Search

The paper unpacks the multi-level efforts to establish, promote and implement China standards in overseas contexts through an examination of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities of Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Africa. Drawing upon document analysis of government policies, institutional guidelines and corporate reports from four case companies, as well as field research in Ethiopia, it identifies ways that Chinese corporate actors interpret, incorporate and initiate CSR standards through strategic planning and during overseas business activities. Analysis of both first-hand and secondary data shows the development of Chinese CSR standards is a co-production of international, national and local standards, which involves diverse actors and institutions and is driven by multiple considerations to fulfill commercial, political, social and diplomatic objectives for overseas companies and Chinese government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soft power strategy is an important aspect of China's foreign diplomacy. It must adapt to China's global peaceful rise. It must create understanding, respect and ultimately support China's political models and policies. Then, it will help China win friends' hearts and minds around the world. Therefore, it is not surprising that building and predicting a soft power strategy is firmly on China's international agenda. This paper starts with the background of soft power and then describes the rises and the limitations of China's current soft power strategy by using documents from previous researches and social media. Finally, the paper illustrates suggestions and solutions to improve this charming strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible Summary: What is known on the subject?: Physical restraint is widely used in the elderly at home, and cognitive impairment is an important risk factor. Family caregivers of people with dementia are the main decision makers and implementers of physical restraint at home.Most people with dementia in China receive home care, and family caregivers face enormous care and moral pressures influenced by Confucian culture.Current research on physical restraints focuses on quantitative analysis of its prevalence and reasons within the institutions. There is little research on how family caregivers perceive physical restraints in home care context, especially under Chinese culture. What the paper adds to existing knowledge?: Many family caregivers face approach – avoidance conflict and moral dilemmas when making decisions to restrain, and they make difficult choices in these dilemmas.In China, family caregivers are influenced by many unique factors, including traditional Confucian culture, family affection, and rural home environment.Inadequate laws and policies provide the ground for abuse of physical restraints, and family caregivers rarely consider legal and policy restrictions when using physical restraints. What are the implications for practice?: With limited medical resources, nurse‐led dementia management is the hope to reduce physical restraints in home.Mental health nurses need to assess for the appropriateness of physical restraints associated with psychiatric symptoms in people with dementia.At both organizational and community levels, improving effective communication and relationships between professionals and family caregivers are important to address. Improvements in this context require education and time for staff to develop skills and experience which is necessary to provide family caregivers with ongoing information and psychological support within their communities.Considering Confucian culture will be of value for mental health nurses working in other countries where there are Chinese communities to better understand perceptions of family caregivers. Introduction: The use of physical restraints is a common practice in home care. Family caregivers face care‐related and moral pressures due to the influence of Confucian culture in China. The use of physical restraints in the Chinese cultural environment may differ from the use of such restraints in other cultures. Scientific Rationale: Current research on physical restraints focuses on quantitative analysis of its prevalence and reasons within the institutions. However, there is little research on how family caregivers perceive physical restraints in home care context, especially under Chinese culture. Aim: To explore the perceptions of family caregivers on physical restraints in people diagnosed with dementia receiving home care. Method: A descriptive, qualitative study of Chinese family caregivers of people diagnosed with dementia in home care. Framework method analysis was adopted using the multilevel socio‐ecological model. Results: Beliefs about benefit lead to a dilemma for family caregivers. Cherishing family's affection encourages caregivers to reduce physical restraints, but lack of help from family members, professionals and the community forces them to restrain their loved ones. Discussion: Future research should explore the complex issue of culturally specific physical restraints decisions. Implications for Practice: Mental health nurses must receive education regarding the negative outcomes of the use of physical restraints for family members of people diagnosed with dementia. A more liberal approach to mental health and relevant legislation, which is an emerging global phenomenon that is currently in an early phase of development in China, grants human rights to people diagnosed with dementia. Effective communication and relationships between professionals and family caregivers can contribute to the establishment of a dementia‐friendly community in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Left‐behind children who live away from their migrant parents in rural China have received widespread media attention, especially around their vulnerability and delinquency. To examine the media construction of this population and responsibility attribution for the incidents occurring to them, we used the phronetic iterative approach to analyse 348 news reports published by The Paper, one of China's leading digital media outlets. Our findings revealed that the media constructed a stereotypical portrayal of these children and their families. Moreover, structural inequalities existing in social policies were shifted into personal responsibility in media discourses. This study offers empirical support for the role of news media in shaping public perceptions through their construction and framing processes. We highlight the need to identify structural factors that affect media portrayals of rural families and call for more social support for left‐behind children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employment quota is one of the affirmative action measures, outlined by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in its General Comment, to increase the employment of disabled people in both public and private sectors. Existing literature has studied the implementation, outcome, and effectiveness of the employment quota, majorly by quantitative data, while the empirical evidence of how it influences the right of disabled people to work is relatively limited. The practice of employment quota in China suggests the possibility of underpinning discrimination and exclusion and thus puts disabled people in a more disadvantageous position. This paper empirically examines how the discriminatory effect of the employment quota is shaped, with a particular focus on the interaction between the quota policies and stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has made remarkable progress in preventing and intervening in domestic violence against women. Scholars have reported on this development. Methodologically, this paper, which draws on 3362 references selected from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, uses the bibliometric method to summarize the characteristics, evolution, and frontiers of key topics into research on abused women in China between 1993 and 2020. The paper has three key findings. (1) The volume of literature has grown continuously, but in three stages: initial, rapid growth, and peak fluctuation; (2) the topic