Rethinking China’s Social Credit System: A Long Road to Establishing Trust in Chinese Society

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Xiaodong Ding ◽  
Dale Yuhao Zhong
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Society ◽  
Credit System ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
System A

scholarly journals Transforming Society for the Better?

MaRBLe ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadja Aldendorff
Keyword(s):  
Moral Virtue ◽  
The State ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
State Council ◽  
Credit System ◽  
The West ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
The Government ◽  
Social Sorting

In 2014, the State Council of the People’s Republic of China released a document that called for the construction of a nationwide Social Credit System (SCS) with the goal to encourage sincerity and punish insincerity. The system uses blacklists that citizens land on for various cases of misbehavior, ranging from failing to pay a fine to being caught Jaywalking. This research explains the design process behind the SCS and in particular why many Chinese citizens are embracing this form of surveillance. It focuses on three topics to answer this question: the historical roots underlying the system, the perceived lack of trust in Chinese society and the comparison with concepts from surveillance theories developed in the West. From the analysis, following conclusions could be drawn: Historically, the state has often acted as a promoter and enforcer of moral virtue. The SCS fits perfectly into this tradition. The most prominent reason for the positive Chinese reaction is the lack of institutions in China that promote trust between citizens and businesses. There is a severe trust deficit which the government had to find a solution for. Regarding surveillance theory, Foucault’s concept of ‘panopticism’ shows similarities with the SCS and underlines its effectiveness in changing and steering people’s behavior while Lyon’s notion of ‘social sorting’ is used to demonstrate the potential dangers of the Chinese system.

scholarly journals Social Credit System Construction Plan as Road Map for the Reform of Social Management in China in the 2010s

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1 (25)) ◽  
pp. 147-157
Author(s):  
Dmitry I. Popov
Keyword(s):  
Political Stability ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
System Construction ◽  
Credit System ◽  
Policy Document ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
Road Map ◽  
Social Governance ◽  
Reform Plan ◽  
Social Management

The article is devoted to a policy document that defines the main directions and principles of creating a social credit system in China. It is shown that the reform plan and the ongoing changes are quite consistent with the Chinese bureaucratic traditions of coercion and paternalism, and are associated with the use of a social regulator that forms the appropriate behavioral incentives, such as reputation. Ultimately, the new model of social governance is aimed at ensuring social and political stability in China and proactively addressing the development problems of Chinese society.

scholarly journals The Chinese Social Credit System: A Model for Other Countries?

2019 ◽  
Vol 82 (6) ◽  
pp. 1034-1071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daithí Mac Síthigh ◽  
Mathias Siems
Keyword(s):  
Credit System ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
System A

The State and Digital Society in China: Big Brother Xi is Watching You!

2020 ◽  
Vol 56 (01) ◽  
pp. 2040003
Author(s):  
JEAN-PIERRE CABESTAN
Keyword(s):  
New Technologies ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Credit System ◽  
Big Brother ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
Privacy Breaches ◽  
And Control

There is no question that China is ahead of many developed countries in the digitalization of both its society and surveillance systems. It is also clear that the new technologies made possible by this digitalization — the widespread use of smart ID cards, the Great Firewall, the accumulation of Big Data, the social credit system (SCS) and facial recognition — have enhanced the capacity of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to rule China, maintain control over society and stay in power indefinitely. While these are not the only systems in place to manage and control Chinese citizens and this is not their sole purpose, these developments have been rightly seen as part of an ambitious Orwellian project to micromanage and microcontrol every aspect of Chinese society. To better comprehend the significance of this new phenomenon, this paper employs Michel Foucault’s “Panopticon” metaphor, the perfect mean of surveillance and discipline as well as an “apparatus of power.” Yet, these new technologies have their own limits. In real life there is no perfect Panopticon as no society, even the most controlled one, is a sealed prison. Censorship on the Web is erratic and the full implementation of the SCS is likely to be postponed beyond 2020 for both technical and political reasons, as more Chinese citizens have raised concerns about unchecked data collection and privacy breaches. As a result, China is probably heading toward a somewhat fragmented digitalized society and surveillance system that is more repressive in some localities and more flexible in others, as is the case with the Chinese bureaucracy in general.

scholarly journals Transforming Society for the Better?

