IR 428, Spring 2016
China’s Political Economy
Dr. Dan LynchTel:213-740-0773
Associate ProfessorE-mail:
School of International RelationsOffice:VKC 326-B
University of Southern CaliforniaHours:Wed 10:30 am - 12 pm
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0043Thurs 4 pm – 5:30 pm
A NOTE on OFFICE HOURS: Because the volume of my visitors is high and unexpected meetings crop up frequently, please make it a point to schedule an appointment via email before coming in. Better for everyone that way.
Goals and Requirements of IR 428
The purpose of IR 428 is to introduce advanced undergraduate students to the critical issues surrounding China’s economic development within the context of its domestic politics; then assess the implications for international relations. IR 428 proceeds from the assumption that the basis of China’s “rise” in international power terms is its rapid economic transformation since 1978. But the global financial crisis of 2008 and subsequent “great recession” exposed serious weaknesses in the Chinese development model, which had come to depend on continually increasing net exports in addition to massive investment in infrastructure, productive capacity, and real estate projects. To most observers, none of these paths to GDP growth will be sustainable in the future. Environmental destruction and resource shortages also pose serious challenges, as do demographic changes. The question then becomes whether China’s rise can continue at the same rate and in the same manner as in recent decades. Is there a limit to how wealthy and powerful China can become? If so, what are the implications for international relations?
The only suggested prerequisite for IR 428 is IR 210, but students would benefit from having taken at least one course that covers China in some depth and one or more courses in economics or political economy.
In terms of course mechanics, the critically-important factor for you to know from the start is that the School of IR wants to use 400-level courses to cultivate students’ capacity to (a) speak up intelligently in formal settings where public policy matters are being discussed, (b) give PowerPoint (or equivalent) presentations covering complex subject matters to well-informed groups, and (c) write a cogent, well-argued (though not necessarily long) research paper. Cultivating these skills will make you much more adaptable to job, graduate school, and law school settings. You will get plenty of practice in IR 428, starting from the fact that we will run the course as a SEMINAR, not a lecture course, which means that you will always have to come in having prepared the reading in advance and be ready to discuss it. Everyone will be expected to speak up and make informed observations about the reading content during every class—and everyone will have the opportunity to give three PowerPoint presentations on the assigned readings, working with other students in the class.
Final course grades willbe calculated as follows:
PPT Presentation #1:05 percent
PPT Presentation #2:05 percent
PPT Presentation #3:05 percent
Seminar participation:20 percent
Midterm Exam (Tuesday, March 1st):20 percent
Research paper: (dueThursday, May 5th)20 percent
Final exam: (Tuesday, May 10th)25 percent
Each class session, we will begin by having the two students scheduled for that day give a 30-40-minute presentation covering the main points in the readings and identifying key problematic areas and issues for discussion. We will spend the rest of the seminar period discussing those issues and problems as well as others that I will have identified. When it’s your day to present (and we’ll make the assignments for well in advance), you will need to coordinate tightly with the other person presenting that day. The reason is that we want a single PPT presentation, and we want it to be seamlessly well-organized and completely finished within 40 minutes.
For the research paper, students should—from January through March—keep their eyes open to detect a problem or shortcoming or simply a missing topic not covered in the readings, or not covered satisfactorily; formulate a research question stemming from this discovery; and then develop a strategy for answering the question in a research paper of 10-12 pages. On Tuesday, March 22nd, students will hand in a 1-2 page research proposal that includes a preliminary bibliography or list of sources to consult. I’ll help you to sharpen your proposal but the core ideas and effort to find sources must come from you.
POLICY ON RECOMMENDATION LETTERS: I will consider—and usually consent to—writing letters of recommendation for any student who (a) completes two of my courses, (b) earns an A- or better in both courses, and (c) never goes online during class with their computer or telephone and never plays electronic games, etc. I’ll even write a letter for someone who gets a B+ in the first course and an A- or better in the second one, because I like to see improvement.
CHECKING THE INTERNET OR YOUR CELL PHONE IN CLASS: This is rude; you’re not learning anything; and you annoy your fellow students. Therefore, please never do it in IR 428. If you do, you’ll lose participation points. If you do it regularly (and it’s easy to detect in a seminar setting), you’ll lose all your participation points. Remember: The class only meets 160 minutes a week. Surely you can be away from the Internet and your phone for 160 minutes!
USC Statement on Academic Integrity
USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected to understand and abide by these principles. Scampus, the Student Guidebook, contains the Student Conduct Code in Section 11.00, while the recommended sanctions are located in Appendix A:
Students suspected of academic dishonesty will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards. The inquiry process is explained at:
USC Statement for Students with Disabilities
Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to the professor or your TA as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone number is (213) 740-0776.
Books Ordered and Soon to Be Placed on Library Reserve
Bauman, Yoram. The Cartoon Introduction to Economics: Volume 2 (Macroeconomics). New York: Hill and Wang, 2011.
Brandt, Loren, and Thomas G. Rawski, eds. China’s Great Economic Transformation. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Huang, Yasheng. Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the State. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Lardy, Nicholas. Sustaining China’s Economic Growth after the Global Financial Crisis. New York: Peterson Institute, 2012.