has five research hotspots: fundamental issues in domestic violence against women; new legislation, notably the 2015 Anti-Domestic Violence Law ; social support for abused women; matrimonial disputes involving abused women; and conviction and sentencing of abused women who kill their husbands; and (3) the current research frontiers lie within the defects of the Anti-Domestic Violence Law and challenges in the implementation of the law. In addition, the paper examines characteristics and limitations of the study on abused women in China and suggests changes in practice, policy, and directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following economic reforms, China has become one of the premiere destinations for foreign capital; however, the benefits of this spectacular growth are not evenly distributed. Since the beginning of the 2000s, the Chinese government has designed and implemented policies to encourage foreign investment in central and western provinces to help decrease the significant distributional differences in regional industrial value-added, with limited success. In contrast to previous literature, this paper uses Panel Least Squares method to analyze empirically the impact of industrial sector FDI on Chinese regional inequality in industrial value-added 2003–2013, using three Chinese regions. The lack of prerequisite institutional structure to aid in FDI absorption affects location choices. Despite government policies to support inland regional economic development, foreign firms still prefer to invest in coastal provinces, further illustrating the effects of regional clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a well-acknowledged central economic and diplomatic policy of the Chinese government, which was proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013. This paper intends to discover the relationship between the public diplomacy narratives of the BRI and its implementation. By using content analysis, this paper analyzes Chinese President Xi's speeches from 2013 to 2020 about the BRI, as well as official statements of the Chinese central government. It identifies the public diplomacy narratives of the BRI: an assemblage of constantly changing policy settings that accommodates various economic and political interests. Also, this paper draws on differences between countries joining the BRI or not, and several case studies to elucidate the implementation of the BRI. Different from repetitive literature that explores either the BRI narratives or its implementation, this paper contributes by combining and comparing the two. Despite positive interpretations of the BRI the Chinese government has adopted, the paper argues that there are no deceptive tricks with skeletons in the closet of the Chinese government, as the BRI public diplomacy narratives are, in general, consistent with its implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities identified the Chinese blind massage policy as "reserved employment" in its Concluding Observations in 2012. In response, this paper reviewed the policy on blind massage in China and discussed its effectiveness and social impact. Methods: Adopting a historical perspective, this paper describes the development stages of the blind massage policy in China. It reveals the social construction process of the blind massage policy. Government data were provided to help analyze the positive and negative effects of the policy according to the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Results: The blind massage policy is a national strategy involving semi-reserved employment to improve the low employment rate of people with visual impairments in China. It promoted employment of people with visual impairments at the start, but, as the system of the blind massage gradually took shape, it restricted these individuals from choosing a career freely. The blind massage policy has resulted in deep-rooted social prejudices, and it demonstrates disability-based discrimination and charity-oriented practices. Discussion: The Chinese blind massage policy is discriminatory and does not reflect the modern concept of disability rights advocated in the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Implications for Practitioners: The Chinese government needs to promote institutional reforms to provide better education and employment for people with visual impairments to change the limited content of vocational training and eliminate discriminatory policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a critique of the "specialty towns" program, a key constituent of China's current new-style urbanization campaign. It problematizes the contradictory accounts of the program, namely, emphasizing "place-based" strengths while simultaneously standardizing forms, functions, and goals with a strong "place-neutral" approach. We argue that three key building blocks are critical for understanding specialty towns: place dependence, embeddedness, and locational advantage. Through multiple-case studies in Zhejiang, evidence has shown that there is a mismatch between national policies and local practices in specialty town development. The latter has its own place-specific logic of development shaped by history, geography, institutions, and agency. In particular, existing small-scale growth settings (e.g., industrial parks, specialized markets) and characteristics of local agency are the main factors affecting local practices. This paper argues that without considering the specificities of places in a broader socioeconomic context, the program may fail to work as effectively as expected in its local implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ostensibly, Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential elections should have placed United States international policy back on a familiar path. However, despite the prevalence of a highly traditional vision of US foreign policy, the Biden administration has maintained significant continuities with the previous administration, as reflected in the policy towards China and the withdrawal from Afghanistan. In part, this is due to the constraints produced by the deep divisions that exist at domestic level. This paper aims to unravel the fundamental elements of Biden's foreign policy, focusing on possible ideological and doctrinal elements, strategic priorities, and any continuities and changes relative to his predecessor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been the subject of extensive analysis since late 2013. Most of this views it as a manifestation of China's approach to global issues under Xi Jinping, whether economic, geopolitical, or as a bid to reshape globalization. There has so far been less research into the domestic dynamics of the BRI, including at the sub-national level in China. Based primarily on an examination of provincial-level policy documents and research, this paper explores the ways in which policy makers in the southwestern province of Yunnan have responded to the BRI, and what this might mean for the implementation and shaping of the initiative. It identifies the promotion of externally-oriented development as the main response in Yunnan to the BRI, structured around the idea of making the province a 'pivot' to south and southeast Asia. This provincial-level response is shaped by pre-existing policy goals in Yunnan and reflects more continuity than change in policy substance. This is consistent with interpretations of the BRI as an 'omnibus' policy which can incorporate multiple objectives and act as a framework within which provincial actors can compete for influence or which they can use to make progress towards achieving local objectives in the context of national strategy. The paper concludes that in the case of Yunnan and the BRI, broad alignment between provincial and central government objectives suggests that on this issue, Yunnan is more of an 'influencer' and 'interpreter' than 'ignorer' of national policy goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how aspects of national culture may shape the design and implementation of public policy, using the example of energy policy in China. It focuses on cognitive style and on political and legal culture. China’s energy policies display a combination