State-Society Relations in Reform-Era China: A Unique Case of Postsocialist State-Led Late Development?

Contrary to many expectations, both capital and labor in China seem to have come to accept—and even support—Chinese Communist rule. Recent works by Bruce Dickson, Mary Gallagher, and Yongshun Cai help to explain why. Simultaneously, the findings of scholars outside of China suggest that the larger answer lies in China's combination of state-led late development and socialist past. Unlike in earlier developers, the emergence of capitalism in China has brought both greater economic inequality and new forms of dependence on the state. Further, as in postsocialist Russia and East and Central Europe, Chinese citizens show a preference for socialist economic values. Consequently, for both rising and declining sectors, China's economic reform has created disincentives to oppose the authoritarian political status quo.