Naughton, Barry. The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007.
Pettis, Michael. Avoiding the Fall: China’s Economic Restructuring. Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2013.
Course Schedule
12 January (T): Course Intro (Issues in China’s Political Economy) (1)
a.Recent news issues that convey the current dilemmas.
b.Self-introductions.
14 January (Th): Core Economic Concepts You’ll Need to Know Cold (2)
a.Yoram Bauman, The Cartoon Introduction to Economics: Volume 2 (Macroeconomics) (New York: Hill and Wang, 2011), pp. 18-124; pp. 139-166. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
19 January (T): Mixed Legacies from the Pre-Revolutionary Past (3)
a.“The high-level equilibrium trap.” (Blackboard)
b.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapters on “The Geographical Setting” (pp. 17-32); and “The Chinese Economy before 1949” (pp. 33-54). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
c.Frank Dikotter, The Age of Openness: China before Mao (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2008); chapters on “Open Markets” (pp. 81-98); and “Conclusion” (pp. 99-102). (Blackboard)
21 January (Th): The Soviet Model and the Great Leap Forward (4)
a.Janos Kornai, The Socialist System: The Political Economy of Communism (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992), pp. 33-61. (Blackboard)
b.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “The Socialist Era, 1949-1978” (pp. 55-84). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
c.Yang Jisheng, “The Fatal Politics of the PRC’s Great Famine: The Preface to Tombstone,” Journal of Contemporary China, 19(66), September 2010, pp. 755-776. (Blackboard)
26 January (T): The General Pattern of Reform-Era Change I (5)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “Market Transition: Strategy and Process” (pp. 85-112). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, “China’s Great Economic Transformation,”in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 1-23. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
28 January (Th): The General Pattern of Reform-Era Change II (6)
a.Barry Naughton, “A Political Economy of China’s Economic Transition,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 91-130. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Hongyi Lai, “Uneven Opening of China’s Society, Economy, and Politics: Pro-Growth Authoritarian Governance and Protests in China,” Journal of Contemporary China, 19(67), November 2010, pp. 819-835. (Blackboard)
2 February (T): The General Pattern of Reform-Era Change III (7)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “The Urban-Rural Divide” (pp. 113-136). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Yasheng Huang, Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the State (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008); chapter on “The Entrepreneurial Decade” (pp. 50-108). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
4 February (Th): The Rural Economy (8)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapters on “Rural Organization” (pp. 231-249); “Agriculture: Output, Inputs, and Technology” (pp. 251-270). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Jikun Huang, Keijiro Otsuka, and Scott Rozelle, “Agriculture in China’s Development: Past Disappointments, Recent Successes, and Future Challenges,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 467-501. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
9 February (T): The Urban Economy (9)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “Industry: Ownership and Governance” (pp. 295-328). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Loren Brandt, Thomas G. Rawski, and John Sutton, “China’s Industrial Development,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 569-626. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
11 February (Th): The Private Sector and Entrepreneurs (10)
a.Stephan Haggard and Yasheng Huang, “The Political Economy of Private Sector Development in China,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 337-371. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Huyao Wang, David Zweig, and Xiaohua Lin, “Returnee Entrepreneurs: Impact on China’s Globalization Process,” Journal of Contemporary China, 20(70), June 2011, pp. 413-431. (Blackboard)
16 February (T): The Persistence of Party-State Control I (11)
a.Yasheng Huang, Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the State (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008); chapter on “A Great Reversal” (pp. 109-174). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Jean C. Oi et al., “Shifting Fiscal Control to Limit Cadre Power in China’s Townships and Villages,” The China Quarterly, Vol. 221 (September 2012), pp. 649-675. (Blackboard)
18 February (Th): The Persistence of Party-State Control II (12)
a.Yasheng Huang, Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the State (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008); chapter on “What Is Wrong with Shanghai?” (pp. 175-232). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Kjeld Erik Brødsgaard, “Politics and Business Group Formation in China: The Party in Control?”, The China Quarterly, Vol. 221 (September 2012), pp. 624-648. (Blackboard)
23 February (T): The Persistence of Party-State Control III (13)
a.Richard McGregor, The Party: The Secret World of China’s Communist Rulers (New York: HarperCollins, 2010); chapters on “The Red Machine: The Party and the State” (pp. 1-33); “China, Inc.: The Party and Business” (pp. 34-69). (Blackboard)
b.Yukyung Yeo, “Remaking the Chinese State and the Nature of Economic Governance? The Early Appraisal of the 2008 ‘Super-Ministry’ Reform,” Journal of Contemporary China, 18(62), November 2009, pp. 729-743. (Blackboard)
25 February (Th): Assessing Overall Macroeconomic Performance (14)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapters on “Growth and Structural Change” (pp. 137-159). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Loren Brandt, Chang-tai Hsieh, and Xiaodong Zhu, “Growth and Structural Transformation in China,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 683-720. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
1 March (T): MIDTERM EXAM
PLEASE REMEMBER TO BRING BLUE BOOKS!
