Stanford University

The Fallacy of the China Model and Its Long-term Consequences: A Roundtable Discussion with Yasheng Huang

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The Fallacy of the China Model and its Long-term Consequences: A Roundtable Discussion 


Yasheng Huang, Skyline Scholar and MIT Professor of Global Economics and Management

This talk draws on Professor Yasheng Huang’s recently completed book manuscript, Statism with Chinese Characteristics: From Directional Liberalism to the China Model—A History of China’s Reforms and Reversals (forthcoming from Cambridge University Press). Based on detailed archival research and rare databases in the 1980s, he shows that China's healthiest and most inclusive growth took place during the most politically liberal period. The China Model, which asserts that autocracy and statist finance created the Chinese growth miracle, gets many facts wrong and gets causal order backward. But the China Model is the prevailing economic thinking in China, and it is the root cause of many problems in the Chinese economy today.  

Please register for the event and add it to your calendar. Lunch will be provided.


About the Speaker 
 

Yasheng Huang headshot.

Yasheng Huang is a Professor and holds the Epoch Foundation Professorship of Global Economics and Management at MIT Sloan School of Management. From 2013 to 2017, he served as an Associate Dean in charge of MIT Sloan’s Global Partnership programs and its Action Learning initiatives. His previous appointments include faculty positions at the University of Michigan and at Harvard Business School.

Professor Huang is the author of 11 books and counting in both English and Chinese He is currently involved in research projects in three broad areas: 1) political economy of contemporary China, 2) historical technological and political developments in China, and 3) as a co-PI in “Food Safety in China: A Systematic Risk Management Approach” (supported by Walmart Foundation, 2016). He has published numerous articles in academic journals and in media outlets.


A NOTE ON LOCATION

Please join us in-person in the Goldman Conference Room located within Encina Hall on the 4th floor of the East wing.


Questions? Contact Xinmin Zhao at xinminzhao@stanford.edu
 

Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall

Yasheng Huang, Professor of Global Economics and Management, MIT Sloan School of Management
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Scott Rozelle Joined a Panel Discussion on "The US vs China: A Talent War"

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"On October 11th, Civic Leadership Forum Silicon Valley:  The U.S. vs. China: A Talent War was held at Ding Ding TV studios. The event was organized by Silicon Valley Community Media, Kenson Ventures, SFCause and NAAUnited.

Leading experts participated in a critical discussion on the challenges and solutions to the “reverse brain drain” that’s threatening the U.S.’s technological edge and the audience had the opportunity to learn about its impact on innovation, the economy, and how we can combat it.

Civic Leadership Forum Silicon Valley:  The U.S. vs. China: A Talent War focused on three topics:

· Understanding the implications of losing top talent to China.
· Discovering how trade wars and talent loss affect the middle class.
· Exploring strategies for fostering collaboration and retaining talent.

Expert Panel included:

Scott Rozelle: A leading scholar in Chinese economics, Rozelle has recently participated in Track Two diplomacy initiatives between the U.S. and China.
Peter Michelson: A renowned physicist at Stanford University, Michelson has expressed concerns about the impact of the DoJ’s China Initiative on reverse brain drain.
Peter Zeidenberg: A successful lawyer who has defended Americans wrongly accused of espionage-related crimes, including Kansas University Professor Franklin Tao.
Joel Wong: A dedicated advocate for the Asian American Pacific Islander community and a prominent figure in U.S.-China relations." 

Read more on Ding Ding TVs website. 

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Scott Rozelle participated in a panel discussion at the Civic Leadership Forum Silicon Valley focused on the challenges and solutions to the “reverse brain drain” that’s threatening the U.S.’s technological edge, its impact on innovation, the economy, and how we can combat it.

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Preschool Quality and Developmental Outcomes of Preschool Children in Rural China: Evidence from Longitudinal and Subgroup Analyses

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Using a longitudinal data set developed from surveys of 1,285 children (and their families), as well as 683 preschools teachers in 382 preschools in rural western China, we examined the association between preschool quality and the development (cognitive and social-emotional skills) of preschool children. The findings showed that 55 % of the sample children were cognitively delayed, and 49 % of the children were social-emotionally delayed at age 3. The rates of delay decreased to less than 40 % when the children were at preschool age. Although other factors were associated with the decline in development delays, according to the findings, preschool attendance respectively led to an improvement of 0.47 SD (p = 0.001) in child cognitive development (i.e., the fall in delays). More specifically, the global quality and the structural quality of preschools improved child cognitive development by 0.11 SD (p = 0.001) and 0.09 SD (p = 0.004), respectively. The findings of the subgroup analyses suggested that children from disadvantaged backgrounds benefited more from being able to attend quality preschools. Preschool quality also helped to improve developmental outcomes (cognitive abilities and social-emotional skills): for children that were developmentally delayed before age 3, but not for those children that were not delayed when they were 3 years old; for children with lower educated parents, but not for those with more highly educated parents; for children that were from relatively poor families, but not for those that were from relatively rich families; and for children that were attending preschools in rural areas, but not for those who were attending a preschool in an urban area.

