Asian Studies Commons^™

Political Dynamics In Land Commodification: Commodifying Rural Land Development Rights In Chengdu, China, Qian Forrest Zhang, Jianling Wu

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Commodification of land is at the forefront of the re-casting of rural China by the spread of capitalism. This study examines a market-based program of land development rights trading in Chengdu, China. The program was made possible by a change in the central government’s land-use regulation that shifted the policy goal from ‘no net loss’ of farmland to ‘no net gain’ of construction land. We detail how local governments at multiple levels work together to construct land development rights as a commodity and build market institutions to foster its trading, illustrating land commodification as an inherently political process. A unique …

A Cultural Comparison Of The Facial Inference Process, Janine Swiney

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare emotion and personality trait attributions to facial expressions between American and Asian Indian samples. Data were collected using Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Participants in this study were asked to infer the emotions and personality traits shown in three facial expressions (scowling, frowning, and smiling) of young white females and males in six photographs. Each picture was randomly presented for 10 seconds followed by four randomized questions about the individual in the picture. The first question asked participants to identify the emotion shown from a list of six emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, …

Civic Dignity And Meaningful Political Participation, Melissa Mahoney Smith

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation looks at how enhanced political participation opportunities can increase individual liberty and improve public-sector reform efforts. It blends political theory with contemporary concerns for individual well-being and government accountability. To do this, several research methodologies are used, including normative, qualitative process-tracing, and quantitative analysis.

First, the dissertation draws insights from ancient and modern political philosophy and the political thought and example of Jane Addams in 19th Century Chicago. It begins with Josiah Ober’s work on civic dignity, which he defines as “equal high standing” among citizens, marked by “non-infantilization and non-humiliation.” This definition is a useful starting point …

Making Policy On The Front Page: How The National Media Shape Indian Foreign Policy Toward Pakistan, Sehr Taneja

Pomona Senior Theses

This thesis explains how national media shape Indian foreign policy toward Pakistan. I use empirical research to explore the contribution of national media to the formulation of policy during the 1999 Kargil War and 2001 Agra Summit between India and Pakistan. I created a database of news articles in the leading national English newspapers—The Times of India and Hindustan Times and then coded and analyzed them. I analyze the media’s role by identifying trends in media strategies such as framing, agenda setting, and manufacturing consent. In addition, I analyze government documents and parliamentary debates to gather information on the policy …

Japanese Fdi To Thailand: Mobility And Harmony, Saikaew Thipakorn

Asian Review

Japan has been the top investor in Thailand since the end of WWII. In 1972, following violent protests against Japanese investment, the Japanese government established the Japan Foundation as the main agency to take care of cultural diplomacy. Though under the supervision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Japanese business community financially contributed to its establishment from the beginning. In addition, Japanese business in Th ailand continuously cooperated with the government in its cultural diplomatic activities. Th eir daily operation created an atmosphere for human exchange which led to understanding between peoples of different cultures. Japanese investment promoted the …

Literature In Transmigration: The Rama Story In Southeast Asia, Frederick B. Goss

Asian Review

The story of Rama, known as Ramayana in the Indian subcontinent where it originated, has migrated and spread to nearly every culture and society in Asia. In each place the story has been introduced, it has been adopted, adapted and absorbed into the local culture. Given the universal themes in the tale, the basic outline of the story has shown a remarkable flexibility to be able to sustain change and adaption, both in interpretation and interpolation. This article examines and compares the presence of the Rama story in various cultures and societies of Southeast Asia, showing how the tradition has …

An Analysis Of China’S Regional Emissions Trading System: Challenges And Lessons, Ronghui (Kevin) Zhou

Bard Center for Environmental Policy

China, the largest carbon dioxide emitter in the world, has faced environmental pressures both internationally and domestically over the last ten years. In early 2011, the Chinese government approved a carbon emissions trading program in seven cities and provinces, and started planning a national emissions trading framework. This thesis reviews these pilot programs and examines the issues that underlie them. Drawing lessons from the U.S. Acid Rain Program, the European Union’s ETS, and California’s CAT, the three largest emissions trading frameworks in the world, I find that: (1) lack of trades in China’s pilot programs is a consequence of permit …

