Public Political Consciousness in China: An Empirical Profile

The Impact of Economic Development on Political Development in Authoritarian States: An Initial Study of Interest in Politics Across Social Classes inChina

“…For the most part, Chinese people are viewed as apathetic to politics (Townsend, ; Zhu et al., ). Chinese government officials, academics, intellectuals, and even the general Chinese population tend to express this viewpoint.…”

“…Historically, however, the interest in politics of Chinese people has been neatly explained in three concise periods (Zhong, ; Zhong & Kim, ; Zhong et al., ). During the first period, prior to the 1949 Chinese Communist victory, most Chinese people were considered apathetic to politics (Zhong, ; Zhu et al., ). In the second period, from the 1950s to the end of the Mao era, approximately 1978, interest in politics may have increased, even in the Chinese countryside, primarily because of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) mobilization and Mao's efforts to make the Chinese people class conscious (Townsend, ; Zhong, ; Zhong & Kim, ; Zhong et al., ; Zhu et al., ).…”

“…In spite of these economic strides, China still lacks a thorough empirical investigation of the impact of economic development on political development across China. Townsend () noticed this in the 1960s, Zhu and colleagues () studied this in the 1990s, and Zhong (2004) has made reference to this in the 21st century. It is now important to investigate the impact of economic development on political development across the social classes throughout China.…”

“…Political development necessarily includes an overall greater interest in politics, especially among those placing demands for concessions on the authoritarian regime (Lipset, ; Pye, ; Zhu, Zhao, & Li, ). Of specific concern to this study is the interest in politics within social classes.…”

Democracy and Chinese Political Discourses

“…METHODOLOGY While the study of Chinese politics has, traditionally, been largely historical and interpretive, a few empirical survey-based studies have been completed since the late 1980s by both Western and Chinese scholars. These few studies include research on public political consciousness by Zhu, Zhao, and Li (1990); Nathan and Shi's (1993) study of cultural requisites for democracy; and profile of the Chinese &dquo;political man,&dquo; a book published in China about Chinese citizens' political characteristics. Li (1990: 999-1001) measure political participation, political efficacy, conformity, and liberty by asking questions such as, &dquo;Are you interested in the current political reform?&dquo; Based on the respondents' scores on the four categories, the study identifies five groups in the population: emulators, spectators, radicals, optimists, and outliers.…”