以清代北桃園地方社會而言，當地存在著一批身分，地位與影響力不同於一般民眾，且中介於官方與一般民眾之間的地方菁英，又可分為地方士紳，官方在地方上的鄉治代理人與地方頭人三類。地方菁英的身分，地位與影響力通常來自官方的授與，認同，默認或容忍，或來自於社會中既有的尊卑，主從關係。他們為了建立，維持或擴大他們的身分、地位與影響力，除了會採取傳統的策略，如參加科舉、捐官等方式外，也會以參與地方公共事務，鄉治事務，或透過民間各種組織，關係，或是透過個人情誼來建構他們的文化權力網絡，並且不斷地嘗試以各種方法來獲得持續的發展。
地方菁英通常透過正式或非正式的管道在地方上建立其權威與影響力，並藉以競爭地方領導權：同樣地，官方也會藉著這些競爭與衝突，建立自己在地方社會中的權威，藉此加強對地方社會的控制。然而，本文發現官方並不是只會採取強硬的控制手段，由上而下的將其權威直接介入地方社會。官方似乎也會利用民間的各種組織，關係或是公共活動，試圖將其權威滲入民間，有時甚至也被迫或主動與地方菁英合作，或透過各種管道在地方社會中建構其「統治的合法性」。因此，地方社會也衍生出諸多包括地方菁英之間，以及地方菁英與官方間的各種合作，競爭，衝突與妥協關係。
在這樣的背景下，北桃園地方社會其實存在著許多的公共空間，可以讓官方或地方菁英在此建構，維持、發揮或競爭權威，並且可以讓地方社會中的各種力量在此共同運作，如:公共建設，公共事務，司法訴訟制度與地方公廟等。其中，地方公廟更是社會中各種力量運作、互動、建構、競爭或發揮影響力，或地方菁英與官方投資象徵資本、建構文化權力網絡的核心。

In recent years, a growing number of scholars researching late imperial Chinese society have begun to examine the ways in which local elites and the temple cults they managed had the potential to influence the social history of a particular region. In this paper, I will try to examine the complex and continuous relationship between the state, local elites and local society in late imperial China, based on a case study of the
Northern Taoyuan, region of Taiwan.
During the period of Ch'ing rule over Taiwan (1683-1895), this area witnessed the growth of at least three types of local elites, including members of the local gentry, sub-county representatives of the local government, and local leaders. The social status and influence of each type of elite varied, yet all three groups were very different from the common people. In addition to classifying different groups of elites, I also explore the many kinds of public spaces or arenas in local society where they attempted to exert their influence. Such spaces included public facilities, the local administration, civic organizations, legal cases and local temples. All these spaces allowed elites to act as important intermediaries between the state and local society. In particular, local temples could be an important public space where elites attempted construct or reconstruct local society. At the same time, both the state and local elites used spaces like temples as arenas where they could cooperate with each other or even compete against each other in terms of establishing their authority over local society.