既有信访相关研究主要涉及行为与制度两个主题。行为主题下的信访研究关注的是上访民众的上访行为过程或上访民众与地方政府及其官员的互动过程,重在揭示民众上访行为逻辑或与信访有关的国家权力运作机制。制度主题下的信访研究则旨在通过对信访制度及其设计的规范分析,提供解决制度实施中存在的问题的改革设想。基于对这两个主题下既有研究的回顾与讨论,本文提出,信访研究未来发展的一个可能方向是以与信访制度实施有关的国家机构的运作过程为切入点,对信访制度实施过程做经验的分析。
There have been two significant topics in extant researches on Xinfang (Letters & Visits) : Action topic and institution topic. Researches under action topic focused either on petitioners' actions or interactions between petitioners and local governments and their officials, to explore the petitioners' behavioral logics or the operational mechanisms of state power in Xinfang field. Researches under institution topic aimed at offering proposals for institutional reform by normal analysis of Xinfang Institution itself. Based on the critical review on these researches, a desirable direction of future researches on Xinfang :is proposed : empirically investigating the implementing process of Xin- fang Institution, which isthe operational process of government agencies involved in Xinfang Institution.