Yes, Standing Committee: Majority Rule in Non-Democracies

Speaker: Haokun Sun, PhD candidate, Cornell University; IvyPlus Exchange Scholar, Doerr School of Sustainability

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) espouses a principle of collective leadership, in which the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) makes important decisions by consensus. However, it is not known whether such a majority rule is employed in practice. This paper studies the appointment of party cadres into positions of power as a means of uncovering a general decision-making mechanism within the CCP. We provide reduced-form results showing that appointments are decided by the PSC, who selectively promote candidates in their social networks. This motivates a novel model of collective leadership in which PSC members play a coalition game to promote their preferred candidates. The majority rule is represented by a minimum constraint on the size of winning coalitions. Estimating our model, we show that appointments to positions above the vice-provincial minister level requires support from 75\% of the PSC members on average. This cut-off varies depending on the President in power, ranging from 50\% under Deng to 80\% under Jiang and Hu. Estimating political factions using modularity clustering, we find that factional penalties operate in parallel to the majority rule. Our method can be useful for understanding decision-making in non-democracies more generally.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Effectively Targeting Perinatal Home Visiting Interventions: Estimating Heterogeneous Treatment Effects on Infant Hemoglobin, Breastfeeding, and Diet Using Sorted Effects

Speaker: Siva Balakrishnan, PhD, University of Nevada, Reno

In this paper, we explore heterogenous treatment effects (HTE) of a stage-based home counseling intervention on exclusive breastfeeding (EBF), child hemoglobin and dietary diversity (DDS). In a cluster randomized controlled trial, pregnant women and caregivers of infants <6 months of age were enrolled in intervention or control arms in rural Sichuan, China. Community health workers delivered educational modules tailored to participants’ stage of development for 12 months. A novel sorted effects method was used to estimate HTE. Individual treatment effects were modeled by regressing baseline characteristics, treatment, and interactions thereof on outcomes. Characteristics of the 20% most and 20% least affected families were compared using multiple t-tests and adjusted p-values to identify those associated with HTE. Evidence of HTE on outcomes was strong with significant individual CATE on EBF and DDS among the 20% most affected families. Mothers with higher baseline caregiving knowledge or who gave birth vaginally saw greatest increases in EBF. Mothers pregnant at baseline or with less social support saw the most benefits on hemoglobin. Mothers with lower caregiving knowledge had greatest increases in DDS. The evidence supports the use of stage-based curricula and targeting mothers from pregnancy to obtain the greatest increases in child hemoglobin. To improve overall effects on EBF, breastfeeding modules may need to adjust content for first-time mothers and those with low caregiving knowledge. Partnering with hospital staff may improve EBF, particularly after c-section. Engaging family members to strengthen maternal social support may improve infant DDS.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Scholarly work and solutions in Mexico and other developing countries

Mexico has seen unprecedented levels of femicides and gender-based violence in recent years, making it among the most dangerous countries in the world for women. Mexico's recent election of its first female president provides a unique window of opportunity to address the causes and advance potential solutions to this disturbing trend. The workshop will provide a platform for a science-based discussion about scholarly work on gender-based violence in Mexico, as well as fostering a broader dialogue about violence in other developing countries.

The King Center on Global Development is hosting a two-day hybrid workshop, led by Beatriz Magaloni, the Graham H. Stuart Professor of International Relations in the Department of Political Science, to bring together practitioners and the academic community with a demonstrated interest in gender-based violence in the developing world. The event will also provide a platform for voices that have historically been silenced by gender-based violence and impunity in Mexico.

Registration is by invitation only. Please contact Kim Juárez Jensen at kimaje@stanford.edu to request to be added to the invitation list.

This event is hosted by CDDRL's Poverty, Violence, and Governance Lab (PovGov), the King Center on Global Development, and the Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS).
 