of pragmatism, incrementalism, internal contradiction and ambiguity. This is consistent with evidence from experimental psychology and history that the development of Chinese and East Asian cognitive styles have taken a path distinct from those of Western civilizations with their Greek philosophical heritage. These variations of cognitive style between cultures are reflected in brain function and genes. Policy implementation also bears features from imperial times in the political culture of China’s Communist Party and the contemporary legal system. These arguments reinforce existing calls for caution when seeking to transfer energy or other public policy approaches between countries with different cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identities are not pre-given but are socially constructed with performative power. Taking a critical discursive approach, this study explores how the cultural understandings of deafness and the deaf community become intertwined with ideas of the 'state-home' (guo jia) in contemporary China. The paper analyzes forty award-winning biographical essays written by Chinese citizens with hearing disabilities in a 2016 national essay contest. The paper argues that the paradigmatic narratives from the essay contest correspond to the disability policy framework of the Chinese government in the market-reform era. The implications of these statist narratives of deaf identity need to be critically reflected as the human body becomes a central site of governance and governmentality in China during this stage. This study looks at autobiographical essays written by deaf people in China Essay contests organized for deaf people in China have opened up possibilities of expressing and sharing deaf experiences, but such events need to be analyzed critically. In China, the government plays an important role in orienting the disabled peoples' organization The individual's development and national development are inseparable in China's disability advocacy [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines caregiving for sick older family members in the context of socio‐economic transformations in rural China, combining empirical investigation with normative inquiry. The empirical part of this paper is based on a case study, taken from fieldwork in a rural Chinese hospital, of a son who took care of his hospitalized mother. This empirical study highlighted family members' weiqu (sense of unfairness)—a mental status from experiencing mistreatment and oppression in family care, yet with constrained power to explicitly protest or make care‐related choices. Underpinning people's weiqu and constrained choice, as informed by the conception of structural injustice, is the impact of unjust social structures, organized by unfavourable norms, discriminatory social policies and institutions targeting rural populations. By restraining individual choices and capacities in supporting health care for aging populations, these unjust structures create additional difficulties for and discriminations against rural families and their older members. Some policy recommendations are proposed to mitigate structural injustice so as to empower families and promote care for older people in rural settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many countries, national governments deploy city-regionalism not simply as a domestic policy tool but also as a geopolitical device enabling the internationalization of state territory and economy. Focusing upon the evolution of Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region in China, this paper offers new insights into the close associations between Chinese city-regionalism and the geopolitical orchestration of national development. Rather than conceived as an inevitable outcome of contemporary globalization processes, the development of YRD region is instead examined against the changing geopolitical dynamics and national objectives of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1949 to the present day. In the early phase of CCP rule, the development of regional urban centres, such as Shanghai in YRD region, was an instrument of national territorial integration and class unity. Following economic reforms in the 1980s, the formal designation of YRD as a city-region reflected the Chinese state's aspiration for accelerated economic growth and the internationalization of the domestic economy. Now confronted with widening regional inequalities, the Chinese state has greatly expanded YRD region to incorporate peripheral cities and provinces for the sake of regionally coordinated development. Even as YRD transforms into a global city-region, Shanghai seemingly separates itself functionally and discursively from the rest of the region. In departing from contemporary post-Westphalian or hyper-globalist perspectives on the rise of global city-regions in a stateless world, the paper provides a new interpretation of Chinese city-regionalism as a case of countervailing geopolitical processes at work within and beyond national state borders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the governance and institutionalisation of Chinese makerspaces. Existing research on the governance of makerspace has proposed two governance models or 'paradigms': bottom-up commons-based peer production and top-down public policy based governance. This article is trying to explore how makerspace in China is governed by a multitude of institutional forces. By examining three maker communities, it is argued that: (1) the dominant model of governing Chinese makerspaces does not adhere to either of these two models. This paper proposed an alternative one: a 'subtle top-down' model that accounts for the dialectics between government and its governing approaches and, the involvement of various non-government actors aligning with public policy goals; (2) makerspace has become an instrument to drive China's transition from an industrial-based economy to a service economy. The proliferation of makerspaces marks the concrete step towards a Chinese contemporary modernisation route; (3) makerspace highlighted some of the attempts made by the state to address structural inequalities. This article concludes by pointing out the challenge is how to incorporate the rhetoric of disruptive innovation into the Chinese context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between political events and information control on WeChat through a longitudinal analysis of keyword censorship related to China's 19th National Communist Party Congress (NCPC19). We use a novel method to track censorship on WeChat before, during and after the NCPC19 to probe the following questions. Does censorship change after an event is over? What roles do the government and private companies play in information control in China? Our findings show that the system of information control in China can trigger blunt reactions to political events. In addition to critical content around the Congress and leaders, WeChat also censored neutral and potentially positive references to government policies and ideological concepts. The decision making behind this censorship is a product of the interaction between the government, which influences actions through directives, and the companies, which ultimately implement controls on their platforms. While this system is effective in compelling companies to implement censorship, the intermingling of the state and private companies can lead to outcomes that may not align with government strategies. We call for a deeper understanding of the role of private companies in censorship and a more nuanced assessment of the government's capacity to control social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • This paper explores the effects of four dimensions of social exclusion on self-rated health and depression among older people in China. • Lower level of exclusion from social relationships was associated with less likely to report fair or poor SRH. • Lower level of subjective feelings of exclusion was associated with less likely to report fair or poor SRH. • Lower level of subjective feeling of exclusion was associated with less likely to report depression. • Lower level of exclusion from financial products was associated with less