take part in more traditional activities, such as playing mahjong or cards or visiting someone for a chat.

"Mass consumption, to which the middle class is the main contributor, is a driving force to expand the domestic demand and transform economic development mode. They are more willing to buy high-quality and creative products, but some of these consumption demands are shifting abroad."