Techno-nationalism and techno-globalism in China : developing an innovation-driven economy with Chinese characteristics

Name: Cruz, Rafael Torquato

keyword: China

; Policy

; Techno-nationalism

; Techno-globalism

; National identity

; Science and technology

; Innovation

; Innovation-driven development

Abstract: Science, technology and innovation (STI) are fundamental forces for the development of prosperous nations and can be linked directly with the construction of national identities. The nurturing of national STI capabilities requires strategic coordination of domestic and international factors and different governments can adopt a spectrum of policies to harness the opportunities of global markets while also protecting their own national interests. In recent years, China has been particularly successful in combining nationalism, globalization, and technological development. The goal of this research is to assess the role of nationalism in China’s strategy towards becoming an innovation-driven economy. For such, it reviews scientific literature concerning theories of technological development, which tend to cluster around two opposing poles: one linked to trends of globalism and economic liberalism (techno-globalism) and the other to nationalism and protectionism (techno-nationalism). Using a constructivist framework to understand the interplay between identity and norms in an international context, the research starts by reviewing key literature on the formation of China to understand the defining characteristics that shape the Chinese national identity and its guiding ideology. After establishing the main theoretical frameworks and observing the People's Republic of China's evolving practices on technology transfer and development, the research analyzes current official plans to interpret the Chinese government's policy in the 21st century. It studied five consecutive Five-Year Plans for National Economic and Social Development (10th to 14th plan) covering years 2001 to 2025, which reflects the overarching policy of the government for the period. It used a mixed-method, creating a coding system and applying it to five plans to tag different passages according to their ideological leanings. This allowed a quantitative approach to the question of the underlying tones of the text. The research concluded that China has been consistent in adopting an open and liberal market option to allow for technology transfer and consequent STI development and economic development. However, the analysis does not seem to indicate a broad adoption of the techno-globalist framework either, as a non-isolationist strategy was chosen to boost technological transfer with the long-term goal of achieving autonomy. Such a system could enable China to redefine and construct its national identity as an innovation-driven nation and a global leader. Innovation, therefore, has not only an economic role but is a fundamental piece of a broader civilizational mission

Thammasat University. Thammasat University Library

Address: BANGKOK

Email: preserv@tu.ac.th

Name: Chanintira Na Thalang

Role: advisor

Name: Sasinan Kruaechaipinit

Role: co-advisor

Created: 2021

Modified: 2024-07-17

Issued: 2024-07-17

DOI: 10.14457/TU.the.2021.1279

eng

DegreeName: Master of Political Science

Level: Master's Degree

Descipline: International Relations

Grantor: Thammasat University

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