Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Democratization By Foreign Intervention : How Different Causes Of Intervention Affect The Outcome Of Democratization?, Pat Shu Roy Ho

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

In examining the external intervention in order to promote democratization after the Cold War, there have been five kinds of conflicts (transition to independence, the civil war, the ethnic conflict, removing the dictatorship, and the ‘war on terror’) necessitating international interventions. While the foreign interveners attempt to solve the conflict by promoting democracy in the target society, the nature of these contexts complicates the mission and the ‘transitional phases’. Specifically, this thesis suggested that the elite composition of different contexts will affect the formation of elite consensus. Meanwhile, their difficulty in forming elite consensus can be arranged in ascending order: …

China’S Rise And Technology Denials : A Study Of Variations In Allies’ Cooperation With The United States, Cheuk Ling Pong

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

US and its allies worked closely to deny the USSR’s access to advanced technologies during the Cold War. In addition to multilateral mechanisms such as CoCom, they also took similar unilateral measures despite disputes between them. Yet, compared to the US-Soviet strategic rivalry, US-allies cooperation over technology denials against China is much less coordinated. Allies have not only taken different unilateral policies but also shown major disputes with the US. Allies’ unsynchronized and inconsistent unilateral technology transfer policies and the absence of multilateral institutions similar to the CoCom demonstrate the looseness in current US cooperation with allies in the China …

Entertainment Media, Propaganda, And Popular Support : Evidence From China, Shouzhi Xia

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

Is it possible to form “soft authoritarianism” that manages citizens by taking away their sense of resistance? Taking China as a case, this dissertation suggests that the rise of entertainment media in authoritarian states enables the rulers to maintain their resilience through a soft approach, thereby avoiding costly heavy-handed measures. Such a soft approach can work because entertainment media, like “fictitious pleasure drugs,” undoes audiences’ sophistication so that people are susceptible to official propaganda.

We provide two pieces of evidence that the Chinese authorities may use entertainment media as a subtle means to manage society. First, analyzing the Weibo posting …

Does China Engage In Debt-Trap Diplomacy?, Shalendra Sharma, Xiangge Lin

Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Working Paper Series

No abstract provided.

Measuring Mediated Deliberation In Hong Kong Newspapers : Case Studies Of The Hong Kong Section Of The Express Rail Link And The Hong Kong International Airport Three-Vumway System Construction Projects, Ka Chun Ng

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

In contemporary societies, the role of the mass media is indispensable in the process of opinion formation on public policies and the mass media is also the major communicative setting that offers an arena for truly public deliberation, in other words, the public deliberation process in contemporary societies is largely mediated with the help of professional communicators. As such, the role of the mass media in constructing mediated deliberation is important in contemporary societies, but this research field is still somewhat underdeveloped.

This thesis investigates the role of Hong Kong newspapers in constructing mediated deliberation and measures the deliberative quality …

A Re-Examination Of The Governors Autonomy : Three Selected Case Studies During The Sino-British Talks Over Hong Kong's Future, From 1982 To 1985, Hok Yin Man

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

In the British colonial system, the governor of a colony is often believed to be “the man on the spot with last word”，enjoying tremendous autonomy and discretion from the metropole (London) in managing colonial affairs. Nevertheless, while there is little doubt that the social and public policies, or so-called “domestic policies and affairs”, were generally part of the Colonial Governor domain to manage, the level of autonomy that he was able to exert on those policies, other than the conventional concept of “domestic policies and affairs”，remains a debatable topic. This thesis, therefore, attempts to shed new light on how much …

State Capacity And Naval Buildup : The Sino-Japanese Divergence In The Late Nineteenth Century, Xinyi Shen

Lingnan Theses and Dissertations (MPhil & PhD)

The East Asian modernization divergence in the late nineteenth century has long puzzled historians and social scientists. As Qing China, given its vast territory, large population and dominating influence spreading to neighboring countries, failed to modernize herself as its small island neighbor Japan did after the forced opening up by the West. One important divergence is their military capability, especially that of navy. The relatively higher capacity of the Imperial Japanese Navy has played a decisive role in its victory over the Beiyang Fleet in the 1894/95 First Sino-Japanese War. Following the defeat, Qing China was burdened with huge indemnity, …

Status, Revisionism, And Great Power Strategy : Us-China Positional Competition And The Struggle For Leadership In Asia-Pacific, John Hugo Simon Åberg

