Confucian Leadership Democracy

A Roadmap

Bibliographic Data

ID22003746
AuthorsYutang Jin (0000-0001-8579-4951, None, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume12
Issue2
Publication date2021-07-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueComparative Philosophy An International Journal of Constructive Engagement of Distinct Approaches toward World Philosophy (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2151-6014 • E-ISSN: 2151-6014
PublisherSan Jose State University Library - DIGITAL COMMONS JOURNALS (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.31979/2151-6014(2021).120207
OpenAlexW3186555101
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited38

What kind of polity is justified by classic Confucian values? Adopting an interpretive approach, this paper explores the idea of leadership democracy being expressive of classic Confucian values by first introducing the models of leadership democracy associated with Weber and Schumpeter and second connecting Confucian elitist values to them. I argue that leadership democracy best realizes the Confucian emphasis on the people as the source of legitimacy and the ruler as the engine of good governance. The Confucian idea of people-rootedness is borne out by citizens behaving as democratic plebeians who are empowered to choose their leader but devoid of moral and intellectual capabilities for collective decision-making. The Confucian idea of rulership is expressed by democratic leaders displaying competent statesmanship and compensating for intra-elite tensions within the Confucian tradition

Collective leadership · Cornerstone · Corporate governance · Democracy · Economics · Elite · Environmental ethics · Epistemology · Law and economics · Legitimacy · Management · Political science · Politics · Polity · Ruler · Sociology · Chinese history and philosophy · Law · Philosophy · Political Philosophy and Ethics · Weber, Simmel, Sociological Theory

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Open DOIOpen Access