3 March (Th): Reform-Era Quality of Life Indicators (15)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “Living Standards: Incomes, Inequality, and Poverty” (pp. 209-227). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Dwayne Benjamin, Loren Brandt, John Giles, and Sangui Wang, “Income Inequality during China’s Economic Transition,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 729-774. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
8 March (T): Wealth Redistribution and Social Welfare Provisions (16)
a.Bo Li and Yang Zhong, “How Did China’s Transitions Impact People’s Welfare Benefits in the Reform Era?” Journal of Contemporary China, 18(62), November 2009, pp. 813-829. (Blackboard)
b.Dorothy J. Solinger and Yiyang Hu, “Welfare, Wealth, and Poverty in Urban China: The Dibao and Its Differential Disbursement,” The China Quarterly, Volume 211 (September 2012), pp. 741-764. (Blackboard—but go to original source online since downloaded copy lost the graphs)
c.Zhaozhou Han, Zhangjin Wei, and Vincent Wai-Kwong Mok, “Empirical Study on Minimum Wage Level in China: The ELES Approach,” Journal of Contemporary China, 20(71), September 2011, pp. 639-657. (Blackboard)
10 March (Th): Socioeconomic Classes and Class Consciousness (17)
a.Minglu Chen, “Being Elite, 1931-2011: Three Generations of Social Change,” Journal of Contemporary China, 21(77), September 2012, pp. 741-756. (Blackboard)
b.Yingjie Guo, “Classes without Class Consciousness and Class Consciousness without Classes: The Meaning of Class in the People’s Republic of China,” Journal of Contemporary China, 21(77), September 2012, pp. 723-739. (Blackboard)
c.Dorothy J. Solinger, “The New Urban Underclass and Its Consciousness: Is It a Class?” Journal of Contemporary China, 21(78), November 2012, pp. 1011-1028. (Blackboard)
~~!!! SPRING BREAK !!!~~
22 March (T): Regional Variations in Strategy and Performance (18)
a.Kam Wing Chan, J. Vernon Henderson, and Kai Yuen Tsai, “Spatial Dimensions of Chinese Economic Development,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 776-824. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.John A. Donaldson, “Why Do Similar Areas Adopt Different Developmental Strategies? A Study of Two Puzzling Chinese Provinces,” in Journal of Contemporary China, 18(60), June 2009, pp. 421-444. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
24 March (Th): The Financial System (19)
- Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapters on “Macroeconomic Trends and Cycles” (pp. 427-445); and “The Financial System” (pp. 449-483). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
- Franklin Allen, Jun Qian, and Meijun Qian, “China’s Financial System: Past, Present, and Future,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 506-568. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
- Victor C. Shih, “Not Interested: Political Incentives and the Uneven Path Toward Interest Rate Liberalization in China,” unpublished conference paper, May 2009. (Blackboard)
29 March (T): The Real Estate and Housing Markets (20)
RESEARCH PROPOSALS DUE
a.Bill Adams, “Macroeconomic Implications of China’s Urban Housing Privatization, 1998-1999,” Journal of Contemporary China, 18(62), November 2009, pp. 881-888. (Blackboard)
b.Neil Gibson, “The Privatization of Urban Housing in China and Its Contribution to Financial System Development,” Journal of Contemporary China, 18(58), January 2009, pp. 175-184. (Blackboard)
c.Jiangnan Zhu, “The Shadow of the Skyscrapers: Real Estate Corruption in China,” Journal of Contemporary China, 21(74), March 2012, pp. 243-260. (Blackboard)
31 March (Th): Globalization I (Foreign Trade) (21)
- Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “International Trade” (pp. 377-400). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
- Lee Branstetter and Nicholas R. Lardy, “China’s Embrace of Globalization,” in Loren Brandt and Thomas G. Rawski, eds., China’s Great Economic Transformation (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008), pp. 633-682. (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
- David A. Steinberg and Victor C. Shih, “Interest Group Influence in Authoritarian States: The Political Determinants of Chinese Exchange Rate Policy,” Comparative Political Studies, 45(11), March 2012, pp. 1405-1434. (Blackboard)
5 April (T): Globalization II (In-Bound Foreign Investment) (22)
a.Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2007); chapter on “Foreign Investment” (pp. 401-424). (Bookstore/Leavey Reserves)
b.Kui Yin Cheung, “Spillover Effects of FDI via Exports on Innovation Performance of China’s High-Technology Industries,” Journal of Contemporary China, 19(65), June 2010, pp. 541-557. (Blackboard)
c.Chengxin Pan, “What Is Chinese about Chinese Businesses? Locating the ‘Rise of China’ in Global Production Networks,” Journal of Contemporary China, 18(58), January 2009, pp. 7-25. (Blackboard)
7 April (Th): Globalization III (Out-Bound Chinese Investment) (23)
a.Stephen Thomas and Ji Chen, “China’s Sovereign Wealth Funds: Origins, Development, and Future Roles,” Journal of Contemporary China, 20(70), June 2011, pp. 467-478. (Blackboard)
b.Chih-shian Liou, “Bureaucratic Politics and Overseas Investment by Chinese State-Owned Oil Companies: Illusory Champions,” Asian Survey, 49(4), July/August 2009, pp. 670-690. (Blackboard)