Abstract: On the basis of the quantitative measure of the technical inefficiency and the opportunity inequality at provincial level in China, this paper explores the impact of opportunity inequality on technical efficiency from the perspective of social capital. The results show that opportunity inequality has a significant negative impact on technical efficiency. In addition, after testing the relationship between opportunity inequality and social capital, it is found that opportunity inequality has a significant negative effect on social justice, and this negative effect is mainly reflected in the groups with poorer family background and higher personal income. The negative effect of opportunity inequality on social trust is mainly reflected in the groups with higher personal income at present; however, opportunity inequality has no significant impact on regional crime rate. Further research shows that social capital has a significant positive impact on technical efficiency, thus it confirms the intermediary role of social capital in the impact of opportunity inequality on technical efficiency.

Key words: opportunity inequality; technical efficiency; social capital; intermediate effect