The Influence of Think Tanks in the Chinese Policy Process: Different Ways and Mechanisms

Asian Survey ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 333-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhu Xufeng
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Data ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
Think Tanks ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Chinese Policy

This article argues that expert knowledge, governmental linkage, and personal ties are the factors that determine think tanks' influence in the Chinese policy process. Moreover, different types of think tanks exert influence through different mechanisms. Empirical data are from a 2004 nationwide survey of 301 of China's think tanks.

Government Advisors or Public Advocates? Roles of Think Tanks in China from the Perspective of Regional Variations

2011 ◽  
Vol 207 ◽  
pp. 668-686 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xufeng Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Survey Data ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Think Tanks ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Think Tank ◽  
Specific Activities ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Individual

AbstractThink tanks in China simultaneously play advisory, academic and advocacy roles in the policy process. In this article, I recommend an analytical framework that evaluates think tanks by studying their specific activities in addition to their nature. Empirical data involving 301 think tanks in 25 provinces were collected through the China Think Tank Survey 2004. The 1998 regional Integrated Knowledge Development Index database was also used for the analysis. Based on these two independent sets of survey data, the article concludes that connections with the government and knowledge capacity in regions where think tanks are located are the two differing forces that drive China's think tanks to operate as either advisors or advocates. Moreover, these two determinants differentially influence the individual roles of the two types of think tanks.

scholarly journals Reframing the public sociology debate: Towards collaborative and decolonial praxis

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alberto Arribas Lozano
Keyword(s):  
Academic Success ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Knowledge Production ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Public Sociology ◽  
Good Opportunity ◽  
The Public ◽  
Professional Sociology ◽  
Different Types

This article presents a critical analysis of Michael Burawoy’s model of public sociology, discussing several of its epistemic and methodological limitations. First, the author focuses on the ambiguity of Burawoy’s proposal, problematizing the absence of a clear delimitation of the concept of ‘public sociology’. Second, the author links the academic success of the category of public sociology to the global division of sociological labour, emphasizing the ‘geopolitics of knowledge’ involved in Burawoy’s work and calling for the decolonization of social science. Then, the author expounds his concerns regarding the hierarchy of the different types of sociology proposed by Burawoy, who privileges professional sociology over other types of sociological praxis. Reflecting upon these elements will provide a good opportunity to observe how our discipline works, advancing also suggestions for its transformation. Along these lines, in the last section of the article the author elaborates on the need to go beyond a dissemination model of public sociology – the unidirectional diffusion of ‘expert knowledge’ to extra-academic audiences – and towards a more collaborative understanding of knowledge production.

Think Tanks and Foreign Policy

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars Brozus ◽  
Hanns W. Maull
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Common Good ◽  
Public Diplomacy ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Think Tanks ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Industrialized Countries ◽  
Think Tank

Foreign policy think tanks originated in the context of the Industrial Revolution and world wars in Western industrialized countries and then spread to all parts of the globe. In the process their national orientations toward governments and their attentive national public audiences have evolved toward a global perspective. As a consequence, they also have been drawn into, and have contributed to, the debate about the future of the Western-dominated international order. What exactly makes a think tank remains contested, but there is broad agreement on the variety of functions they fulfill. They bring knowledge to power, but power also uses them to advance its political agenda. As the idealistic notion of expert knowledge as a solution to political problems has fallen by the wayside and advocacy think tanks have flourished, the interaction of think tanks with governments, the media, and the public has become politicized. In liberal-democratic countries, there is a growing trend toward competitive knowledge production by think tanks, whereas in authoritarian systems, think tanks are increasingly being used as instruments of state-controlled public diplomacy. Ultimately, think tanks have to bridge the tension between the needs of decision-makers, on the one hand, and the standards of scientific inquiry and orientation toward the common good, on the other hand. This tension cannot be resolved, but it can be made productive. For this, a strong emphasis on professional integrity will be essential.

scholarly journals Developing an improved biomonitoring tool for fine sediment: Combining expert knowledge and empirical data

2015 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 82-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matt D. Turley ◽  
Gary S. Bilotta ◽  
Tobias Krueger ◽  
Richard E. Brazier ◽  
Chris A. Extence
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Data ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Fine Sediment ◽  
Biomonitoring Tool

Strategic Modelling: “Building a New Socialist Countryside” in Three Chinese Counties

2013 ◽  
Vol 216 ◽  
pp. 831-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna L. Ahlers ◽  
Gunter Schubert
Keyword(s):  
Policy Process ◽  
Rural China ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
National Development ◽  
Local Models ◽  
Distinctive Features ◽  
Rural Counties ◽  
Chinese Policy ◽  
China Today

AbstractModels, pilots and experiments are considered distinctive features of the Chinese policy process. However, empirical studies on local modelling practices are rare. This article analyses the ways in which three rural counties in three different provinces engage in strategies of modelling and piloting to implement the central government's “Building a New Socialist Countryside” (shehuizhuyi xinnongcun jianshe) programme. It explains how county and township governments apply these strategies and to what effect. It also highlights the scope and limitations of local models and pilots as useful mechanisms for spurring national development. The authors plead for a fresh look at local modelling practices, arguing that these can tell us much about the realities of governance in rural China today.