Increasing Energy Acces In Southeast Asia Through Social Enterprises, Haneol Jeong

Social Space

The 21st century has seen cars go driverless and virtual reality become a reality—yet one fact remains: one in seven people still do not have access to electricity.1 In an age where more people have access to mobile phones than toilets,2 electricity has become as vital a necessity as clean water. To address this issue, social enterprises such as M-KOPA and Sunlabob have pioneered efforts to provide renewable energy for off-grid communities, and yielded innovative energy alternatives and financing solutions. Southeast Asia, however, remains a largely untapped market, with approximately 19 per cent of its population still without access to …

The Macro Behind Microfinance: Cambodia's Financial Inclusion Success Story, Jonathan Chang

Social Space

Financial inclusion refers to the delivery of affordable financial services to disadvantaged and low-income segments of society. However, as it also involves striking a fine balance between managing businesses’ credit risks and improving customers’ access to credit, different countries have made varied progress in their financial inclusion efforts. To date, across both developed and developing nations, SMEs and individuals still struggle in the face of limited access to adequate financing. Yet there is one country that has made considerable strides in this area: judging from the tremendous success of its microfinance sector, Cambodia seems to have found the sweet spot …

Introduction: Understanding Central-Local Relations In China, John A. Donaldson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

How do we understand the evolution of central-local relations in China during the reform period? This book addresses this question by focusing on eight separate issues in which the central-local relationship has been especially salient – government finance, investment control, regional development, administrative zoning, implementation, culture, social welfare and international relations. Each chapter introduces a sector and the way the center and various local governments have shared or divided power over the different periods of China’s reform era. The balance of power is gauged dynamically over time to measure the extent to which one level of government dominates, influences or …

Contesting Urban Citizenship: The Urban Poor’S Strategies Of State Engagement In Chennai, India, Subadevan Mahadevan, Ijlal Naqvi

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Existing accounts of how the urban poor in the global south engage with the state fall short on two fronts. Firstly, the literature lacks an overarching framework articulating the urban poor’s strategies for engaging the state. Secondly, these accounts typically capture singular instances of state engagement pursued by the urban poor and theorise on that basis. Using Partha Chatterjee’s distinction between civil and political society as our theoretical point of departure, we draw on ethnographic evidence from Chennai’s informal settlements to demonstrate how and when the urban poor deploy different strategies of state engagement to advance their claims to urban …

The Blame Game, Singapore Management University

Research@SMU: Connecting the Dots

When parties outsource duties to independent contractors who then carry out the work negligently, is the hiring party also responsible? Professor Low Kee Yang believes so.

See the papers:

• Non-delegable duty of care: Woodland v Swimming Teachers Association and beyond
• Non-delegable duty after Tiong Aik

Foreign Influences On Contemporary Japanese Remilitarization: The United States, North Korea, And China, Allison Lee

Honors Undergraduate Theses

After surrendering in World War II, Japan's new American-crafted constitution forced the formerly imperialistic country into pacifism. In accordance with Article 9 of the constitution, Japan was to be completely demilitarized and was therefore barred from keeping a standing military of its own. Over the course of the seven decades that have passed since the implementation of Supreme Commander MacArthur’s nonviolent constitution, Japan has slowly regained military strength. Rather than being the direct result of domestic politics and civic wishes, however, the rearmament of Japan has come as a result of foreign influences. Namely, the United States, North Korea, and …

The Question Of Remilitarization: Is Japan's Pacifist Nature In Danger Of Reform, Shanisha Coram