Theses & Dissertations

The dissertation addresses the core IR problem of revisionism and relates it to both the declining superpower and the rising great power, both the United States and China. The dissertation also offers a novel conceptualization of international order in terms of which revisionism is understood. The theoretical innovation of the dissertation modifies established structural realist theories and shifts the explanatory focus from security to status. Since status, defined as social position, is composed of both power and prestige, both change in the balance of power and the balance of prestige explain revisionism, which then cause dissatisfaction in the form of …

Does Democracy Promotion Promote Democracy? The Zimbabwean Case, Ruvimbo Natalie Mavhiki

Theses & Dissertations

Why has the increase in election funding by both Western international organizations and governmental donor agencies not resulted in the deepening and consolidation of democracy in most African countries? This study assesses this question with reference to Zimbabwe. Significant financial and technical commitments have been invested for the establishment and consolidation of democracy in Zimbabwe, but instead of democratic consolidation, Zimbabwe has oscillated from a de facto one party state to a competitive electoral democracy and then to an electoral authoritarian regime. What explains this puzzling phenomenon? Can democracy promotion promote democracy, and if not, what are the pre-requisites for …

Rising Powers And Foreign Intrastate Armed Conflicts : Trends And Patterns Of China’S Intervention In African Civil Wars, Obert Hodzi

Theses & Dissertations

What influences one state to intervene in another’s intrastate armed conflict? In answering this question, existing scholarship has tended to emphasise the position of the intervening state in the international system; suggesting that, that is the main determinant factor of a state’s external intervention behaviour. As a result, existing research on intervention in foreign intrastate armed conflicts is dominated by a focus on great powers and their intervention methods. Employing the neoclassical realist causal logic, this thesis argues, on the contrary, that whether a state intervenes in a foreign intrastate armed conflict is a factor of both systemic and state …

Political Reunification With Taiwan : Perspectives From The Leadership, Intellectuals And The General Public In Mainland China, Peiji Yu

Theses & Dissertations

This thesis studies Mainland China’s standpoint of political reunification with Taiwan in the contemporary era (2008-2014). The exploration examines the perspectives of leadership, intellectuals and the general public under the analytical framework of state nationalism and popular nationalism.

In general, the standpoints that “Taiwan as an integral part of China” and a “political reunification with Taiwan should be realized” are still the mainstream views in Mainland China. However, detailed reunification views vary among the different perspectives. In terms of the state nationalism composed by leadership and establishment intellectuals, the settlement of the Taiwan issue and the realization of the complete …

Newspaper Portrayal And Legislative Voting Process : A Case Study Of Statutory Minimum Wage In Hong Kong, Ngai Chiu Wong

Theses & Dissertations

Statuary Minimum Wage (SMW) has been discussed for 13 years in post-colonial Hong Kong and was finally legislated for in 2010. Scholars have attempted to explain how and why SMW was legislated for in post-colonial Hong Kong. They have argued that the growing public demand for the legislation created huge pressure for legislators. Even though previous studies have provided explanations for how the policy was made, they have failed to articulate two fundamental questions: how the Legislative Council lawmakers took notice of the problem of working poor and the need to vote in favor of SMW in Hong Kong? These …

Structural Realism And The New Cold War, Ka Ho Wong

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

The Cold War mentality such as misperception which is deep-rooted in the American and Russian government has triggered the revival of U.S.-Russian conflicts. The new Cold War would be a continuation from the past that operates with an action-and-reactions model. However, with the change of geopolitical situation, the new Cold War would be conducted in different means.

The structural constraints suggested by the structural realist would be an explanation for the emergence of new Cold War. The structural realism makes contributions of the idea of misperception，over-exaggeration, and balance of power that is a product of an anarchic international system. The …

The Emergence Of Civil Disobedience Movements In Hong Kong, Kwun Hong Chan

Theses & Dissertations

Civil disobedience, as a specific means of protest, has drawn intellectual attention worldwide, but few scholars in Hong Kong have studied this means of protest in depth. Focusing on the reasons why civil disobedience movements have emerged in Hong Kong, this research has used a case study methodology. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted with people that participated in many of Hong Kong’s previous civil disobedience movements, from the Yau Ma Tei Boat People Incident of the 1970s, to the Anti-Public Order Ordinance demonstrations and Citizens’ Radio Incident of the early 2000s. In addition to describing how the emergence of specific …

The Politics Of Crisis Management In Post-1997 Hong Kong : A State-Society Interactive Framework, Hin Yeung Chan

Theses & Dissertations

Most studies and research on crisis management and government crises put their focus on advanced, democratic nations, where governments have to bear the responsibility of handling of a crisis through elections. However, relatively little attention has been given on the consequences of crises, particularly governance crises, in regimes without full democracy. By using post-1997 Hong Kong, a liberal society with limited democracy, as an example, this thesis aims to examine the applicability of crisis management theories and models currently available, and to introduce an entirely new State-society Interactive Framework 1 to tackle their limitations.