Negotiating stakeholder participation in the Ghana national climate change policy

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 399-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Tweneboah Lawson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Stakeholder Consultation ◽  
Change Policy ◽  
Vulnerability Assessments

Purpose Stakeholder consultation and participation are central to the climate change policymaking process. The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of stakeholder participation in the Ghana National Climate Change Policy. It examines the actors in the policy space and the negotiations and tradeoffs made during the policymaking process. Finally, it outlines the steps undertaken to make the process participatory and consultative. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative method has been used for this paper. The research design involves a review of relevant literature on Ghana’s climate change regime, meeting reports and key informant interviews. Findings The findings indicate that the processes the policy underwent had extensive stakeholder participation. An uptake of evidence was from existing impact and vulnerability assessments, the first and second communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), scientific and research documents and expert knowledge. Key actors were identified and involved right from the beginning of the policymaking process. Although stakeholder participation was time-consuming, expensive and elongated, the policy process was vital for buy-in and ownership. The results also identified the need to include more stakeholders at the sub-regional levels in policymaking. Originality/value The study is the first of its kind detailing stakeholder participation in the climate change policy process in Ghana. It forms a good basis for comparative studies with similar policies in other countries. Thus, this paper fills an identified gap of the need to document climate change policymaking processes.

scholarly journals A Note on the Extent, Operation and Results of Enterprise Zones in American States

1987 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
R. Lawson Veasey ◽  
Hayward D. Horton
Keyword(s):  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Demand Side ◽  
Enterprise Zones ◽  
Public Programs ◽  
Apparent Lack ◽  
American States ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Urban Blight

Since at least the early 1960s, redistributive politics and demand-side economics have formed the basis for most public programs attempting to deal with urban blight. The apparent lack of success of these policies has raised suggestions for new urban program-policies innovations based upon a different economic orientation. Enterprise Zones (EZs) are the supply-side economics alternative for dealing with urban blight. In this note, we: describe the nature of EZs and briefly their history; present reported cost-benefit effects of EZs as a result of a nationwide survey of state-administered EZ programs; discuss the variety of EZ programs across the states; and suggest the problems of administering the myriad different types of EZs among the states. Finally, we offer several questions posed by this study which will require further investigation regarding the overall impact of EZs on the subnational level.

scholarly journals Predicting species and community responses to global change in Australian mountain ecosystems using structured expert judgement

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
James S. Camac ◽  
Kate D.L. Umbers ◽  
John W. Morgan ◽  
Sonya R. Geange ◽  
Anca Hanea ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Rapid Change ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Expert Elicitation ◽  
Alpine Plants ◽  
Ecological Data ◽  
Australian Alps

AbstractConservation managers are under increasing pressure to make decisions about the allocation of finite resources to protect biodiversity under a changing climate. However, the impacts of climate and global change drivers on species are outpacing our capacity to collect the empirical data necessary to inform these decisions. This is particularly the case in the Australian Alps which has already undergone recent changes in climate and experienced more frequent large-scale bushfires. In lieu of empirical data, we used a structured expert elicitation method (the IDEA protocol) to estimate the abundance and distribution of nine vegetation groups and 89 Australian alpine and subalpine species by the year 2050. Experts predicted that most alpine vegetation communities would decline in extent by 2050; only woodlands and heathlands were predicted to increase in extent. Predicted species-level responses for alpine plants and animals were highly variable and uncertain. In general, alpine plants spanned the range of possible responses, with some expected to increase, decrease or not change in cover. By contrast, almost all animal species were predicted to decline or not change in abundance or elevation range; more species with water-centric life-cycles were expected to decline in abundance than other species. In the face of rapid change and a paucity of data, the method and outcomes outlined here provide a pragmatic and coherent basis upon which to start informing conservation policy and management, although this approach does not diminish the importance of collecting long-term ecological data.Article Impact StatementExpert knowledge is used to quantify the adaptive capacity and thus, the risk posed by global change, to Australian mountain flora and fauna.

