This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Caulfield, J. L. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Local government reform in China: a rational actor perspective

Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Hong Kong

There has been a series of comprehensive reform initiatives in recent Chinese history aimed at improving bureaucratic efficiency, flexibility and innovation through management and fiscal decentralization. The local government sector in China carries major functional responsibilities from economic development to social welfare provision. It is responsible for over 70 percent of total government expenditure. Now, in the new millennium, the Chinese central government seeks to transform local government as part of its market liberalization strategy. This includes ‘privatizing’ local enterprises (a process begun during the 1990s) and a rationalization of local bureaucracy. Although still a highly centralized administration, there has been a significant move away from a uniform approach to local government where now differentiation between regions and localities is actively encouraged. Within a still tightly constrained political structure, however, the reforms have done more than improve China’s economic output. They have created incentives for local officials to engage in rent seeking and utility-maximizing behaviours. The article explores the reform initiatives and critically assesses results against this background.

International Review of Administrative Sciences, Vol. 72, No. 2, 253-267 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0020852306064613


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				E. Padovani and E. Scorsone Comparing local governments' performance internationally: a mission impossible? International Review of Administrative Sciences, June 1, 2009; 75(2): 219 - 237. [Abstract] [PDF]

				H. S. Chan and K. W. Chow Public Management Policy and Practice in Western China: Metapolicy, Tacit Knowledge, and Implications for Management Innovation Transfer The American Review of Public Administration, December 1, 2007; 37(4): 479 - 498. [Abstract] [PDF]