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Carbon emissions caused by the massive consumption of energy have brought enormous pressure on the Chinese government. Accurately and rapidly characterizing the spatiotemporal characteristics of Chinese city-level carbon emissions is crucial for policy decision making. Based on multi-dimensional data, including nighttime light (NTL) data, land use (LU) data, land surface temperature (LST) data, and added-value secondary industry (AVSI) data, a deep neural network ensemble (DNNE) model was built to analyze the nonlinear relationship between multi-dimensional data and province-level carbon emission statistics (CES) data. The city-level carbon emissions data were estimated, and the spatiotemporal characteristics were analyzed. As compared to the energy statistics released by partial cities, the results showed that the DNNE model based on multi-dimensional data could well estimate city-level carbon emissions data. In addition, according to a linear trend analysis and standard deviational ellipse (SDE) analysis of China from 2001 to 2019, we concluded that the spatiotemporal changes in carbon emissions at the city level were in accordance with the development of China's economy. Furthermore, the results can provide a useful reference for the scientific formulation, implementation, and evaluation of carbon emissions reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of traditional media, social media, and media trust on people's compliance with health behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. A total of 3000 Chinese adults filled online questionnaire using quota sampling method. Results show that use of central government media and use of WeChat are positively related to compliance with health behaviors, while use of local media and use of Weibo are negatively related to the levels of compliance. In addition, trust in the media amplified the effects of media use on levels of compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• After being exposed to uncivil content, the less-educated people are more likely to express whereas the well-educated tend to remain silent in China. • Incivility and argument quality have a combined effect on public expression. Even equipped with strong argument, incivility can decrease people's expression willingness. • Mixed evidence regarding the impact of online incivility on public expression can be explained by comment's argument quality, topic, and receiver's education level. Uncivil comments are prevalent in Chinese cyberspace. Many studies have explored the impacts of online incivility and argument quality on public expression, but very few studies have been conducted in authoritarian societies. We conducted two online experiments with different topics in China. The results showed that after being exposed to uncivil content, people's intentions to make comments online changed depending on their education level and opinion congruency. The less-educated people are more likely to express whereas the well-educated tend to remain silent. Besides, incivility and argument quality can work together to influence public expression. A strong argument with a civil tone can promote people's enthusiasm for expression. But a strong argument with an uncivil tone can decrease people's expression willingness. However, uncivil comments with weak arguments increase less-educated people's willingness to express themselves publicly. Besides, opinion congruency moderates the relationship between argument strength and online expression. But the pattern was contingent upon the nature of the discussion topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is one of the world’s most sophisticated Internet censoring countries. Chinese Internet users who wish to visit blocked Web sites will have to use circumvention tools to get around the Great Firewall, a censoring system inspecting, filtering, and blocking foreign Web sites outside China. Using a nationally representative survey dataset, this study compares circumvention tool users and nonusers in terms of demographic features, Internet-use motivation, levels of media trust, and, most importantly, political attitude and behavior differences. We found that more than 11% of Chinese Internet users had ever used circumvention tools and they were most likely to be young and well-educated. Compared to nonusers, circumvention tool users were more likely to oppose censorship, to place less trust in news media, and to participate more actively in civic activities. However, circumvention tool users tend to hold more politically conservative attitudes than nonusers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study extends the spiral silence theory and investigates the influence of perceived incongruence in opinion climate on individuals' intentions to express their true thoughts. Three intervening variables were examined to explain the process by which perceived incongruence in opinion climate leads to self-censorship: ambivalence, perceived opinion support, and internet political efficacy. Using data collected in telephone interviews with a random sample of 1020 Chinese residents in Shanghai and Guangzhou, we found that individual perceptions of the opinion climate varied considerably, and they were based on different media outlets. The Chinese audience is able to tell the difference between traditional media and the internet in terms of the features of their content. Moreover, among the Guangzhou residents, we found that the perceived incongruence in opinion climate was negatively related to the individual's willingness to express his or her true thoughts. Perceived opinion support was found the most robust intervening variable among the three proposed mediators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to explore the patterns and trends of Internet news use in a Chinese metropolis, Shanghai. By analyzing news webpage browsing data from three selected months in 2009, 2010, and 2011, we seek to present some evidence other than self-report data, which were widely used in past research but subject to the influence of memory limitation and social desirability. Our findings are: First, Internet users in Shanghai paid more attention to soft news, and finance and economy news, than to social and political news both in terms of visit times and visit duration. Second, news page visits and the amount of time people spent on reading news online suggest clear monotonic growth across all categories of news content over a three-year period. Third, despite the growing amount of visits and time used for online news, the proportion of visits and time devoted to news viewing to total webpage visits and time spent online decreased significantly. However, “social and political news” and “finance and economy news” did not experience any decline. Finally, existing gaps were identified between different demographic groups in terms of news reading frequency online, but no clear trends were identified concerning how the gaps developed over time. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

