Reza Hasmath

Reza Hasmath

Reza Hasmath (Ph.D., Cambridge) is a Full Professor in Political Science at the University of Alberta. His award-winning research looks at: (1) the life course experiences and public management of ethnic minorities in global contexts; (2) state-society relationships in China, and how the activities of emerging state/non-state actors affect international development and global affairs; (3) the evolving behaviour of policy actors and citizens in authoritarian regimes; (4) global sustainability and ESG principles/practices; and (5) the essentialist qualities of the self, community and state.

  1. Citizens’ Support for Economic Governance Approaches in Contemporary China

    10/30/2024

    Citizens’ Support for Economic Governance Approaches in Contemporary China

    Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Framework 3. Methodology 4. Results 5. Implications and Conclusion Abstract: This study examines potential variations in everyday Chinese citizens’ support for two prevailing economic governance forms in contemporary China: the regulatory and statist approaches. Leveraging the Chinese Citizens Expectations of the State Survey, it argues that the current support for either forms of economic governance fall within a distinct societal cleavage between regime insiders and outsiders. The study suggests that there is widespread support for a regulatory governance approach across the general public, irrespective of the insider and outsider dualism. However, support for a statist governance approach is much stronger amongst regime insiders, whom exhibit a skepticism of domestic privately owned firms. Furthermore, support for the statist governance approach is stronger amongst older age segments of the population and weaker with the more highly educated. These findings provide insights into potential social divisions over the role of the state in governing the economy. More broadly, the findings speak to the efficacy of popular legitimacy strategies for the Communist Party of China. Citation: Hasmath, R. (2023) “⁠Citizens' Support for Economic Governance Approaches in Contemporary China⁠”, Global Public Policy and Governance 3: 249-267. Available in Chinese: 当代中国公民对经济治理方法的支持⁠

    37 min
  2. What Drives the European Union’s Contemporary Strategic Engagement with China?

    10/30/2024

    What Drives the European Union’s Contemporary Strategic Engagement with China?

    Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Analytical Framework 3. The EU’s Contemporary Engagement with China 4. Theoretical Implications 5. Conclusion Abstract: This article discusses the main determinants of the European Union’s (EU) strategic engagement with China with reference to three theoretical claims: an institutional perspective, a values-based approach and a realpolitik dimension. It examines the utility of each theoretical position and outlines complementary and divergent essential characteristics. This examination is conducted with the aid of empirical evidence from long-standing points of interactions between the EU and China over the last three decades. These include the EU’s arms embargo with respect to China, EU-China competition in Africa and the EU’s position on designating market economy status to China. This analysis can reduce the misunderstandings and uncertainties embedded in the contemporary EU-China relationship. Citation: Hasmath, R. and Wyzycka, N. (2023) “What Drives the European Union’s Contemporary Strategic Engagement with China?”, China: An International Journal 21(3): 1-19. Available in Chinese, French and German: 是什么推动了欧盟与中国的当代战略交往? Qu’est-ce Qui Motive l’Engagement Stratégique Contemporain de l’Union Européenne avec la Chine? Was Treibt die Europäische Union Gegenwärtig an bei ihrem Strategischen Engagement gegenüber China?

    55 min
  3. Discourse, Deliberation and Difference in an Authoritarian Public Sphere

    12/14/2023

    Discourse, Deliberation and Difference in an Authoritarian Public Sphere

    Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Discourse and Deliberative Processes in the Public Sphere 3. The Politics of Difference 4. Authoritarian Discourse and Deliberation 5. Authoritarian Difference 6. Conclusion Abstract: This article explores how discourse, deliberation and difference functions in an authoritarian environment, with an emphasis on the experiences of contemporary China. The article articulates why authoritarian discourse and deliberation is more limited than its Western democratic counterpart. It further suggests that the incorporation of difference into authoritarian discourse and deliberation is difficult due to the inherent tensions between the ‘Other’ and the ruling elite in authoritarian polities. Nevertheless, these constraints do not invalidate the notion that public discourse and deliberation is theoretically possible and has a practical function in authoritarian regimes. Citation: Hasmath, R. (2023) “Discourse, Deliberation and Difference in an Authoritarian Public Sphere”, Journal of Deliberative Democracy 19(1): 1-10. Available in Chinese, French, German and Russian: 独裁公共领域中的话语, 商议和差异 Débats, Délibérations et Divergences dans une Société Publique Autoritaire Diskurs, Deliberation und Differenz in einem Autoritären Öffentlichen Raum Дискурс, дискуссия и различия в авторитарной публичной сфере

    55 min

About

Reza Hasmath (Ph.D., Cambridge) is a Full Professor in Political Science at the University of Alberta. His award-winning research looks at: (1) the life course experiences and public management of ethnic minorities in global contexts; (2) state-society relationships in China, and how the activities of emerging state/non-state actors affect international development and global affairs; (3) the evolving behaviour of policy actors and citizens in authoritarian regimes; (4) global sustainability and ESG principles/practices; and (5) the essentialist qualities of the self, community and state.