Leadership Styles and Political Survival of Chinese Communist Party Elites

39 Pages Posted: 23 Feb 2019

See all articles by Junyan Jiang

Junyan Jiang

Columbia University

Zhaotian Luo

University of Chicago, Department of Political Science

Date Written: February 5, 2019

Abstract

Leadership is a crucial aspect of politics, but systematic evidence on how politicians lead and the consequences of their leadership styles remains scant. This study sheds light on these issues by analyzing a unique dataset of internal evaluation remarks for top provincial politicians in China. Latent class analyses on evaluation keywords reveal two distinct styles: an assertive, autocratic style that focuses on centralized decision-making and efficient execution, and a collegial, democratic style that respects dissents and fosters intra-elite collaboration. We further show that the two leadership styles are associated distinct governing strategies and that they both o er viable, but different, paths to achieve political survival. These findings enrich our understanding of survival tactics and selection dynamics in authoritarian regimes.

Suggested Citation

Jiang, Junyan and Luo, Zhaotian, Leadership Styles and Political Survival of Chinese Communist Party Elites (February 5, 2019). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3329665 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3329665

Junyan Jiang (Contact Author)

Columbia University ( email )

7th Floor, International Affairs Bldg.
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Zhaotian Luo

University of Chicago, Department of Political Science ( email )

5825 S University Ave
Chicago, IL 60637
United States

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