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Children and Youth Services Review
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Scott Rozelle

Jennifer Pan Shares Research Insights on Disguised Repression in China

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Heather Rahimi
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Why do authoritarian regimes charge political opponents with non-political crimes when they can levy charges directly related to opponents' political activism?

On October 3, 2024, Stanford Professor of Communication, Jennifer Pan, presented her recent research answering this question. Professor Pan and her research collaborators used experimental and observational data from China and found that, “disguising repression by charging opponents with non-political crimes undermines the moral authority of opponents, minimizing backlash and mobilization while increasing public support for repression.”

Jennifer Pan presents during a SCCEI lecture held on October 3, 2024.
Audience members during a SCCEI lecture held on October 3, 2024.
Jennifer Pan and Hongbin Li chat during a SCCEI lecture held on October 3, 2024.
Jennifer Pan presents during a SCCEI lecture held on October 3, 2024.
Hongbin Li chats during the reception at a SCCEI lecture held on October 3, 2024.

During the lecture, Pan detailed the survey she and her collaborators conducted in China and shared a case study using data from Weibo to illustrate how China uses select charges to manipulate the public's view of influential dissidents and induce self-censorship among other dissidents in an act of disguised repression.

 

SCCEI China Briefs: Translating academic research in evidence-based insights

SCCEI produced a China Brief based off of Professor Pan’s paper on disguised repression in China. Read the brief here for a synthesized recap of the paper. 
 


Watch the recorded lecture to learn more about the research and her findings. 
 

 

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Is It Me or the Economic System? Changing Evaluations of Inequality in China

The latest Big Data China feature examines Martin Whyte and Scott Rozelle's new survey results demonstrating that the Chinese populace increasingly attribute inequality to the economic system rather than individual ability.
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Decoding China’s Economic Slowdown: A Roundtable Discussion

The Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions and Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis co-organized a closed-door roundtable on China's recent economic slowdown and produced summary report of the discussion.
Decoding China’s Economic Slowdown: A Roundtable Discussion
Craig Allen speaks at SCCEI 2024 conference
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Silicon Showdown: Craig Allen Unpacks the Competition for Technology Leadership between the U.S. and China

Craig Allen, the President of the U.S.-China Business Council, spoke on the evolving dynamics of technological leadership between the U.S. and China and their implications for the rest of the world.
Silicon Showdown: Craig Allen Unpacks the Competition for Technology Leadership between the U.S. and China
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Why do authoritarian regimes charge political opponents with non-political crimes when they can levy charges directly related to opponents' political activism? Professor Pan presents her newest research during a Fall 2024 SCCEI event.

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The Gender Gap in Early Language Development among Children from Peri-urban China

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In rural China, there exists a gender gap in academic achievement where girls outperform boys, suggesting similar differences in early language development. Moreover, recent research has revealed that children in peri-urban communities have worse language outcomes than children in rural communities. This study examines the impact of gender on early language development in low-SES, peri-urban Chinese communities. Data from 81 children (56.79% boys) aged 18-24 months (Mage = 21.16) living in peri-urban China were collected using two caregiver-reported tests for child language development and ability, and language environment analysis technology for measuring the home language environment. Results show that in peri-urban communities, girls were generally exposed to more adult-child conversations and showed higher counts of vocalizations than did boys; girls scored higher on language development measures than did boys. The implications of these findings on the gender gap and child development are discussed.

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Early Childhood Research Quarterly
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Tianli Feng
Scott Rozelle

SCCEI Launches New Research Program on China Labor, Income and Population (CLIP)

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Heather Rahimi
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China labor, income and population (CLIP) research program at SCCEI.

The Stanford's Center on China’s Economy and Institutions (SCCEI) is pleased to announce the launch of its second official research program: the China Labor, Income, and Population (CLIP) research program. Led by SCCEI faculty co-director Hongbin Li, CLIP aims to explore China’s labor market, income, and demographic shifts, to provide a deeper understanding of their implications for China's economic landscape.

