China is gripped by an insidious problem that is eroding its economy: It is trapped in a cycle of competition so fierce that it is destroying profits, driving a brutal rat race among workers and ...

The word “involution”, or neijuan – referring to excessive competition in social and economic life – has become a common slang term in China. Students, workers and even business leaders have been ...

When the Chinese term first emerged in popular culture in China a few years ago, the initial application was to Chinese students and young people trapped in highly competitive schools and jobs that ...