China

Totalitarianism's Long Shadow

Bibliographic Data

ID6287060
AuthorsMinxin Pei (corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume32
Issue2
Pages5-21
Publication date2021-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of democracy (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1045-5736 • E-ISSN: 1086-3214
PublisherProject MUSE (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1353/jod.2021.0015
OpenAlexW3155304641
LanguageEN
Citations received15

Rapid economic growth in China over the last four decades has failed to bring about democratization. Instead of undergoing evolutionary liberalization, the Leninist party-state has in recent years reverted to a form of neo-Stalinist rule. China's experience may appear to contradict modernization theory, which links economic development with democracy. A closer look at this experience, however, shows that democratizing a post-totalitarian regime is far more difficult than democratizing an authoritarian regime because post-totalitarian regimes, such as the one dominated by the Chinese Communist Party, possess far greater capacity and resources to resist and neutralize the liberalizing effects of modernization. However, the medium-term success of these regimes may only ensure their eventual demise through revolution. The socioeconomic transformation of societies under post-totalitarian rule empowers social forces and greatly increase the odds of revolutionary change when these regimes undergo liberalization, as shown in the former Soviet bloc

Authoritarianism · China · Communism · Demise · Democracy · Democratization · Development economics · Economic liberalization · Economic system · Economics · Liberalization · Modernization theory · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Shadow (psychology · China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance · Law

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