60 years after the founding of New China, how much has changed in our country? How has the living standard of ordinary people been improved? This standard is measured by the survival index, which is also called Engel's coefficient (EC) and is an important indicator to measure the change of residents' consumption level. The Engel coefficient determined by the United Nations is: the proportion of food expenditure to total consumption; When EC >; 0.6, the living consumption level of residents is in absolute poverty; 0.5-LTEC ≤ 0.6, and the living consumption level of residents is in the stage of food and clothing; 0.4 & ltEC≤0.5, residents' living consumption will reach a well-off level; When EC is less than 0.4, the consumption level of residents tends to be rich. Although some experts question whether Engel's coefficient represents the real living conditions in China, there is no doubt about the index of food consumption and the satisfaction of human survival. Since the reform and opening up, due to the sustained and rapid growth of income, the Engel coefficient of urban households in China has shown a downward trend, especially in recent years, the decline rate of Engel coefficient has obviously accelerated, from 1996 to 200 1, with an average annual decline of 2. 14 percentage points. Compared with 57.5% in 1978, the Engel coefficient of urban households in China was 37.7% in 2005, which decreased by 19.6 percentage points. Under the overall downward trend, it has generally experienced the change process of "high level wandering-fluctuating decline-rapid decline". That is to say, in the total consumption of urban households in China 100 yuan, the expenditure on food only accounts for 37.7%, and food and clothing seems to be no longer a problem, but the proportion of enjoyment and development consumption items used in education, entertainment and other aspects has begun to increase. The clothing index has gone up. People unconsciously freed themselves from the tunic suit and Lenin suit. The clothing index keeps rising, and various fashions emerge one after another. People need to show their elegance with the help of costumes and skillfully express their personal customs under beautiful coats. Specifically, now people have begun to appreciate suits full of personal characteristics and generous and noble style. The wage index has dropped, and the farmers in China still don't have 65,438 yuan+0,000 yuan a month, so the prices have gone up. In many cities, the wages of 80% middle class and lower class have fallen, and the income gap has widened. IT and financiers are facing pay cuts or even unemployment. However, it is still difficult for college graduates to find jobs. According to relevant data, the average annual salary of corporate executives is 200,000, while the average annual salary of ordinary employees is around 50,000. The rise of the competition index is inversely proportional to the wage index. Due to the allocation of market economy, the original industrial workers have been laid off and unemployed, some white-collar office workers have no choice but to choose new office buildings, and rural surplus labor forces have left their hometowns to find jobs in cities. Of course, professional competition is fierce. Since the reform and opening up, the food shortage has been monotonous, tickets have prevailed, people are malnourished, and some rural areas have not solved the basic problem of food and clothing; After the reform and opening up, we can not only eat enough, but also eat well. Although some people have been bribed and some people have lost their jobs, they still want delicious food. Balanced nutrition, thick and thin collocation, green food is deeply rooted in people's hearts. The game index rose "Cui Hua, sauerkraut!" This sentence is as popular on the Internet as Stephen Chow's Love You for Ten Thousand Years. FLASH, a network animation form, has also been greatly recognized and spread. Many images of FLASH are deeply rooted in people's hearts, and FLASH has also appeared on CCTV's screen, cheering for the 2008 Olympic Games, which can be described as the limelight. The most fundamental difference from previous bungee jumping, go-karting, bowling and other games is that FLASH is a game played by white-collar workers or even quasi-white-collar workers. They spread the game to the whole network and life. One day, we will find that FLASH has revolutionary significance for changing our ideas. Tourism index rises, holiday consumption is hot, and tourism becomes fashionable consumption. In 2000, the ratio of per capita tourism expenditure of urban residents in 88 yuan increased by 1995/67.6%. The tendency of urban residents to eat well, eat well, pay attention to nutrition and pursue convenience is becoming more and more obvious. The consumption expenditure of luxury goods such as tobacco, alcohol and beverages has increased significantly, and the pursuit of diversification and convenience of food tastes has also increased. The rising social index "Xintiandi" and "8: 30" are undoubtedly the favorite gathering places of celebrities. Many men and women regard it as the source of fashion. They found out the latest clothes and the most popular restaurants this year. They like restaurants and bars there, and they are willing to spend countless nights there. The three favorite social activities of China residents are dinner, sports and karaoke. In China, which pays attention to food culture, "table socializing" is still the most popular social way in China. When a white sail passes by you, you have reason to believe that the owner must be a young man in the 1980s, and now the owner is a 60-year-old man and a woman. This is the street view now. Sail, Hyundai, Passat, BMW ... A series of car advertisements appeared on TV screens in an unprecedented way, which was not seen in previous years. And the emergence of family cars of about 65,438+million yuan, such as Sail, POLO and Li Xia 2000, also makes it more and more feasible to own a car. The long-term index is flat. If the variety show is understood as the secular life of China people, it is already very vulgar. Without any emotion and sincerity, we can only see glib and affectation, but if the variety show is understood as a stage, then the white-collar show is complete, full of wit, deception, flirting and humor. Many articles point out that China's variety shows have entered a strange circle, which is both similar and lacking in depth. Now, the world is dominated by millionaires. The millionaire mentioned here is a game. By answering a series of questions, you can get different prizes or bonuses. If all the questions are answered correctly, the bonus amount will be as high as 654.38+0 million. The artistic index has dropped. A newspaper in Shanghai took stock of another concert market. Elva Hsiao was in a hurry, Jeff Chang Shin-Che danced wildly, Tayu Lo sang everywhere, Alan Tam sang abortion, and Korean Wave hurried south; Andy Lau stopped singing 15 minutes, and Kelly Chen was thrown into a soda can; The concert market is very lively, but there are few concerts with good reputation, which makes the artistic life of ordinary people a bit monotonous. There are many popular books with average cultural index, such as poor dad and rich dad who invest in financial management, so many celebrities and crows in literature. The fairy tale Harry Potter not only fascinates many children, but also makes many adults become loyal readers. The sports index is rising, and sports equipment and venues can be seen in the streets and alleys. Pursuing one hour of exercise every day has become the fashion of ordinary people in China. People meet and say, "Did you exercise today?" Due to the improvement of living standards, people generally pursue the improvement of quality of life. China Statistical Yearbook shows that the birth rate has been negative for decades. The higher the education level, the less I want to have children. Some people want to enjoy themselves better, while others want to have more time to work. In a word, for various reasons, the number of dinks is still rising. The housing index rose. At the end of 1990s, China abolished the traditional welfare housing distribution system, introduced market-oriented means and implemented the so-called monetary housing distribution system. With the abolition of the traditional housing system, people meet the housing demand through the market, so the consumption patterns aimed at promoting consumers to buy houses, such as installment payment, commercial loans and provident fund loans, have spread. It should be noted that Engel's coefficient represents the change of residents' consumption structure and the main tendency of life. If we want to reflect the change of poverty gap in China, we need to refer to Gini coefficient further.