SCCEI researchers contributing to CLIP include Hongbin Li, the James Liang Endowed Chair and SCCEI Faculty Co-director, Lingsheng Meng, Research Scholar, Xinyao Qiu, Postdoctoral Scholar, Hanmo Yang, Lazear-Liang Postdoctoral Scholar, and Claire Cousineau, Program Manager. Building off of the researchers’ current research portfolios and areas of expertise, the program will focus on the study of labor quantity (population), labor quality (human capital), income, and the interactions between technology and labor, while also examining the role of China’s unique institutions, such as the gaokao exam system, hukou system, and the state, in shaping the labor market.

A distinctive feature of CLIP is its ability to leverage China’s vast data resources. Researchers will employ both field surveys and big data to study the complexities of China’s labor market, education and population dynamics and their roles in the Chinese economy. Through these efforts, the program aspires to contribute meaningfully to discussions surrounding China's social and economic development, particularly in light of rapid technological changes and demographic challenges. CLIP’s findings will not only benefit academic scholars and policy-makers, but also international stakeholders who seek to better understand China’s role in the global economy.

This CLIP program builds on SCCEI's ongoing mission to produce high-quality, evidence-based research on China’s economy, potentially offering critical insights that can help inform future policies.

For more information, visit the official CLIP research page.

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SCCEI's newest research program, China Labor, Income and Population (CLIP), focuses on key areas essential for understanding the complexities of China’s labor market and its role in the Chinese economy.

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Stanford Graduate Students Advance Research on China with Aid from SCCEI 2024 Summer Research Grant

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Heather Rahimi
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This summer, SCCEI awarded competitive research funding to six Stanford Ph.D. candidates to advance their empirical research on China. The award recipients hail from diverse disciplines across campus, including political science, environment and resources, and international education, and proposed research covering a multitude of prominent issues in today’s society. 

The SCCEI 2024 Summer Research Grant recipients are:

Cody Abbey headshot

Cody Abbey, Graduate School of Education
Research Topic: The Perceptions of University Students in China towards Mental Health, Meditation, and Mindfulness

Cody Abbey is an education Ph.D. student at Stanford University. Since 2017, he has collaborated with community partners in the U.S., China, and abroad to identify ways to improve learning and mental health outcomes in low-resource contexts. During his PhD, he is exploring how to best design, adapt, and deliver mindfulness-based programs. 

 

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Alicia Chen, Department of Political Science
Research Topic: The Domestic Political Economy of China's Belt and Road Initiative

Alicia Chen is a Ph.D. candidate in the political science department at Stanford University. Chen’s research focuses on the political economy of development and conflict, with a focus on Chinese development aid. 

 

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Safari Fang, Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources
Research Topic: Small-Scale Fisheries and Community Self-Governance in China: A Comparative Case Study of Sustainable Marine Resource Management

Safari Fang is a Ph.D. candidate in the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources (E-IPER) at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. Growing up next to a polluted Yangtze River in China and experiencing the devastating impact of environmental degradation on marginalized populations, Safari aspired to work in conservation and sustainability. Her current research focuses on aquaculture, small-scale fisheries, food security, ocean policy, and community-based marine conservation in China. 

 

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Qianmin Hu, Department of Political Science
Research Topic: China's New Growth Model: Industrial Upgrading or Great Leap Forward in A New Era?

Qianmin Hu is a Ph.D. candidate in the political science department at Stanford University. She studies the economic consequences of political institutions and bureaucratic behavior in authoritarian regimes. Her other research encompasses the historical institutions of China and their implications for the Great Divergence. 

 

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Naiyu Jiang, Department of Political Science
Research Topic: Shifting Sands of Science: The Impact of U.S.-China Technological Decoupling on the Research Enterprise

Naiyu Jiang is a Ph.D. student in Political Science at Stanford University, where she studies the political economy of development and authoritarian institutions, focusing particularly on China and Southeast Asia. Her research aims to understand how Chinese institutions adapt to technological isolation and pursue technological sovereignty. 

 

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Victoria Liu, Department of Political Science
Research Topic: Lack of Capacity or Lack of Will? Why Does China Make Drugs Affordable for Some But Not All

Victoria Liu is a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science, interested in public health, bureaucracy, and local government, with a regional focus on China. Her dissertation project examines health inequalities within the region, investigating whether these disparities arise from issues in political accountability or governance capacity. 