The Five Tasks Leadership Approach suggested …

Arab Authoritarianism And Us Foreign Policy, Ki Chun Luk

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

This qualitative research aims to examine the nature and reasons for America support for Arab authoritarian regimes in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, and to provide further details by examining the inferiority of liberal cultures and superiority of realist approach and continuation/discontinuation of this existing approach after/during the Arab Spring by case studies. In order to have a systematic analysis, alternative theoretical models, including a revised national interest model, the neoclassical realist US grand strategy model (Dueck ,2008),the international conditions analysis by Petras (2011),and US domestic politics model will be examined. Currently, the issue under study suffers from little systematic …

Japan As China's 'Other': China's Identity And Policy Towards Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, Filip Viskupic

Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines contemporary Sino-Japanese relations, in particular the Chinese policy towards the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands following the end of the Cold War. It answers the puzzle of why the territorial dispute emerged as such a divisive issue in the bilateral relations between China and Japan.

This thesis embraces a constructivist perspective of international relations and puts forward the concept of identity. Identity is understood here as the image of individuality and distinctiveness held by a state in international relations and by having an identity is to live and act according to the defining features of identity. Drawing upon discourse analysis …

The Implications Of China’S ‘String Of Pearls Strategy’ On Relations With Indian Ocean Nations, Maleehah Iman Ali

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

This thesis contends that China pursues the String of Pearls Strategy for now, primarily for mercantile purposes and as a means to ensure energy security and not to contest the US or deliberately threaten India. All countries depend on sea channels for trade; hence they seek stability at sea and sea control. China is no exception. I believe that China will abide by the ‘peaceful rise’ mandate as too much is at stake for her both domestically and internationally. This will hold true as long as China’s interests are safe. The evidence presented here forth, will substantiate that the steps …

The Effects Of Patriotic Education On Chinese Youths' Perceptions Of Japan, Zeying, Zena Wu

Theses & Dissertations

This study tries to address a research question on what effects Chinese patriotic education has on Chinese youths’ perceptions of Japan. The question is raised from a recent discussion on the issue of whether the “patriotic education campaign” since 1989 has led to anti-Japanese sentiments in China.

Guided by the research question, this study particularly looks at the impacts of patriotic education in schools on Chinese students perceptions of Japan. While aware of the theoretical arguments and the focus on Chinese historical narrative of Japan in previous research, this study instead serves as an empirical examination on the topic and …

民粹主義與政治主體的生成 : 社民連的個案, Chak Sang Pang

Theses & Dissertations

拉克勞提出民粹主義是集體身份建構過程的理論：人們透過空洞能指扣連社會上的不同訴求，建立人民與權力的對立陣線，生成集體的身分認同。這與把社會上的群體（如階級）簡 單地視為分析單位的經典馬克思主義分析方法及理性選擇論等不同。本研究以香港政團「社民連」為個案，分析民粹主義的操作。前設是把人們於社會中的位置及利益與其身分認同脫鈎，視身分認同為話語操作的結果。

本研究將使用這一框架，分析於大眾媒體與網上這兩個不同的公共的討論中，社民連被如何表述，令人們可把不同的訴求扣連到「社民連」這概念之上。本研究將指出，社民連雖然號 稱基層黨，但「基層」一詞矛盾重重，社民連只有透過定位為與傳統政治秩序割裂而具多重 意義的「激進派」，吸納傳統「泛民」未能吸納的政治能量，進而產生一些與傳統香港政治 中泛民對建制的對立不同的新主體。於主流傳媒排斥這一新主體的背景下，人們不但透過互 聯網互通消息，甚至以「網民」作為身分認同，與主流傳媒及政治秩序對抗。

Alliance Management Of Post-Cold War Us-Israeli Relations, Wun Liong Chau

Theses & Dissertations

There is always a controversial debate on why the US-Israeli relationship can enjoy lengthy endurance (even after the end of the Cold War). Scholars have traditionally offered explanations through either the strategic role of Israel to the US, or domestic factors including the Jewish lobbies in the US, or the cultural affinities between the two states. However, they tend to emphasize the significance of only one particular dimension, marginalizing possible insights from competitive dimensions.

