Unit information: The Political Economy of China in 2015/16

Unit name	The Political Economy of China
Unit code	SPAI30023
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. King
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

The unit engages in assessment of the political-economic system, institutions and development models and experiences of the People’s Republic of China. Topics included the state’s role in economic reform, local governments, state-owned enterprises, private sector and international linkages. It concludes with discussion of China’s impact on the global system.

Underscoring the distinct character of China’s Socialist Market economy, from the relationship between state and business lobbies, its development model approach of State-Led development, as well as the central drivers of FDI, Export/Import Economies and Processing Zones, Global Systems of Production and Production Chains, and Financial internationalisation, this unit aims to deepen our understanding of development and political economic system in the People’s Republic

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Critically engage with a body of analytical knowledge about political and economic systems in the People’s Republic of China.
• Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the dynamics of power, state-societal and state-business relations with regard to the People’s Republic of China
• Critically evaluate the influence of the international political economic system on the Chinese national economy;
• Demonstrate detailed awareness of China’s growing economy and its implications for the international economy.

Teaching Information

1hr lecture, 2hr seminar

Assessment Information

Please state the methods used for formative and summative assessment, including essay word length, length and type of exams, projects, etc. The relative contributions of the different summative assessments to the overall unit mark should also be included, e.g. 3-hour written exam (60%), 2000 word essay (40%). Please link the assessment to the intended learning outcomes bearing in mind that it is expected that all intended learning outcomes are assessed.

1 x presentation (25%)

1 x 3000 word essay (75%)

Both forms pieces assess all learning outcomes.

Reading and References

1. Barry Naughton, The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth, MIT Press, 2006
2. Dali Yang, Remaking the Chinese Leviathan: Market Transition and the Politics of Governance in China, Stanford University Press 2006
3. Nicholas R. Lardy, Sustaining China’s Economic Growth After the Global Financial Crisis, Peterson Institute for International Economics (15 Nov 2011)
4. Bruce Dickson, Red Capitalism in China: The Party, Private Entrepreneurs and Prospects for Political Change, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
5. Yasheng Huang, Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the State, Cambridge University Press 2008
6. Justin Yifu Lin, Demystifying the Chinese Economy Cambridge University Press (2011)
7. Justin Yifu Lin, New Paradigm for Interpreting the Chinese Economy: Theories, Challenges and Opportunities, World Scientific Publishing (30 Mar 2014)