likely to report depression. Abstract Background It is well established that social exclusion is a key social determinant of health; however, such association between social exclusion and health outcomes among older people remain a relatively under-researched area. This paper explores the effects of four dimensions of social exclusion on self-rated health and depression among older people in China. Methods This paper includes 8038 individuals aged 60 and over from the first wave national multi-stage probability sample (2014) from the China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey (CLASS). Descriptive univariate information for individual variables and four dimensions of social exclusion are presented. Multinomial and binary logistic regression models are used to examine the associations between social exclusion and self-rated health and depression. Results Older people who were in the lower level of exclusion from social relationships or subjective feelings of exclusion were significantly less likely to report fair or poor self-rated health than people in the higher level of exclusion (lower level of exclusion from social activities was significantly associated with being less likely to report poor SRH only). Older people who were in the lower level of subjective feeling of exclusion or exclusion from financial products were significantly less likely to report depression. Conclusions Different dimensions of social exclusion have different effects on self-rated health and depression. Social policies need to reflect this and efforts of services could usefully be oriented to prevent multi-dimensions of social exclusion. Ultimately, such policies should have the potential to enhance the health of older people in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food subsidies are widely implemented as part of government policies globally to mitigate food insecurity amongst the urban poor. Subsidies to retail outlets are one a type of supply-side subsidy designed to make food more affordable to low-income consumers. China's Affordable Food Shop (AFS) program introduced by the central government in 2011 and implemented by municipal governments is one example. To date, there has been little research examining the effectiveness of the AFS program despite more than a decade of implementation. This paper presents a case study of the program's effectiveness in Nanjing which was one of the first Chinese cities to introduce the program which grew very rapidly in the years that followed. In early 2020, the Nanjing program was closed which raises important questions about its effectiveness and impact. We show that food insecurity in Nanjing is generally low but that increased food insecurity is associated with lived poverty, lower income, and unaffordability of staple foods. Food insecurity is not mitigated by proximity to an AFS Program shop. The paper argues that the program had various deficiencies and a limited effect in reducing food insecurity and increasing food accessibility. These included inappropriate targeting, program redundancy, and competition from supermarkets and public markets. In the circumstances, the decision by the city government to close the program is understandable. • Food subsidy programs in many countries target low-income, food insecure urban populations. • The Chinese central government introduced an Affordable Food Shop (AFS) Program in 2011. • Food insecurity in Nanjing City affects about 20% of the population and varies with level of poverty, income, food expenditure and household type. • The AFS Program in Nanjing has not succeeded in providing cheaper food for low-income, food insecure households. • The limitations of the AFS Program in Nanjing are partly responsible for its closure in 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is an empirical review of the development of two-wheeled transport, comprising human-powered bicycles, E-bikes, and motorbikes in China from 1985 to 2019, aimed at investigating the development of two-wheeled transport in China. A series of demand-side factors (e.g., rapid urbanization) and supply-side factors (e.g., obsolete infrastructure) are explored. The mode share of human-powered bicycles decreased steadily until 2016, the year dockless bikeshare (DBS) emerged. During that time, government policy changed from "encouraged", "discouraged", "converted and re-recognized" to "encouraged again" due to sophisticated socio-economic change. E-bikes and motorbikes witnessed an independent growth trend and changing political attitude from that of human-powered bicycles. The future of the human-powered bicycle transport mode in China is promising, due to favorable government policies and the growing demand from users for a flexible mode of transport to serve short-middle distance and last-mile trips. E-bikes have an uncertain future since local policies differ, and safety issues are yet to be addressed. Motorbikes, due to their negative safety and environmental considerations, have been increasingly replaced by automobiles, and this makes their future position marginal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rational choice theory (RCT) is a classical theory in criminology, with deep roots in the Enlightenment. It has secured a privileged place as a mainstream criminological theory in the United States. Ironically, RCT has not been applied to research on juvenile delinquency and related decision making in China. This study attempts to test the relative utility of RCT among adjudicated juvenile offenders incarcerated in an institution located in a southwestern province of China based on their responses to two hypothetical scenarios of offending. The results of the Tobit model analyses emerged from the two-wave longitudinal data lent strong support to the view that RCT can indeed serve as an important theory for explaining delinquent behaviors in China. More specifically, juvenile offenders used cost-benefit analysis to decide if they want to be involved either in the stealing scenario or in the fighting scenario. A discussion of findings and public policy implications are highlighted at the end of the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quota systems represent one of the most important and widely used approaches to promote the employment of people with disabilities in many countries around the world. Extant literature has focused on how quota systems have been implemented in some European countries and some Asian countries. Few studies, however, have examined the situation in China, where a formal law and regulations for a quota system for disability employment was established over the past three decades. This paper addresses this gap by presenting background on the development of China's quota employment policies, examining the inconsistencies between policy and implementation, and identifying feasible ways to enhance the policy's use to create more inclusion in employment in public and private sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multifunctional agriculture (MFA) has been supported in the European Union (EU) for over two decades, primarily as part of rural development policy in which agriculture is encouraged to deliver a range of economic, social and environmental outcomes. MFA has also grown in some countries without significant policy support, notably in peri‐urban fringes in North America and Australasia. Further expansion of this phenomenon is now apparent in China under strong central government policy directives from the early 2000s. Drawing upon a decade of studies of MFA in China, this paper examines some of the responses to various related policy initiatives, including major programs, such as Grain for Green, which have encouraged farmers to generate environmental services. It also refers to the scope for individual farm households to take initiatives leading to MFA via adoption of multiple functions on smallholdings (e.g., rural tourism, food processing). Various interpretations of MFA are explored, with a focus on how central government policy directives have driven take‐up of various MFA‐related initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is experiencing rapid progress in industrialization and urbanization. Characteristic towns (Tese