This research aims to offer a different approach to study US-Israeli relations through alliance management theories. Although there are no formal military treaties between the US …

Fragmented Authoritarianism And Politics Of Hydropower In China : Case Studies Of Tgp & Nrp, Miu Fai, Tommy Wong

Theses & Dissertations

Thanks for economic improvements since the ‘open-door policy’ in 1978; China’s international status has been improving economically and even politically. For instance, she has become a major contributor of BRIC which is a group of four most rapidly developing countries in the world, i.e. Brazil, Russia, India and China, and the largest buyer of U.S. treasury bonds in the world. Nevertheless, a number of intellectuals like Liu and Shirk pointed out that there are still a number of difficulties – both exogenous and endogenous – underneath.1 This research would like to concentrate on one of the aspects which Chinese investigators …

Justice And Adaptation To Climate Change In The Asia Pacific Region : Designing International Institutions, Paul G. Harris, Jonathan Symons

CAPS Working Paper Series

Many developing states argue that they should be compensated for the costs of adapting to climate change. They point out that industrialised states are responsible for the bulk of historical greenhouse gas emissions and per capita first world emissions continue to dwarf developing world emissions. Yet, given the substantial internal inequality and rapidly rising emissions within developing states such as China and India, the same arguments that justify international adaptation compensation might equally justify internal redistributive measures. This paper addresses the question of how international institutions that fund adaptation to anthropogenic climate change should be designed. After reviewing both communitarian …

Humanitarian Intervention In North Korea?, Steve Chung

Conference on “Improving the Human Destiny"

No abstract provided.

A Different Path From Tangshan To Wenchuan : China’S Participation In The International Disaster Reduction Regimes And Its Domestic Impacts, Lin Peng

Conference on “Improving the Human Destiny"

The catastrophic Wenchuan earthquake provides an uncomfortable opportunity to examine China’s disaster management system. This paper would approach this issue from the perspective of international politics, trying to explore the interaction between the international factors and the development of China’s domestic disaster administrative system.

The Security Dilemma In Sino-Japanese Relations, Yu Pan Lee

Theses & Dissertations

Even though economic relations between China and Japan have improved in recent decades, their security relations raise the prospect of clashes due to the perceived incompatibility of their interests, as manifested for example in territorial claims and rivalry for energy resources. This thesis analyzes the two states’ security relations using the “security-dilemma” and “constructivist theories” of international relations.

The security dilemma is a condition in which states’ attempts to increase their own security, out of the mutual fear and suspicion, results a decrease in security for all. The constructivist theories suggest that the identities of actors, social norms, states’ interests …

America New China Policy : The Hedgagement Approach, Cheong Wai Yuen

Theses & Dissertations

In the past few decades, the rise of China has shifted the political landscape in the Asia Pacific region. China has succeeded in economic development since the reform in 1979. It is transforming its growing economic strength into military power by substantially increasing military expenditure. According to the estimation of Global Trends 2025, by 2025 China will be the second largest economic and military power if current trend persists. The emergence of China has inevitably altered its international role when it is becoming the great power. With increasing economic interdependence and the anti-terrorism, the Sino-U.S. relations have become more complicated …

China's Efforts And The Development Of The Six-Party Talks In 2007, Keyu Gong

CAPS Working Paper Series

The Six-Party Talks concerning North Korea’s nuclear issue achieved significant progress in 2007 with the issuance of two joint agreements on the concrete steps towards the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Largely thanks to China’s strenuous efforts, the talks in 2007 were marked by clear objectives, a strong sense of time, direct emphases and high feasibility. Sharing important stakes on the issue, China has played an ever active role in promoting the communication and negotiation among all parties, which is widely acknowledged by the international society.

Party Controls In National Central University And Nanjing University Before And After 1949, Zhendong Xu

Theses & Dissertations

In 1898, with the foundation of the Metropolitan University of the Qing Dynasty (Jingshi da xuetang) in Beijing, the modern higher education system was established in China. After the Qing Dynasty, China has been ruled by two political parties before and after 1949: Kuomintang (KMT) dated from 1911 to 1949 and Chinese Communist Party (CCP)1 dated from 1949 to present.

The history of Nanjing University (NJU) can be traced back to Sanjiang Normal School founded by the Qing government in 1902. The NJU witnessed the development of modern higher education in China. The Nanjing city used to be the capital …

Designing Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, Chien Peng Chung

CAPS Working Paper Series

No abstract provided.