scholarly journals Orientations to epistemics and deontics in treatment discussions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Lindström ◽  
Ann Weatherall
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Treatment Recommendation ◽  
Patient Centered ◽  
Medical Authority ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Face ◽  
Sequential Unfolding ◽  
Right To Refuse Treatment

© 2015 Elsevier B.V. An ideological shift to patient-centered health care raises questions about how, in the face of medical authority, patients can assert agency in interactions with doctors. This study uses conversation analysis to explore how epistemic and deontic orientations are raised and made relevant in different types of responses to treatment proposals across two health care settings - New Zealand general practice consultations and Swedish hospital-based physician encounters. By examining responses ranging from acceptance to strong resistance, we show patient practices for deferring to and resisting medical authority, which includes claiming independent access to expert knowledge and raising everyday, experientially based concerns. Doctors rightfully privilege their own epistemic expertise in treatment decisions but they also take patient experiences into consideration. In cases of strong resistance we found doctors raising patients' ultimate right to refuse treatment recommendation. Our analysis further nuances current knowledge by documenting the ways epistemic and deontic domains are observably relevant forces shaping the sequential unfolding of treatment proposals.

scholarly journals Kriminalinės justicijos recepcija visuomenėje

2012 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 222-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Dobryninas ◽  
M. Dobrynina ◽  
I. Česnienė ◽  
V. Giedraitis ◽  
R. Merkevičius
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
The Public ◽  
Professional Interest ◽  
The Social ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Penal Law ◽  
Vilnius University

Santrauka. Kriminalinė justicija suprantama kaip socialinės kontrolės sistema, kuri per atitinkamą įstatymų leidybą, praktikas bei institucijas užtikrina nusikaltimų kontrolę ir prevenciją bei taiko poveikio priemones teisės pažeidėjams. Kriminalinės justicijos paskirtis demokratinėje visuomenėje atitinka jos narius vienijantį bendrą socialinį interesą – gyventi saugioje ir solidarioje visuomenėje, kurioje kiekvienam jos piliečiui yra užtikrinamas tinkamas saugumo lygis, paisoma jų teisių, o teisingumas vykdomas visiems vienodai ir teisingai. Nors Vakarų civilizacijos kriminalinės justicijos principams yra daugiau kaip du šimtai metų, jų įgyvendinimas visuomenėje nėra mechaninis ir priklauso nuo įvairių istorinių, kultūrinių, geografinių bei globalaus vystymosi aplinkybių. Straipsnyje, remiantis fenomenologinės sociologinės požiūriu, analizuojamos kriminalinės justicijos recepcijos konstravimo aspektai profesiniame lauke, jo sąsajos su makro (ekonomikos) bei mikro (psichologijos) socialiniais veiksniais, masinių medijų įtaka kriminalinės justicijos suvokimui visuomenėje. Atsižvelgiama ne tik į relevantiškas šiai problemai teorinius šaltinius, bet ir atliktos fokusuotų grupinių diskusijų rezultatus. Pirmame poskyryje analizuojami profesiniai teisiniai kriminalinės justicijos apibrėžimo aspektai, antrame – demonstruojami, kaip ekonominiai procesai gali keisti politinius kriminalinės justicijos tikslus. Trečias poskyris nagrinėja psichologinius veiksnius, kurie gali įtakoti paprastų žmonių sampratą apie kriminalinę justiciją. Ketvirtas poskyris pristato komunikacinius kriminalinės justicijos recepcijos visuomenėje aspektus.Pagrindiniai žodžiai: kriminalinė justicija, diskursai, ekonominiai ciklai, psichologinė recepcija, masinės medijos. Keywords: criminal justice, discourses, economic circles, psychological reception, mass media.ABSTRACT  On Perceptions of Criminal Justice in SocietyThe perception of criminal justice in society is a controversial social problem. Traditionally, criminal justice issues have been treated as a matter of professional interest for criminologists, criminal justice experts and other professionals from related fields. But is expert knowledge the only valid kind when it comes to criminal justice topics? This question, though rhetorical, is aimed at stimulating discussion about the co-existence of different types of social knowledge on criminal justice, and their impact on various discourses concerning crime and punishment in society. In this article a group of researchers from Vilnius University makes use of phenomenological methods to analyse three different types of discourse on criminal justice: professional, political and public. The professional discourse on criminal justice is scrutinised from the perspective of penal law, the political discourse from the point of view of macroeconomics, while the public discourse is analysed using ideas drawn from psychology and media studies. The analysis of these discourses seeks to examine the social construction of criminal justice, and the particularities of its reception among professionals, politicians and a wider public.

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