当代社会的高度流动性和关系个体化是造成危害中国社会秩序基础的原因之一，也令基层治理面对巨大的挑战。通过我国S市信访社工实践的考察研究，从“非正式关系”重构的视角来分析社会力量参与基层治理的运作方式与实现机制，可以发现国家在冲突性基层治理中正从前台走向幕后，并更多借助社会力量来调动社会成员的情感，重建社会关系，从而达到治理的目标。在此基础上，进一步分析并探讨“柔性治理”方式在基层治理中的价值、功能以及可能存在的困境，可为基层治理提供理论基础和反思。

High mobility and individualization of relationships has undermined the foundations of China’s social order, and also has posed enormous challenges to grassroots governance. Taking the practice of petitioning social workers in S City as an example, this paper analyzes the operation mode and implementation mechanism of social forces’ participating in grassroots governance from the perspective of “informal relationship” reconstruction. The results show that the state is moving from the front to the back in the grassroots governance, mobilizing the emotions of social members and rebuilding social relations through social forces to achieve the goal of governance. Based on this, this paper puts forward the concept of “flexible governance”, and discusses its value, function and possible predicament to bring theoretical base and reflection to effective grassroots governance.