Xiaozhen) are one of the important drivers for China's urbanization, industrialization and agricultural modernization in the 21st century. Each of the towns has its own characteristics. At present, however, it is unclear for them about (i) what characteristics should be promoted, (ii) how urban land should be planned and (iii) which industry should be focused on. The public infrastructure and services in towns are usually under-developed, compared to cities. This paper first explores the designation of a brand-new type of new towns in China, i.e. “characteristic towns”, to meet the need of the current urbanization in China. The paper focuses on the principles of “agglomeration” and “livability”, in socioeconomic and cultural contexts. This is exemplified by a case study of Zhejiang's version of characteristic towns. The findings suggest that the success of cultivation of towns is closely associated with agglomeration and livability. In the short term, identifying characteristics is the core element in the development. For the longer term, a comprehensive integration of industrial policy and land use policy is needed to ensure continuous capital investment and revenue generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comprehensive review of the thermal power industry and the accurate forecasting of carbon emissions can provide valuable information to improve energy efficiency and act as a tool for policy makers to realize sustainable and low-carbon emissions from the thermal power industry. In this paper, we study the low-carbon development of China's thermal power industry based on an international comparison from three perspectives: review, analysis and forecast. Initially, we review both the international and national energy consumption of China; although gaps in energy efficiency still exist between China and countries with advanced thermal power technology, China's thermal power industry is gradually following a low-carbon development route. Then, we analyze low-carbon technologies for thermal power units, including ultra-super-critical technology, integrated gasification combined cycle technology, and carbon capture and storage technology and present a design for environmental protection technology for thermal power units. Carbon emissions should be effectively and successfully handled to improve the prospects of China's thermal power industry. Therefore, this paper forecasts carbon emissions by using a hybrid grey model that is optimized by the firefly algorithm and adjusted by weakening buffer operator based on the calculated carbon emissions. If China's carbon emissions from the thermal power industry increase according to the present rate, China will have difficulty in realizing its carbon reduction target by 2020. Finally, related future policies for the 13th Five-Year Plan of China are proposed based on low-carbon policies around the world with regard to financial, technological and industrial aspects to help the thermal power industry achieve healthy and low-carbon development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compare three countries where public policy has explicitly sought to align incentives of employers and educational institutions around closing the gap between skill formation and labor market demand. In large, heterogeneous countries such as the United States, Russia and China, collaborative arrangements such apprenticeships and other forms of public-private partnerships can be constructed at the subnational level by building on direct, face-to-face ties across educational, business, government, and civic sectors. Drawing on existing literature as well as fieldwork studying a number of specific cases in the three countries, the paper develops a typology of such arrangements and proposes an explanation for the observed variation. It emphasizes the importance of two sets of factors: those that induce cooperation on the part of firms and schools, and those that influence the character of such partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes and evaluates China's policies toward the rare-earth industry from 1975 to 2018. We define five stages over this period and focus on China's purpose, the underlying economic background in each stage, and the connections between stages. By reviewing a broad set of original policy documents, we find that the purpose of China's policies has evolved, affected by the market players, the development of the mineral industry, and the state of the Chinese economy. Initially, the Chinese government encouraged the development of the upstream rare-earth sector. Since the early 1990s, China has focused on the development of downstream activities that use rare earths in the manufacture of intermediate and final products. Since the early 2000s, China has focused additionally on the problems of disorder in the rare-earth industry with particular reference to the environmental degradation caused by rare-earth production, as well as industrial reorganization to discourage unsanctioned production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expansion of Chinese influence in the Pacific has aroused growing attention from academics and policymakers. Although China has established six main Pacific research centres, there has been little investigation into what motivates this increasing interest. Building on the author's recent interviews with 39 Chinese mainstream scholars on the subject of Pacific Studies, this paper aims to fill this gap by providing an in-depth analysis of Pacific Studies in China, especially how centres are structured and what motivated their establishment. It is argued that the initiation, structure and scholarly focus of academic research on the Pacific in China has been largely driven by government policies, but also that government interest has fluctuated under President Xi Jinping. Government policy dependence is a double-edged sword that both promotes and hinders Pacific scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To balance the supply and demand in China's beef market, beef consumption must be scientifically and effectively forecasted. Beef consumption is affected by many factors and is characterized by gray uncertainty. Therefore, gray theory can be used to forecast the beef consumption, In this paper, the structural defects and unreasonable parameter design of the traditional gray model are analyzed. Then, a new gray model termed, EGM(1,1,r), is built, and the modeling conditions and error checking methods of EGM(1,1,r) are studied. Then, EGM(1,1,r) is used to simulate and forecast China’s beef consumption. The results show that both the simulation and prediction precisions of the new model are better than those of other gray models. Finally, the new model is used to forecast China’s beef consumption for the period from 2019–2025. The findings will serve as an important reference for the Chinese government in formulating policies to ensure the balance between the supply and demand for Chinese beef. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders in Nanhai, this paper adopts an analytical framework to examine how a combination of infrastructure-pull, supply-push and demand-pull initiatives implemented by a small district government in southern China were able to facilitate socio-technical transitions to the public transport decarbonization through the establishment of hydrogen refuelling infrastructures, the adoption of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and the development of production network on FCEVs. With neither massive investment from the central government nor captive linkage with global automakers, Nanhai out-performs other automotive powerhouses in China by accounting for 9.85 percent of FCEVs and 4.59 percent of all operating hydrogen refuelling stations in China, despite its land area only accounting for 0.01 percent of the country. The provision of hydrogen infrastructures and other pro-active local government initiatives (including financial incentives) facilitate the development of a competitive regionalized production network of about 90 (privately-owned) fuel cell electric buses makers and parts suppliers around the Xianhu Hydrogen Valley in Nanhai. This finding enhances our understanding on effects of (local) state