How Cohesive is the Chinese Bureaucracy? A Case Study of Street‐level Bureaucrats in China
| Date | 01 August 2017 |
| Author | Xiaowei Zang |
| Published date | 01 August 2017 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.1790 |
HOW COHESIVE IS THE CHINESE BUREAUCRACY? A CASE STUDY OF
STREET-LEVEL BUREAUCRATS IN CHINA
XIAOWEI ZANG*
City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
SUMMARY
Institutional analyses of the developmental state claim that the principal source of state capacity is internal cohesiveness, which is
defined as the tendency for the rank and file of the civil service to be in unity while working together towards national goals. In the
literature on the China model, the strong capacity of the Chinese state has been taken for granted, and internal cohesiveness in the
Chinese bureaucracy has not been problematized. This knowledge gap is narrowed by studying data on the Bureau of Urban
Management (i.e. Chengguan) in China. Recent studies are reviewed of bureaucratic logics and behaviour that question the extent
of collaboration between higher authorities and their subordinates (i.e. vertical cohesiveness) in China. Next, the essay theorizes
about how these bureaucratic logics may also undermine collaboration among government bureaus (horizontal cohesiveness).
Background information is offered about Chengguan and reports on the challenges identified by Chengguan officers to work with
people in other bureaus. The research does not find any solid evidence of horizontal cohesiveness in the Chinese bureaucracy.
This calls for an effort to reassess the validity of the China model. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
key words—street-level bureaucrats; governance; China model; state capacity
There are two major assumptions in the literature on the China model: (i) the Chinese state has strong capacity, and
(ii) as such, it has been able to promote economic growth in China (Das, 2014: p. 182; Ferchen, 2013: p. 399; Han,
2012; Heberer and Trappel, 2013; Knight, 2014; Ding, 2014; Pan, 2009; Wang, 2011; Yang, 2003). The essay
focuses on the first assumption of the same. According to institutional analyses of the state and development, a
principal source of state capacity is internal cohesiveness, which refers to the tendency for the rank and file of
the bureaucracy to be in unity while working together towards national goals such as economic growth and good
governance (Chibber, 2002; Evans, 1995; Rauch and Evans, 2000; Tsui-Auch, 2004). Internal cohesiveness can be
further considered as consisting of both working relations between higher authorities and subordinates (vertical
cohesiveness) and among the constituent parts of the civil service (horizontal cohesiveness).
Complementing the work by Zhou (2010) and Zhou et al. (2013) on vertical cohesiveness in the Chinese bu-
reaucracy, the essay studies horizontal cohesiveness. This has not yet received significant attention in the literature
on the China model. This knowledge gap is narrowed by examining whether government bureaus and bureaucrats
are united by a sense of common purpose. Data on the Bureau of Urban Management (Chengguan) were gathered
in fieldwork in several cities in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The Chengguan is a para-police force in
charge of urban policing in post-1978 China. The findings from this study of the Chengguan call into question
the extent of internal cohesiveness in the PRC bureaucracy.
CHINA’S CHALLENGE TO THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
The Chinese economy has expanded rapidly since 1978 despite widespread corruption, disregard for the rule of law
and lack of the Weberian model of bureaucracy. Institutional scholars believe such are necessary to spur a
*Correspondence to: X. Zang, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. E-mail:
xiaowei.zang@cityu.edu.hk
public administration and development
Public Admin. Dev. 37, 217–226 (2017)
Published online in Wiley Online Library
(wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/pad.1790
Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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