SCCEI offers grants to support exceptional researchers conducting data-driven research related to China's economy. We accept proposals two times per year, Fall and Winter. Visit the SCCEI Research Grants and Fellowships webpage for more details and current opportunities.

 

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Meet our Researchers: In Conversation with Professor Prashant Loyalka

We sat down with Professor Loyalka to learn more about his journey to Stanford, his passion for international comparative education and his advice for aspiring young researchers.
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Women walk on a street in China pushing a cart full of boxes and full garbage bags.
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Is It Me or the Economic System? Changing Evaluations of Inequality in China

The latest Big Data China feature examines Martin Whyte and Scott Rozelle's new survey results demonstrating that the Chinese populace increasingly attribute inequality to the economic system rather than individual ability.
Is It Me or the Economic System? Changing Evaluations of Inequality in China
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SCCEI awarded competitive research funding to six Stanford Ph.D. candidates to advance their empirical research on China. This summer's grant recipients are: Cody Abbey, Alicia Chen, Safari Fang, Qianmin Hu, Naiyu Jiang, and Victoria Liu.

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Xiaonian Xu

Encina Hall, East Wing, Room 014

Office Hours:
Select Mondays | 3:00-5:00 PM 
Please schedule a meeting in advance

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Skyline Scholar (2024), Stanford Center on China's Economy and Institutions
Professor of Economics and Finance, China Europe International Business School
prof._xu_xiaonian.jpg Ph.D.

Dr. Xiaonian Xu is Professor Emeritus at CEIBS, where he held the position of Professor of Economics and Finance from 2004 to 2018. In recognition of his contributions, he was named an Honorary Professor in Economics from September 2018 to August 2023.

Between 1999 and 2004, Dr. Xu served as Managing Director and Head of Research at China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC). Before joining CICC, he was a Senior Economist at Merrill Lynch Asia Pacific, based in Hong Kong from 1997 to 1998, and worked as a World Bank consultant in Washington DC in 1996. Dr. Xu was appointed Assistant Professor of Amherst College, Massachusetts, where he taught Economics and Financial Markets from 1991 to 1995. Earlier in his career, he was a research fellow at the State Development Research Centre of China from 1981 to 1985.

Dr. Xu earned his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Davis, in 1991, and an MA in Industrial Economics from the People's University of China in 1981. In 1996, he was awarded the distinguished Sun Yefang Economics Prize, the highest honor in the field in China, for his research on China’s capital markets. His research interests include Macroeconomics, Financial Institutions and Financial Markets, Transitional Economies, China’s Economic Reform, Corporate Strategy and Digital Transformation. His publications include: Freedom and Market Economy (《自由与市场经济》), There has Never been A Savior (《从来就没有救世主》), The Pendulum Swinging Back (《回荡的钟摆》), The Nature of the Business and the Internet (《商业的本质和互联网》), and The Nature of the Business and the Internet, 2nd Edition (《商业的本质和互联网》第二版).

A dedicated educator, he has been recognized with the CEIBS Teaching Excellence Award in 2005 and 2006, as well as the esteemed CEIBS Medal for Teaching Excellence in 2010.

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Yuyu Chen

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Select Tuesdays, 2-5pm
Encina Hall, East Wing, room E013
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Skyline Scholar (2025-26), Stanford Center on China's Economy and Institutions
Professor of Economics, Guanghua School of Management, Peking University
Chen Yuyu - vert.jpg Ph.D.

Yuyu Chen is Professor of Economics at the Guanghua School of Management, Peking University. He also served as Director of the Institute of Economic Policy Research at PKU. His research focuses on labor market, productivity, health, pollution, media impacts and management practices. He received his Ph.D in Economics from Australian National University.

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Young Researcher Workshop: Lightning Round Presentations

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Join us for our first ever lightning round edition of the SCCEI Young Researcher Workshop series. Each presenter will have 30 minutes to share their research and field audience questions.

Round 1: The Impact of Ownership on Lending: Local Government and Regional Banks in China


Presenter:  Wei Wei, Lazear-Liang Postdoctoral Scholar, Stanford Graduate School of Business


Round 2: Corporate Governance of Chinese SOEs: An Extra-legality Perspective


Presenter: Tian Xie, Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD) Candidate, Stanford Law School


Round 3: Son-Preference, Fertility Policy Relaxation, and Mothers’ Well-being


Presenter: Hanmo Yang, Lazear-Liang Postdoctoral Scholar, Stanford Graduate School of Business
 

About the Workshops


Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays starting at 12 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Learn More About the Workshops

Goldman Room, Encina Hall, E409

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