policies on the socio-technical transitions to public transport decarbonization and the long-term development of hydrogen economies in other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With China’s economic rise and in particular its massive international trade surplus with the rest of the world, the exchange rate of its currency has come under increasing scrutiny in the new millennium. Based on a critical review of existing International Political Economy (IPE) theoretical approaches on exchange rate politics – theInnenpolitikapproaches and the international-domestic interaction approach – this paper argues that two-level game theory is a suitable tool for explaining the development of China’s exchange rate policy. By specifically examining the external factors and domestic sources of China’s exchange rate policy, this paper develops a complete analytical framework in which China’s central decision makers are understood to strive to reconcile international pressures and domestic bargainers when making decisions on exchange rate policy. After offering a theoretical review, revision and synthesis, the paper provides an empirical study of China’s 2005 exchange rate reform to specifically show how international factors played an agenda-setting role in China’s exchange rate policy making and how China’s domestic politics determined the pathway of the exchange rate reform in July 2005. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Significant efforts towards environmental transparency have been made by the Chinese government since 2008. This paper focuses on the technical decisions shaping a database of official pollution information built and operated by a Chinese NGO known as the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE). Issues of standardization, power distribution and institutional fragmentation are discussed. The paper illustrates a case of NGOs integrating enforcement capabilities as data centres amidst the growing reliance on processes of informational governance of environmental issues. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The spectacular scale and speed of China's domestic renewable energy capacity development and technology catch-up has in recent years been followed by the 'go out' of Chinese clean energy technology firms seeking new markets and opportunities in sub- Saharan Africa. This paper explores the growing involvement of China in the development and transfer of renewable energy technologies in Africa and examines the key drivers and obstacles shaping Chinese renewable energy investments and exports. Far from there being some kind of grand or harmonious strategy directed by a single monolithic state, we argue that fragmented and decentralised state apparatuses and quasi-market actors in China are increasingly pursuing their own independent interests and agendas around renewable energy in Africa in ways often marked by conflict, inconsistency and incoherence. Moving beyond the state-centric analysis common in much of the research on contemporary China-Africa relations, we examine the motivations of a range of non-state and quasi-state actors, as well their different perceptions and constructions of risk, policy environments and political stability in recipient countries. The paper explores the case study example of South Africa, where Chinese firms have become increasingly significant in the diffusion of renewable energy technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the effects of globalisation and rapid technological development, traditional linear life course patterns of the past are gradually disappearing, and this affects education and learning systems as well as labour markets. Individuals are forced to develop lifestyles and survival strategies to manage job insecurity and make their skills and interests meet labour market needs. In modern attempts to develop and implement institutional provision for lifelong learning, guidance and counselling play an important role. The current Danish guidance system is well-organised, highly structured and professionalised. By contrast, Chinese guidance is still fragmented and 'sectorisational'. This paper explores whether elements of the highly structured and professionalised Danish guidance system and practice might be applicable to the Chinese context. The author begins by outlining international and national factors which are affecting citizens' life and career planning. She then presents and discusses the evolution of guidance and the different elements of provision in each of the two countries. Next, She compares the concepts and goals of 'lifelong guidance' in Denmark and China, pointing out their similarities and differences and their respective strengths and weaknesses. The paper concludes with some suggestions for the further development of guidance in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For Chinese policymakers, shouldering responsibility is often associated with high liability risk, thus resulting in low-level care for risky and stigmatized populations such as drug users. Therefore, it is crucial to explore ways to improve care access in such an uneasy policy environment. Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Yunnan province in southwestern China from 2013 to 2021, this paper traces the policy-making process of the Yunnan Province Methadone Oral Solution Take-Home Treatment Work Proposal. All stakeholders involved considered this policy attempt "impossible" at first, as the highly addictive methadone becomes an illegal drug once it is taken outside a clinical setting. By analyzing how a group of local government officials, together with medical practitioners and drug users, strive to legitimize and ultimately implement the policy, I argue that people's concern over liability risks strengthens the boundary between methadone as a "drug" and methadone as a "medicine," between methadone solution drinkers as "drug users" and as "patients," and between "inside the clinic" and "outside the clinic." By utilizing a culturalist approach to explore the possibility of care in such a context, this paper reveals that a " heqing heli hefa worthy-of-being-cared-for" discourse is crucial in that it acts as symbolic capital to dissolve the above boundaries embedded in the dominant political culture. Moreover, it is the key cultural logic of the "building" of care. The findings also illustrate how local policymakers negotiate and balance responsibility and liability to create a potential policy space for enabling care practices. Additionally, this study sheds light on the inclusion of care for the most stigmatized and marginalized populations, and has broad implications for policy-making in other contexts. • In the field of drug control, policies often delay and even exclude care for drug users. • Concerns over liability risks hamper users' access to take-home methadone service. • Liability risks affect people's categorizing of methadone as a medicine or a drug. • Privatization of compassion helps to mitigate liability risks. • Policymaking could also be a process of accumulating and building care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delinquency of street children in China is prevalent, but the etiology of pathways into delinquency among street children in China has yet to be explored. By drawing on in-depth interviews with 40 street children in Kunming, China, this paper investigates the processes that lead street children to become involved in crime. The research finds that street children's pathways to delinquency occurs via three stages: (1) initial attempts to make a living through conventional activities; (2) involvement in the informal economic activity as a middle solution; and (3) engaging in instrumental crime as a last resort. Delinquent behavior is thus street children's natural adaptation when access to legitimate survival opportunities are eliminated by institutional exclusion to the formal labor market and because of the government's efforts to tackle child homelessness which often have negative consequences for children living on the streets. This reflects both anomie/strain theory and resilient perspectives, and this research constructs a model of anomie, resilience and crime. The article concludes by arguing