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Decentralized Economic Statecraft

Speaker: Alicia Chen, PhD Candidate in Political Science, Stanford University

Economic statecraft requires countries to trade off security and economic gains. This study provides a framework to explain how China manages this dilemma by considering the allocation of Chinese foreign aid. The study documents how, unlike Western donors, Chinese aid is allocated by local politicians rather than central policymakers in Beijing, and that these politicians are subject to a competitive promotion system centered around generating economic growth and fiscal revenue. Under this incentive scheme, local politicians use foreign aid to meet economic targets at home for career advancement. The theory is tested using provincial- and contractor-level aid data and a regression discontinuity design that exploits age restrictions in China’s promotion system. The results show that promotion-eligible politicians commit nearly $20 million more in aid annually compared to their ineligible counterparts.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Questions? Contact Ragina Johnson at raginaj@stanford.edu
 

Science Under Pressure: Global Decoupling, Ideological Recalibration, and the Future of Knowledge in China

Speaker: Naiyu Jiang, PhD Candidate in Political Science, Stanford University

This project examines how external geopolitical pressures and domestic political shifts are reshaping knowledge production in China. Specifically, it asks how targeted U.S. sanctions—such as the 2020 visa restrictions on researchers in critical fields—have affected the volume, quality, and global integration of Chinese scientific output. At the same time, this study explores how growing ideological control since the 2010s has redirected the thematic priorities and intellectual orientation of social science research in China. Drawing on two large-scale datasets—over 70 million Chinese-language publications from CNKI (1995–2024) and 80 million global articles from Web of Science (1972–2024)—the project traces shifts in collaboration networks, funding patterns, and research agendas across disciplines. It aims to provide a comprehensive account of how China’s research system is being reconfigured by both global decoupling and domestic political realignment—and what this transformation means for the future of cross-border knowledge production.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Questions? Contact Ragina Johnson at raginaj@stanford.edu
 

What Determines the Price of Health? Corruption-Information Tradeoff in Authoritarian Governance

Speaker: Victoria Liu, PhD Candidate in Political Science, Stanford University

China runs one of the largest public health systems in the world, with over 1 million health institutions caring for more than 1.4 billion people. In recent years, this system faces increasing pressure from rising demand due to an aging population, limited funding, and widespread accusations of corruption. In response to these challenges, the Chinese government has launched sweeping reforms to contain costs — most notably Xi Jinping’s high-profile anti-corruption campaign specifically targeted at the health sector. While these efforts aim to improve transparency and reduce costs, their broader effects remain unclear. This study examines the impact of anti-corruption efforts on a range of health system outcomes, including drug affordability, innovation, and health outcomes. Early findings suggest that while anti-corruption efforts may curb rent-seeking behavior, they do not always lead to improved outcomes. In some cases, anti-corruption campaigns may undermine the state’s capacity to gauge information from private industry or dampen incentives for innovation. This research contributes to a broader literature on corruption, state-business relations, and public service delivery in authoritarian context.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

Turning the Table: How Private Companies in China Leverage and Exploit State Assets from Local Governments

Speaker: Qianmin Hu, PhD Candidate in Political Science, Stanford University

While existing literature emphasizes state dominance and the frequent expropriation of private assets, this research investigates how private enterprises gain significant bargaining power over local governments, enabling them to expropriate state resources. Drawing on extensive qualitative fieldwork and a unique quantitative dataset derived from court judgments involving firm-government investment contracts, this study finds that private firms in China frequently breach contracts, leveraging and exploiting substantial subsidies and land price discounts from local governments. Such reversal of power is possible because local officials face intense bureaucratic incentives—such as unrealistic investment targets, prospects of promotion, and pressure from public shaming—to follow the central government's developmental agenda. These findings suggest that when an authoritarian government opens itself to potential exploitation by private firms, it implicitly guarantees property rights protection for private investments, thereby making its commitment to the private sector more credible.

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present. 

This event has been cancelled.

We hope to see you at another SCCEI event!
 

About the Workshops

Our Young Researcher Workshops offer emerging China scholars an opportunity to engage directly with interdisciplinary faculty and peers from across campus to discuss and receive feedback on their research. Each workshop features one or several PhD students presenting their latest empirical findings on issues related to China’s economy. Past topics have included college major selection as an obstacle to socioeconomic mobility, the effect of a cooling-off period on marriage outcomes, and factors contributing to government corruption. Faculty and senior scholars provide comments and feedback for improvement. This event series helps to build and strengthen Stanford’s community of young researchers working on China.

Workshops are held on select Fridays from 12 - 1 pm. Lunch will be provided! 

Visit the Young Researcher Workshops webpage for more information on the content and format of the series and to learn how to sign up to present.