Contemporary Chinese Politics & Government

Politics, especially the Communist Party of China is essential to anyone who is interested in knowing about Chinese government and society. By focusing a special topic every week, Dr. Qiao’s course on contemporary Chinese government and politics intends to help with understanding some of the most important and intellectually challenging issues in the filed. The lectures are designed to provide an in-depth analysis of the political history, institutions, and governance issues facing China. It highlights several major themes from the twentieth century to the present: the communist party and the government, domestic governance, political economy, the changing place of markets and private property, and the shifting penetration of the state from the center to the grassroots.

The primary objective of this course is to provide a working knowledge for understanding politics of China. With a focus on contemporary Chinese government, Communist party and its supporting structures, lectures cover some of the most important aspects of Chinese society, political economy and transformations of China’s social and political life in the past three decades. No prior coursework needed, but proficiency in reading academic publications in English is required.