that policy and practical implications for reducing street children crime in China should focus on providing life and work opportunities and help to raise awareness of street children in China and the mechanisms they use to assist their survival on the streets. • The study investigates the pathways to delinquency for street children in China. • Street children's delinquency is a response to the oppressive social structure. • Delinquency reflects street children's resilient adaptation. • Policy and service should focus on providing opportunities to street children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inclusive development strategy proposed by the Chinese government embraces social inclusion for older people. In line with most developing countries, China's policy on social inclusion for older people focuses almost exclusively on material security in the form of pensions. This paper examines the impact of pensions on social inclusion for older people across four dimensions: family interaction, social support, social participation and self-assessment using data from the 2014 China Longitudinal Ageing Social Survey. The results demonstrate that pensions improve dramatically the relationships between older adults and their family members and friends, and therefore their social inclusion in the life world. The exception is social participation which seems to be immune to material income effects. However, the stratified pension system in China generates complex and hierarchical effects on social inclusion among different sub-groups. Social inclusion among older people with high exclusion risks but low pensions is very sensitive to pension levels. Conversely, most pensions are distributed to those with the lowest exclusion risks as a result of the disappearance of their impact on social inclusion. We argue that future social inclusion policies for older people in China should focus first on achieving greater equality in pensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • The relationship between commuting behaviour and congestion satisfaction are significant. • Semi-parameter model results are robust. • Heterogeneous effects on perceived satisfaction about congestion across social-spatial gradients. Abstract Megacity growth in developing countries suffers from heavy congestion, which undermines satisfaction as experienced by local residents. Drawing on a large scale individual survey in Beijing, this paper explores the social-spatial differentiation of urbanites' satisfaction perceptions about congestion by comparing residents with various motorized commuting modes including car, shuttle bus, and public transit. The results show that shuttle bus commuters are significantly associated with better satisfaction perceptions about congestion than other commuting mode users. We find that perceived wellbeing implications vary with demographic characteristics and transport accessibility characteristics. Findings from this study suggest the importance of considering neighborhood built environment into the design of land use and transport policy aiming to enhance commuters' subjective experiences towards congestion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary This paper examines how the efficacy of energy-saving policies can be improved through learning. Effective allocation of energy-saving targets is key to achieving China’s reduction targets for energy intensity. Despite growing research interest in the energy-saving target allocation system, details regarding the logic and rationale behind the modifications to the system since the 11th FYP period remain unclear. This paper contributes to the previous literature by applying the concept of policy learning to an analysis of how and from what sources the Chinese government has learned to improve its energy-saving target allocation system over the 2006–13 period. Our study finds that the Chinese government has developed a distinct policy style of “learning from multiple sources” that involves three primary sources: previous experience, local practice, and expert knowledge. Although the extant literature has previously identified these three sources of learning, most of this literature has focused on only one—or at most two—sources of learning at any given time. The uniqueness of policy learning in the energy-saving target allocation system consists of the co-existence of these three sources of learning in one case. This learning-oriented policy style is characterized by reflexivity, which allows current policies to be adjusted in a timely manner in order to alleviate prospective risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of land tenure security perceptions on rural-urban migration decisions of rural households, using data collected in Minle County in Northwest China. We find that tenure security perceptions play a significant role in household migration decisions in villages without well-functioning land rental markets but not in villages where the land rental markets are more developed. In villages with underdeveloped land rental markets, households that expect that no land reallocations will occur within their village in the near future are less involved in migration, while households that attach a greater importance to land certificates in protecting land use rights are more involved in migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims This paper provides an overview of gambling issues in China, including historical development, governmental responses and social consequences. Methods Based on materials written in Chinese or English available at academic databases and other online resources, historical, cultural and policy analyses were conducted. The focus is on mainland China, but reference is made to Hong Kong and Macao to illustrate differences. Results Throughout Chinese history, gambling was strictly prohibited by law. In contrast, small-stakes betting for entertainment instead of monetary gain, defined as 'gaming' in this paper, has been culturally acceptable and tolerated by governments. After banning gambling for three decades, the Chinese government attempts to meet public demand for 'gaming' and to confine gambling to 'gaming' by issuing national lotteries. In response to increased economic wealth, gambling opportunities were allowed to develop, but were restricted to Macao. Social problems such as illegal and youth gambling are, however, emerging. The 'gaming' perception may predispose Chinese individuals to wagering activities and increase the risk of gambling disorder, which has been widely seen as misconduct rather than a mental disorder. Currently, the country has a dearth of gambling research and limited prevention and rehabilitation services, almost none at national level. Conclusions A distinction between small-stakes 'gaming' and large-stakes 'gambling', which has cultural roots, plays an important role in relevant governmental policies and social responses in mainland China. Gambling disorder prevention and treatment is not yet on the national agenda. The country's knowledge and services gaps on gambling problems need to be filled out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Set against the background of China's changing economy and its rapid rise as a major tourism provider, this paper examines the development of tourism, and tourism policies, in Kanas (Xinjiang), an ethnic inhabited scenic area in north-western China which has seen visitor numbers rise from c. 800 to c. 1 million annually from 1990 to 2013. It uses the first four stages of Butler's Tourism Area Life Cycle model (TALC) as a framework, analysing governments' role in policy-making and implementation, and the tensions and conflicts at each TALC stage. It finds that the TALC is a useful analytical framework in China, despite its command economy, and governments' multiple roles in tourism development. The position of cultural heritage and the characteristics of the Tuva and Kazakh ethnic minority peoples in tourism in Kanas are critically examined, as is China's concept of social harmony and progress. Social harmony is compared - and contrasted - with the emerging concept of the Just Destination in destination planning and management. The minorities are found to be weak in knowledge, capital