Political Participation: A Passive Citizenry?

Political Participation
A passive citizenry?
Political Participation
``actions undertaken by ordinary citizens that are intended, directly or indirectly, to influence the selection of government personnel and/or the policy decisions they make
In Liberal Democracies
Voting in elections is only one of the activities of political participation. Institutional context, especially the party system, has a clear impact on electoral or other forms of political participation.
Totalitarian Model of Political Participation

Citizens were involved in politics only when mobilized by the party-state to implement policies already made. The author of ``Political Participation in the USSR" (1979) suggested that his book might as well be subtitled ``How and why do Soviet politics involve the people?"
In Mainland China
From ``mobilized political participation to ``optional political participation
``Political Participation in Communist China (1967)

``mass line emphasizes direct contact between cadres and masses as the surest means of eliciting popular participation and keeping political leaders in touch with popular demands In broadest terms, Communist mobilization of the masses has politicized an apolitical population.
``Citizens and Groups in Contemporary China (1987)
``Chinese citizens do in fact regularly pursue their interests with a repertoire of tactics tailored to these constraints
``Political Participation in Rural China (1988)
In general, males, with ``good" class origins and some education, who were strong, skilled, and in their working prime, participated at higher rates.
Participatory Activities in Mainland China

Some common political activities in a democracy, such as donations for opposition parties or voting for government leaders, do not exist. Other forms of activities, like reporting to the ``letters and visits offices" or utilizing patron-client relations, would be rare in a liberal democracy.
Five Participatory Modes

Mean score Appeals
Adversarial activities Cronyism Resistance Protest
1988 0.87
0.25 0.22 0.28 0.05
1996 1.04
0.32 0.34 0.16 0.19
Appeals
Complain through the bureaucratic hierarchy Complain through political organizations Complain through the trade unions Complain through deputies to local peoples congresses
Adversarial activities
Write letters to newspaper editors Write letters to government officials at higher levels Complain through the ``letters and visits bureaus
Cronyism
Use connections Send gifts to bureaucrats in exchange for help
Resistance
Slow-down on the job Whip up public opinion in work units against leaders Organize a group of people to fight against leaders
Protest
Strike Participate in demonstration Sue bureaucrats in court
Political Participation in Beijing (Shi 1999)
Peculiarities about Beijing:

Capital of the PRC Per capita GDP US$3,060 (2001) 61 institutions of higher education, with total enrollment of 340,000 2,328,000 residents have had at least some college education 1.28 million CCP members
Explanatory variables of political participation

Education Political interest Political efficacy Political knowledge Civic skills Party mobilization
Political efficacy
Internal efficacy: beliefs about ones own competence to understand and participate in politics
External efficacy: beliefs about the responsiveness of governmental authorities and institutions to citizen demands
Shis findings in Beijing

General level of education increased from 1988 to 1996 People became more concerned with politics and governmental affairs Internal efficacy became stronger Frequency and intensity of political activism increased
Shis findings in Beijing

Both adversarial activities and protest increased substantially between 1988 and 1996 Government activity and education became increasingly important in influencing the level and intensity of political participation
Shi (1999)s Conclusion
Beijing residents have become more politically sophisticated and more assertive in the articulation of their interests
Compared with TW & HK
traditional orientation
moral government moral leader state precedes over individual elitism (better educated) paternalism stability above pluralism
Traditional orientation
People with traditional orientation tend to be:

less educated older living in villages and towns employed in blue-collar jobs
fairly consistent across the 3 societies
Effect on political participation

education is a most important factor the impact of political interest is far more pronounced in TW & HK Party membership in ML HK: more individually-based traditional orientation has the least influence

Political Participation: A Passive Citizenry?

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Political Participation: A Passive Citizenry?

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Political Participation

Totalitarian Model of Political Participation

From ``mobilized political participation to ``optional political participation

``Political Participation in Communist China (1967)

``Citizens and Groups in Contemporary China (1987)

``Political Participation in Rural China (1988)

Participatory Activities in Mainland China

Five Participatory Modes

Political Participation in Beijing (Shi 1999)

Peculiarities about Beijing:

Explanatory variables of political participation

Shis findings in Beijing

Shis findings in Beijing

Shi (1999)s Conclusion

Compared with TW & HK

People with traditional orientation tend to be:

fairly consistent across the 3 societies

Effect on political participation

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