How has the private sector flourished and become the main engine of economic growth in transitional China, where state protection of private property rights is weak and the democratic system is absent? Departing from the existing state-centric approaches and treating Chinese property rights not uniformly insecure throughout China, the project theorizes that the success of the private economy in China can be traced in part to the actions of private entrepreneurs in promoting private property rights to secure their investments. This theory is tested empirically through an examination of social networks, chambers of commerce, and business political participation, using both qualitative evidence (from semi-structured interviews) and statistical analysis of an original survey. A survey of about 800 private entrepreneurs in eight counties in four provinces (two counties in each province) is conducted, and the survey data is analyzed to draw broadly generalizable inferences about how and how much social networks, chambers of commerce and business political participation promote Chinese property rights and contribute to the growth of China's private economy.
This project is an interdisciplinary study that bridges political science, sociology, and economics, and it uses both qualitative and quantitative methods. In particular, this project contributes to three strands of literature. In the realm of Chinese politics studies, it adds to our knowledge of chambers of commerce and business political participation, thus advancing our understanding of how Chinese capitalists promote their interests and influence policymaking. It also generates insights that extend well beyond China by specifying that private property rights are not at a uniform level of security within states but circumstance-specific, a situation that may be applicable to other developing and transitional states. At the most general level, it contributes to the study of informal institutions as well as the relationship between formal and informal institutions by identifying the informal contract enforcement mechanisms under weak state protection of property rights.
Beyond its intellectual merit, this dissertation has broader impacts. The survey datasets are expected to be useful for China specialists as well as scholars interested in comparing property rights cross-nationally in transitional states. It will also contribute to inform Chinese scholars of the interdisciplinary approach with rigorous methods in empirical studies of political science. Finally, findings from this project will likely indicate that China's private economic miracle cannot be explained by government action and its formal regulations alone, but requires us also to examine actions of private entrepreneurs. Understanding the basis of the Chinese economic miracle is important not only for China to develop policies that would allow its economic growth to continue, but also important for the U.S. to project what the Chinese economy will look like in the future, which will have implications for U.S. policy vis-Ã -vis China. Even more importantly, understanding China can help us develop better development policies for other developing countries.