• This study contributes to scholarly understanding of misinformation correction effect in an authoritarian regime, China. • The experiment manipulated message source and tone in corrective messages of science misinformation, and compared the effects of different manipulations on correction believability. • Government source was perceived more believable compared to mass media, scientist, popular science media, celebrity, and layperson for science misinformation correction. • A formal tone was perceived more believable than an informal tone in delivering science correction, and such effect was more salient when audiences hold an inconsistent attitude with the correction. People rely on heuristic cues to evaluate messages. An increasing number of studies found corrective messages useful in correcting misinformation, and the correction effect varies on heuristic cues. Existing studies, however, mostly focus on correction effects in the Western context. This study aims to compare the effects of corrective messages with different heuristic cues in an authoritarian society. We focused on the cues that suggest government authoritativeness. Using an online experiment, we compared the impacts of correction sources (official vs. professional vs. layperson) and tones (formal vs. conversational) on the believability of the correction. The results indicated corrections from a government source and delivered in a formal tone were more believable in China. In addition, we examined the moderating role of attitude congruence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite being caught between political censorship and market pressure, investigative journalism in China has exhibited persistent vibrancy over the last three decades. This report seeks to understand the driving force behind this phenomenon by exploring the demographic composition and the ways in which Chinese investigative reporters perceive their jobs. About 259 reporters from 73 media institutions in 18 provinces participated in this study. Compared to beat reporters, investigative reporters cherish the interpretive and populist mobilizing functions of the news media and belittle the entertainment and propaganda functions. The type and location of news organizations, rather than individual background factors, play dominant roles in shaping investigative reporters' professional values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fernbach et al. (2019) found that extreme opposition to genetically modified (GM) food was associated with low levels of objective knowledge and high levels of self-assessed knowledge in the US. They also found that the pattern that extreme opponents knew the least but felt they knew the most applied to opponents of a medical application of genetic engineering technology (gene therapy). In the past few years, genetic engineering technology become one of the most polarized scientific and social issues in China. Following Fernbach et al. (2019), we conducted a conceptual replication study using a nationally representative sample of Chinese internet users. In addition to studying extreme opponents of GM food and other applications of genetic engineering technology, we examined the extreme supporters in terms of their knowledge as well. Our findings show that Chinese people in general hold negative attitudes toward GM food and positive attitudes toward other applications of genetic engineering technology. Consistent with the original study, we found a similar pattern for extreme opponents of GM food in China. In addition, our data show the same pattern for extreme proponents of other applications of genetic engineering technology. • Prior work shows that extreme opponents of GM food know the least but think they know the most. • This research conceptually replicates that pattern in China. • A similar pattern is found for extreme opponents of GM food in China. • This pattern also applies to extreme supporters of other applications of genetic engineering (GE) technology in China. • Chinese people have a negative attitude toward GM food and a positive attitude toward other applications of GE technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study analyzed people's online government contact behavior in China. • Resources, problems and values are found to be predictors of citizen contacts. • Among the three clusters of predictors, resource plays the most important role. The development of information technology not only allows people to contact government more easily, but also provides researchers with new opportunities to investigate the pattern of interaction between citizens and government. Using data spanning eight years from a Chinese nationwide political forum, we examined how citizens' government contacting behavior relates to a series of theoretically relevant factors such as resources, social problems, and value systems. The data show a substantial increase in online citizen-initiated contacts in China from 2011 to 2018, with vast regional variation. In addition, we find that resources, social problems, and political value play important roles in explaining citizen contact frequency. More specifically, resource is positively associated with the number of citizen contact; high levels of social problem urge people to contact government; and people from provinces with more intense traditional political value are more likely to contact the government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The sustainability of Chinese economy has attracted attentions from all over the world since China''s reform & opening up policy. This paper attempted to evaluate the relationships among Chinese economy, energy and its impact of emissions during 1991–2009 using several novel indicators based on emergy, energy and monetary units. The results show that NH3-N in wastewater has taken main responsibility for impact of emissions, the hidden environmental cost per unit economic output has been continuously reduced, education and R & D investment has cut pollutants generating intensity since 1997, and environmental protection investment has cut emission intensity since 1996. Generally speaking, the coordination degree of structure and scale of China''s economy has been improved to different degree from 1991 to 2009. However, the growth of education and R & D investment and environmental protection investment has not prevented impact of emissions from increase caused by economic aggregate growth, and the turning point has not appeared in this period. Finally, this paper discusses some related issues and puts forward the corresponding suggestions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The interplays among economy and energy and environment have been widely concerned. This paper put forward several indicators to quantify the relationships among economic growth and energy consumption and CO2 emission. As an example, these indicators were applied to evaluate the comprehensive performances of China during 1990–2007. The results show that Chinese people has been living a better life with Chinese rapid economic growth but not synchronously in urban and rural areas. Non-carbon energy resources share has increased; however, fossil energy resources have still acted as the main driver for Chinese economic growth during this period. Technical progress has improved the fossil energy efficiency of Chinese economic activity, which leads to CO2 emission per unit GDP and CO2 emission per capita unit GDP dropping simultaneously; however, the two indicators’ annual decline rates become smaller and smaller, which reflects that technical progress’ role is dropping and economic scale''s effect is climbing. People''s survival has a rising contribution to CO2 emission. CO2 emission per capita has increased, which shows that economic scale has greater impact on CO2 emission than technical progress does. Relatively speaking, Chinese development patterns have become more and more sustainable during this period. Finally, based on the related issues being discussed, some corresponding suggestions are put forward for Chinese government to further coordinate the relationship among economic development and energy consumption and CO2 emission. The proposed indicators can form a set of useful tool for policy-makers to promote the harmonious development of economy and energy and environment in different regions and countries. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]