MaRBLe ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadja Aldendorff
Keyword(s):  
Moral Virtue ◽  
The State ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
State Council ◽  
Credit System ◽  
The West ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
The Government ◽  
Social Sorting

In 2014, the State Council of the People’s Republic of China released a document that called for the construction of a nationwide Social Credit System (SCS) with the goal to encourage sincerity and punish insincerity. The system uses blacklists that citizens land on for various cases of misbehavior, ranging from failing to pay a fine to being caught Jaywalking. This research explains the design process behind the SCS and in particular why many Chinese citizens are embracing this form of surveillance. It focuses on three topics to answer this question: the historical roots underlying the system, the perceived lack of trust in Chinese society and the comparison with concepts from surveillance theories developed in the West. From the analysis, following conclusions could be drawn: Historically, the state has often acted as a promoter and enforcer of moral virtue. The SCS fits perfectly into this tradition. The most prominent reason for the positive Chinese reaction is the lack of institutions in China that promote trust between citizens and businesses. There is a severe trust deficit which the government had to find a solution for. Regarding surveillance theory, Foucault’s concept of ‘panopticism’ shows similarities with the SCS and underlines its effectiveness in changing and steering people’s behavior while Lyon’s notion of ‘social sorting’ is used to demonstrate the potential dangers of the Chinese system.

scholarly journals Chinese social credit system: key features and possibility of using in Ukraine

2021 ◽  
pp. 41-53
Author(s):  
Vadym Shved
Keyword(s):  
Credit Rating ◽  
Main Tool ◽  
Basic Mechanism ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Electronic Government ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Credit System ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
The Social ◽  
Key Features

The article considers the key features of the social credit (rating) system implementation and functioning, which is the main tool for digitalization of Chinese society, and in the future is considered by the Chinese authorities as a basic mechanism of electronic government. The historical retrospective of the phenomenon of social rating emergence and development, which was later transformed into social credit, is presented. Attention is paid to the differences in the implementation and functioning of the social credit system, depending on regional characteristics. The participants in the social credit system and the main mechanisms for collecting information for the social credit level formation, including through the mandatory use of specially designed ID-cards, and recently the almost widespread use of the verification for a person by face, have been determined. Despite the position of the Chinese authorities, according to which the use of the social credit system is successful, a list of shortcomings that are now inherent in this system, both of an author’s and of an expert nature, is given. The practice of implementation the state digital eco-environment «Diia» (State and I), which is a key tool for building a digital state, as well as the functional content of the «Diia» eco-environment (service) and its main components, is analyzed. The basic shortcomings that are now inherent in the service are determined, in particular, the key tool in the fight against coronavirus – «Diia. Vdoma», as well as the controversial character of the proposed innovation for the business environment «Diia. City». The features of the declared novel of the relationship between the citizen and state ‒ the concept of «paperless», are studied. The issue of regulation of the «Diia» eco-environment functioning is raised in the context of the legislative introduction of the concept of «paperless» announced on September 1, 2021. The conclusion is substantiated that the basic mechanisms are already being introduced in Ukraine, which form the basis for the Chinese social credit system functioning, in particular, through the tools of citizensʼ verification. On the basis of the analysis carried out, proposals are made to improve the functionality of the «Diia» eco-environment.

INNOVATIVE SOCIETY: A SOCIAL CREDIT SYSTEM IN CHINA

2020 ◽  
pp. 50-59
Author(s):  
Weichzhen` Gao
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Credit System ◽  
Educational Mission ◽  
Social Transformations ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
Road Project ◽  
Patterns Of Behavior ◽  
The One ◽  
And Behavior

The basic principles of SCS implementation are as follows: Formation of sustainable social structure and its operational management; Monitoring and correction of social transformations and behavior of the general population: transparency as a major factor in the life of an innovative society; Stimulating competition as a motivation for success. Due to the transparency of social life, different patterns of behavior in different conditions are published in the information space of the society. Accordingly, actionable life scenarios are made available to the general public, which is fulfilling an educational mission regarding adaptation mechanisms in an innovative society; the SCS system is a significant component of the national strategy of integration and consolidation of the Chinese innovation society; carrying out softpolicy foreign policy: The positive experience of the Chinese innovation society in implementing SCS is a prerequisite for expanding its area of application in Asian, African and Latin American countries, especially the countries participating in the One Belt One Road project. SCS covers all spheres of social life of the modern Chinese citizen, forms a sustainable form of accountability to the society for the content and flow of their daily activities, aspirations and preferences.

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