Populist Authoritarianism: Chinese Political Culture and Regime Sustainability

Populist Authoritarianism focuses on the Chinese Communist Party, which governs the world's largest population in a single-party authoritarian state. Wenfang Tang attempts to explain the seemingly contradictory trends of the increasing number of protests on the one hand, and the results of public opinion surveys that consistently show strong government support on the other hand. The book points to the continuity from the CCP's revolutionary experiences to its current governing style, even though China has changed in many ways on the surface in the post-Mao era. The book proposes a theoretical framework of Populist Authoritarianism with six key elements, including the Mass Line ideology, accumulation of social capital, public political activism and contentious politics, a hyper-responsive government, weak political and civil institutions, and a high level of regime trust. These traits of Populist Authoritarianism are supported by empirical evidence drawn from multiple public opinion surveys conducted from 1987 to 2015. Although the CCP currently enjoys strong public support, such a system is inherently vulnerable due to its institutional deficiency. Public opinion can swing violently due to policy failure and the up and down of a leader or an elite faction. The drastic change of public opinion cannot be filtered through political institutions such as elections and the rule of law, creating system-wide political earthquakes.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 CHINESE POLITICAL CULTURE AND REGIME SUSTAINABILITY Introduction Why Does Political Culture Matter? Mass Line: the Origin of the Populist Authoritarian Political Culture Primitive Accumulation of Social Capital in China Political Culture in Post-Mao China The Plan of the Book Political support: local vs. center Regime stability and national identity Social capital Political trust in China and Taiwan Protest and regime sustainability Labor dispute resolution Political trust: an experimental study Populist Authoritarianism: A Theoretical Discussion Using Survey Data to Study Political Change in China Chapter 2 AUTHORITARIAN REGIME SUSTAINABILITY The Coming Collapse of China: How Soon? Modernization and democracy Regime crisis Regime durability Horizontal vs. vertical supports How Satisfied and Happy Are the Chinese? Government Dissatisfaction and Life Dissatisfaction Public Anger, Political Action and Democratic Change Conclusions Chapter 3 NATIONALISM AND REGIME SUSTAINABILITY Theories of Nationalism Nationalism in China Sources of Chinese Nationalism The Political Consequences of Chinese Nationalism Conclusions Chapter 4 INTERPERSONAL TRUST AND REGIME SUSTAINABILITY The Puzzle Interpersonal Trust and Democracy Origins of Interpersonal Trust Confucian Tradition Socialist Legacy Economic Growth and Marketization Findings I: Classification of Interpersonal Trust Three Types of Interpersonal Trust Three Types of Trust and General Interpersonal Trust Findings II Trust and Political Attitudes and Behavior Conclusions Chapter 5 POLITICAL TRUST IN CHINA AND TAIWAN What is political trust? Competing theories of political trust Political mobilization Economic satisfaction Internal efficacy External efficacy Culture Comparing China and Taiwan: Methods and Data Measuring and comparing political trust in China and Taiwan Measuring and comparing the sources of political trust in China and Taiwan Multivariate analysis of political trust in China and Taiwan Conclusion and discussion Chapter 6 REGIME INSPIRED CONTENTIOUS POLITICS The Rise of Contentious Politics in China The Contentious Politics Literature Regime-Mobilized Contentious Politics in China Institutional Deficiencies and Populist Authoritarianism Examples of Regime Mobilized Contentious Politics Case Studies and Large-N Analysis The Scope of Collective Action Group Leaders Regional Distribution Multivariate Analysis Central and local governments Targets of group action Unfair treatment Age Education Gender Urbanization and ethnicity Conclusions and Discussion Chapter 7 INDIVIDUAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION Scope and Type of Disputes Channels of Dispute Settlement Established official channels Emerging institutional channels Non-institutional channels Hypothetical and actual channels Socio-economic characteristics of dispute resolution Economic Organizations and the Politics of Dispute Resolution Conclusion and discussion Chapter 8 POLITICAL TRUST: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY List experiment Data and methodology Findings Robustness Check Conclusions and Discussion Chapter 9 POPULIST AUTHORITARIANISM: A PRELIMINARY THEORETICAL DISCUSSION Key components of the PA Model The Continuity of the Mass Line Ideology Social Capital and Interpersonal Trust Political Contention and Participation Weak Institutions The Hyper Responsive Government Strong Political Support The PA Model and Civic Culture The PA Model and the BA State The PA Model and the Existing Studies of Mass Politics The PA Model and the Study of Comparative Politics

About the Author :
Wenfang Tang is Professor of Political Science, Chair of Chinese Culture and Institutions, and Director of Undergraduate Studies at the University of Iowa

Review :
2016 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title "Wenfanf Tang's book is an important and illuminating read for both students of China and students of authoritarianism more generally." -- Catherine Owen, Europe-Asia Studies "This engaging narrative is rich in data and valuable in its assertions. Populist Authoritarianism is a tour de force in the contemporary literature on development, China, and democratization. It merits a place on every university library shelf." -- J. D. Gillespie, College of Charleston, CHOICE