Popular Political Support in Urban China

by Chen, Jie

• ISBN13: 9780804750578
• ISBN10: 0804750572
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-01-01
• Publisher: Stanford Univ Pr

Summary

Has the current political system in the People's Republic of China lost its legitimacy in the eyes of the Chinese public? On the basis of three carefully drawn surveys of Beijing residents between 1995 and 1999, the author finds that diffuse support for the current political systembased on attitudes toward institutions and valuesremains strong, at least among city-dwellers, though it is gradually declining. Specific support for current political authorities, as measured by evaluations of their performance in major policy domains, is much weaker, with many citizens evaluating the authorities' performance as mediocre. In analyzing the longitudinal data presented here, the author finds that the same set of key sociodemographic attributes and sociopolitical orientations variably influence citizens' attitudes toward the political system and their evaluations of leaders' performance. Further, the study shows that citizens' attitudes toward the system, on the one hand, and their evaluation of incumbents' performance on the other, have different impacts on forms of political participation, such as voting and contacting authorities.

Author Biography

Jie Chen is Associate Professor of Political Science and Director of the Asian Studies Institute at Old Dominion University.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures	xi
Acknowledgments	xv
Introduction	1	(20)
The Extent of Popular Political Support in Beijing	21	(33)
Relationship between Diffuse and Specific Support	54	(22)
Sources of Diffuse Support	76	(45)
Sources of Specific Support	121	(33)
The Behavioral Consequences of Political Support	154	(25)
Conclusion: Empirical Findings and Their Implications	179	(16)
Appendix A: Reliabilities of the Diffuse and Specific Support Indexes	195	(6)
Appendix B: Supplemental Information about the Distribution of Diffuse Support and Specific Support	201	(4)
References	205	(20)
Index	225