Abstract: European Debt Crisis, in essence, results from the contradiction between the inherent characteristics of market economy and modern social civilization. It reveals the underlying problems rooted in the pattern of economic development of the European Union. For many years, the EU countries have adopted debt expansion as a way to maintain high-level fairness, yet it leads to the decrease of economic efficiency. They have raised the proportion of virtual economy as a way to maintain economic growth, yet it leads to irrational industrial structure. They have promoted social security as a way to raise the citizens’ welfare standard, yet it leads to weak awareness of social development responsibility. In order to avoid such problem as European Debt Crisis occurring in China, we need to ensure that the realization of fairness should be achieved through the increase of efficiency, that the development of virtual economy should be based on the solid foundation of the real economy, and that the realization of rights should be marched with the undertaking of responsibilities.

Key words: market economy; modern civilization; European debt crisis; economy development mode