Does Ideology Matter for the Citizenry in China? Public Attitudes and Preferences for Economic Policies

Abstract

This study argues that a generalized attitude about government performance provides significant structure to citizens’ political opinions in China. However, there does not appear to be any evidence that Chinese citizens hold consistent opinions on economic policy issues, suggesting that citizens do not have a well-ordered ideological mental structure. These conclusions are derived using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and are robust to various specification changes. The implications of these results challenge findings that Chinese citizens have a well-structured ideology, notably on an economic dimension.

Keywords: ideology, government performance, economic policy, public opinion, China