MONTH IN REVIEW • GLOBAL ATTITUDES PROJECT Second thoughts
More Chinese are worried about the ills of economic development than ever before, the Pew Research Center’s new poll shows
living rise, Chinese have become increasingly aware of the down- sides of rapid development, especially growing social inequality. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Pew Research Center’s poll of China, which surveyed 3,177 Chinese this spring as part of a 21-nation Global Attitudes Project. Te poll clearly shows China’s rapid economic develop-
S
ment. Most Chinese (70%) reported being better off financially than five years ago, a higher proportion than any other surveyed country except Brazil, and three in four agreed that people are better off in a free-market economy.
The rich get richer while poor get poorer 2%
20 Brazil
China India
Mexico US
36%
Germany Egypt
45%
Greece Japan Spain
Completely agree Don’t know
Mostly agree Completely disagree Significant doubts about economic fairness Mostly disagree
View on hard work and success affects views on capitalism Better off than five years ago
Among those who say... What's more important? 45% 33%
Most succeed if work hard Neither/both*
*Voluntary response CHINA BY NUMBERS 2,270
Delegates elected to act as representatives at the 18th National Party Congress
Foxconn quality inspectors who refused to work after reports of one inspector being assaulted
Source: Yahoo News, Business Insider, Bloomberg, CNN, China Daily 12 China Economic Review • November 2012
100 $1.2m
Prize money given to Mo Yan, China’s first Nobel Prize winner for literature
Reservations canceled on All Nippon Airways’ China routes from September to November as a result of Sino-Japanese tensions
40,000
Hard work no guarantee Don’t know
Individuals free to pursue life's goals Active gov't makes sure no one in need Don't know
Most people better off in free market Agree
Disagree Don't know Most can succeed w/ hard work
44% 48% 8%
87% 11% 2%
Hard work no guarantee of success
31% 61% 9%
69% 26% 4%
Difference
-13 13 1
-18 15 2
Source: Pew Research Center Global Attitudes Project, 2012 About the same Worse off
ince Deng Xiaoping began knocking down China’s barri- ers with the world in the mid-1970s, economic develop- ment has been an unconditional goal. But as standards of
But in contrast to the China of four years ago, respondents
today had more conflicted views about economic development. Half of respondents described the gap between the rich and the poor in China as a very big problem. Fewer people said they like the pace of modern life than four years before. Nearly 60% said the traditional Chinese way of life is getting lost, and 71% said it should be protected from foreign influence. Teir comments also showed growing concern about Chi-
na’s uneven playing field. While 45% agreed with the statement “most people can succeed if they work hard,” one in three dis- agreed. Interestingly, views on this question had a direct correla- tion with views on whether the government should intervene to help the poor.
The world’s biggest increase in standard of living 0
40 60 80 100 120
7%
8%
10%
13%
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