and bargaining power, but the relationships involved are complex and still evolving. The paper is one of a JOST series on China's new tourism management policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses a micro set of Chinese city-level data to understand the varying choices taken by municipal officials in their distribution of a minimum livelihood scheme. It explores the variation in the apportionment of allowances offered to disparate types of poor groups in poor versus wealthy cities. The paper argues that in China, where profits, modernisation, competition and globalisation have become significant to leaders at all levels, there is a logic undergirding welfare allocation that has nothing to do with the calculus that spurs its delivery in democracies, and yet that is more nuanced than stylised models of dictatorship/authoritarianism presume. The paper also demonstrates that, where lower echelons of governmental administration have the authority to make rules about the rationing of social assistance, urban finances appear to have an impact upon (or at least to correlate with) administrators’ allocational decisions to groups among the poor. This influence of municipal financial health is exerted directly in the case of poor places, by enticing officials to attempt to save on funds; it also seems to operate indirectly in wealthier municipalities, by disposing richer cities’ authorities to design their urban areas as showcases, in the hope of attracting tourism and foreign investment. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There has been a long-held view since the Federalist Papers that the lower the level of government, the greater is the extent of capture by vested interests. Relying on the analytical framework of relative capture, I challenge this assumption by arguing that interest groups have different incentives and capacities to capture different levels of government. I test the theory by investigating how judges at different judicial levels adjudicate corporate lawsuits in China. Exploiting a quasi-experiment in which the Supreme People’s Court dramatically raised the threshold for entering higher level courts in 2008, I show that privately owned enterprises are more likely to win in lower level courts, and state-owned enterprises are more likely to win in higher level courts. I then employ qualitative interviews to explore the mechanisms behind them. The findings challenge an underlying assumption in the decentralization literature and have important policy implications for countries that are trapped in centralization/decentralization cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops a theoretical framework for institutional analysis of the governance of low-income housing in the city. I focus on the provision of local public goods as a central issue for low-income housing. Factors that affect the governance structure from the efficiency perspective and the equity perspective, respectively, are explored. I argue that over-subsidisation is an important problem for income-redistribution institutions and, hence, public housing or social housing becomes an important form of governmental intervention in low-income housing. The framework is then applied to low-income housing in China. In particular, I analyse the governance structures of several major types of low-income housing including public rental housing, private low-income housing, work-unit compound and urban village. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Personal income tax is a commonly used redistributive instrument to deal with inequality. Whether it achieves that efficacy requires an appropriate measurement. This paper aims to examine the redistributive effects of personal income tax (PIT) based on the generalized entropy indexes. Compared with the commonly used approach based on the Gini coefficient, the generalized entropy indexes are more sensitive to the structural features of the redistributive effects and can lead to more reliable evaluation about the redistributive policy adjustments. Based on this new approach, we assess the redistributive effects of the 2011 PIT adjustment in China by using the urban household survey data. Different from previous studies, our results show that the 2011 PIT adjustment has effectively reduced the inequality within high income group, and if hidden income is taken into consideration, the overall inequality reduction resulted from the tax adjustment turns out to be positive. This finding highlights the importance of judging the redistributive effects of PIT on the basis of right household income data and that China should pay more attention to the hidden income in designing the redistributive tax rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, entrepreneurship has been gaining more prominence as a potential tool for solving poverty in developing countries. This paper mainly examines the relationship between farmer entrepreneurship and rural poverty alleviation in China by assessing the contribution of farm entrepreneurs towards overcoming poverty. Data were collected from 309 employees of farmer entrepreneurships in Guangxi Province through survey questionnaires. Structural equation modeling was used to conduct an analysis of the effects of three identified capabilities of farm entrepreneurs—economic, educational and knowledge, and socio-cultural capabilities—on attitude towards farmer entrepreneurship growth and the qualitative growth of farmer entrepreneurship and how these in turn affect rural poverty, using AMOS 21. The findings show that socio-cultural capability has the greatest influence on farmer entrepreneurship growth (β = 0.50, p<0.001). The qualitative growth of farmer entrepreneurship also more significantly impacts rural poverty (β = 0.69, p<0.001) than attitude towards farmer entrepreneurship growth. This study suggests that policy makers in China should involve more rural farmers in the targeted poverty alleviation strategies of the government by equipping rural farmers with entrepreneurial skills. This can serve as a sustainable, bottom-up approach to alleviating rural poverty in remote areas of the country. The study also extends the literature on the farmer entrepreneurship-rural poverty alleviation nexus in China, and this can serve as a lesson for other developing countries in the fight against rural poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From a national strategic development perspective, statism and state administrative apparatus may be functional and thus desirable in the course of development of some nation-states. Continual monitoring of the development trajectory, however, is necessary to ensure that the respective state is prepared to address a critical question as raised by Nobel Laureate Prof. Joseph Stiglitz: development for what? Basing on literature review and field interview, this paper aims to underscore the basic problems that negatively affect China’s effort to enhance substantive rationality in its present course of development. Singled out are the logic of administration and state cadres’ dominant logic that have a direct bearing on the search for a substantively rational administrative state. Policy and research implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the driving factors behind energy consumption changes provides insights about consumption patterns and can inform targeted energy saving polices. This paper applies a joint decomposition approach, introducing an index decomposition analysis (IDA) method into a production theoretical decomposition analysis (PDA). This integrated approach decomposed energy consumption changes into eight drivers. A subsequent empirical study of China resulted in three key findings. First, regardless of the geographic area considered, potential economic development was the largest factor driving energy consumption growth. Second, the technological change effects associated with economic development and energy savings both played significant roles in reducing energy consumption. Third, the efficiency change effects of energy use and economic development were generally unable to relieve the pressure of increases in energy consumption, especially in the eastern regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]