Scripps Senior Theses

Though Article 9 has not been revised since it was implemented in 1947, the past two decades have seen an increase in Japanese military capability due to the government’s loose interpretation of Article 9 and its limitations to allow for Japanese involvement in collective security operations internationally. As a result, a number of Japanese political scholars and newspapers have projected the possibility of not only Japanese constitutional revision but also the re-militarization of Japan as well. Interested in finding out whether or not this projection has any likelihood of success in the future, I have posed the following question: Why …

Ownership And Identities Of The Largest Shareholders And Dividend Policy: Evidence From Vietnam, Trien Vinh Le, Trang Huyen Le

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

This study investigates the relationship between the level of shareholdings and identities of the largest shareholders, and cash dividend policy. The study is conducted with a sample of 180 firms listed on Vietnam stock exchange markets from 2009 to 2013. The fixed effect model is employed to analyze the balanced panel data. The results show that the higher the level of holdings by the largest shareholders, the lower the dividend payout. Moreover, companies with the State and Foreign investors as the largest shareholders have higher dividend payout ratio than companies with local investors and managers as the largest shareholders. The …

A New Multilateral Electricity Trading Model For Asean, Kevin Mark Lee

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The ASEAN Power Grid (APG) was initiated in 1997 as a means to achieve energy security in Southeast Asia in a sustainable manner. Two decades on, the APG project faces significant challenges to the development of both physical and institutional infrastructure. Many of these cannot be easily addressed due to the socio-political realities of the region. The ASEAN electricity exchange initiative (AEE), a proposal by the ASEAN Energy Market Initiative, may prove to be a more feasible approach for regional power sector integration, as it does not require complete domestic electricity market unbundling or privatization. This thesis analyzes regional electricity …

Factors Influencing Chinese Medical Tourists' Satisfaction With Medical Services In Thailand, Xiyuan Zhao

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Medical tourism is a new worldwide niche market, which generates apparent economic benefits. Chinese medical tourists are a significant consumer group in the medical tourism industry that many countries have begun to explore. This research aims to study the factors motivating mainland Chinese medical tourists to seek healthcare in Thailand and to assess their satisfaction with the medical services they received in this country. This research adopted both qualitative and quantitative methods. The findings indicate that the key factors motivating mainland Chinese medical tourists to travel to Thailand to receive in medical services include recommendations and media advertisements, national policies, …

Spelling Errors In Thai Made By Chinese And Lao Students Speaking Thai As A Foreign Language, Peng Hou

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

When learning a foreign language, it is important to learn how to accurately spell as it is crucial for communication. To accurately spell in the Thai language is challenging for both native and foreign learners of Thai. However, there are few studies that address the spelling errors made by foreign learners of Thai. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze the patterns and causes of spelling errors made by Chinese and Lao students speaking Thai as a foreign language. In order to gather data for this analysis, thirty Chinese students and thirty Lao students took part in a …

The Role Of Chinese Commercial Associations In Supporting New Chinese Sojourners In Bangkok : A Case Study Of The Thai-Guangxi Commercial Association, Zhong Jin Wen

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Thailand has always maintained friendly relations with China throughout long history, which include relationship in the cultural, political, economic, social and tourism areas, among others. In recent decades, especially following the development of the Chinese "one belt, one road" policy, more and more Chinese sojourners have chosen Thailand as their sojourning destination. However, looking back to the history, we will see that most old Chinese immigrants moved from China to Thailand to make a living as businessmen or labor force. During that period, commercial associations needed to be established, so that these Chinese immigrants could help each other, (such an …

A Study Of The Determinants Influencing The Legislative Success Of A Government-Proposed Bill In Korea, Byung Jun Ahn

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

As there is a widespread perception of legislative gridlock and subsequent failure in addressing national problems in Korea, this study examines what factors influence the legislative success and legislative time of a government-proposed bill in Korea. This study uses government-proposed bills from 1988 to 2016 to estimate the effect of explanatory variables such as divided government, the year of presidential term (one to five year), the presidential approval rate, the unemployment rate, filibusters, jurisdictional area of a bill, and the ratio of members’ bills to government-proposed bills.

The results of regression analyses show that there is no evidence divided government …