Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Participation In The Belt And Road Initiative: Who Joins And Why?, Patrick Groening

Honors College

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a large-scale, global infrastructure project introduced by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013. The primary goal is to invest in infrastructure projects across Eurasia and Africa in an effort to improve regional connectivity. This research explains who participates in the BRI through cross-country quantitative analysis and two in-depth qualitative case studies. Through a logit analysis of political economy factors such as GDP per capita, FDI inflows, aid data, and others, I find that economic need is a significant predictor of membership as well as previous involvement in Chinese organizations such as the AIIB. …

Effects Of Government Reform And Creative Clusters On Chinese Entrepreneurship, Robert Mills

Honors College

This thesis analyzes the ways in which Chinese entrepreneurs have interacted with and responded to government policy. An examination of ethnographic research on the Shenzhen “Special Economic Zone” revealed that the forms entrepreneurship that emerged there during the early years of China’s economic reforms are rooted in the history and culture of the region. Analysis of modern policies, such as the 13^th 5-Year Plan (2016-2020) and the Internet Plus doctrine, determined that the state strategy for encouraging entrepreneurship is now focused on empowering local governments, rather than individuals, as entrepreneurial agents. The city of Hangzhou’s “Dream Town” creative cluster …

Feelings In Politics: How American Foreign Policy Can Benefit From Interpersonal Communication, Paden K. Stanton

Honors College

Misperception clouds good decision-making in international politics. American foreign policy doesn’t currently allow for ample strategic communication training for the President of the United States to prevent misperception from becoming an issue in international relations. Looking at influential political theorists, it’s easy to discover that they all warn of the detriment that comes with an ineffective communicator in the highest power position in the country.

My research provides an overview of different perceptions formed by the United States and China of each other throughout the Presidency of Donald Trump and his counterpart in Beijing, President Xi Jinping. By analyzing the …