Economic globalization and expressions of nationalism : a quantitative analysis of the present-day Chinese identity

Abstract

Economic globalization and growing interdependence have greatly facilitated the flows of trade, investment, and ideas among formerly hostile countries. However, political antagonism driven by nationalistic sentiments continues to break out in countries with increased inflows of foreign investments, such as China. The media identifies that a majority of participants in China's recent anti-foreign antagonism are urban young Chinese and nicknames them China's "angry youths". This thesis focuses on the micro-foundations underlying expressions of nationalism in the forms of economic protectionism and xenophobic political hostility, and musters both public and original survey data to examine the dynamic effects of interpersonal contact and patriotic predisposition as explanations for individual attitudes on international policy issues. The empirical analyses of three main hypotheses suggest that the Chinese generation of "angry youth" is not as radical as the media has portrayed. Yet, their significantly higher levels of comfort with western values and rules of the game in the era of globalization do not necessarily mean that they are any more eager to embrace the global and transnational socioeconomic and sociopolitical identities than their seniors. This thesis finds that China's integration into the global economy over the past three decades has not yet promoted more popular cosmopolitan identities and perspectives among the general public as various theoretical accounts project, even among citizens who have high levels of exposure to foreign business and economic influence. The persistence of nationalistic worldviews and identities among the Chinese public has serious implications for foreign businesses and governments that wish to proactively engage a rising China in international and regional affairs.