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How Reform Worked in China

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Author Info
Qian, Yingyi
Abstract

China’s reform worked and produced some of the most impressive growth in the largest developing and transition economy in the world in the past twenty-two years. That China has managed to grow so rapidly despite the absence of many conventional institutions such as rule of law and secure private property rights is puzzling. To understand how reform works in a developing and transition economy that has great growth potential, it is not enough to study the conventional ‘best-practice institutions’ as a desirable goal. One should also study how feasible, imperfect institutions have evolved to complement the initial conditions and to function as stepping stones in the transition toward the goal. Underlying China’s reform is a serial of institutional changes concerning the market, firms, and the government in the novel form of ‘transitional institutions.’ These institutions succeed when they achieve two objectives at the same time: to improve economic efficiency by unleashing the standard forces of incentives and competition on the one hand, and to make the reform a win-win game and thus interest compatible for those in power on the other.

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Paper provided by C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers in its series CEPR Discussion Papers with number 3447.

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Date of creation: Jul 2002
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Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:3447

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Keywords: china; institution; reform; transition;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
P20 - Economic Systems - - Socialist Systems and Transition Economies - - - General
P26 - Economic Systems - - Socialist Systems and Transition Economies - - - Political Economy

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Dewatripont, M & Roland, G, 1992. "Economic Reform and Dynamic Political Constraints," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 59(4), pages 703-30, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Kornai, Janos, 1986. "The Hungarian Reform Process: Visions, Hopes, and Reality," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 24(4), pages 1687-1737, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. John McMillan, 1993. "Autonomy and Incentives in Chinese State Enterprises," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich.
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  4. Acemoglu, Daron & Johnson, Simon & Robinson, James A, 2002. "An African Success Story: Botswana," CEPR Discussion Papers 3219, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Zhuravskaya, Ekaterina V., 2000. "Incentives to provide local public goods: fiscal federalism, Russian style," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(3), pages 337-368, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Coase, R H, 1992. "The Institutional Structure of Production," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 82(4), pages 713-19, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Jiahua Che & Yingyi Qian, 1998. "Institutional Environment, Community Government, and Corporate Governance: Understanding China's Township-Village Enterprises," William Davidson Institute Working Papers Series 59, William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross Business School. [Downloadable!]
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  8. Shleifer, Andrei, 1997. "Government in transition," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 41(3-5), pages 385-410, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Groves, Theodore, et al, 1994. "Autonomy and Incentives in Chinese State Enterprises," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 109(1), pages 183-209, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  10. Li, David D., 1996. "A Theory of Ambiguous Property Rights in Transition Economies: The Case of the Chinese Non-State Sector," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 1-19, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Dewatripont, Mathias & Roland, Gerard, 1995. "The Design of Reform Packages under Uncertainty," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(5), pages 1207-23, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  12. Yingyi Qian, 1996. "Enterprise reform in China: agency problems and political control," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 4(2), pages 427-447, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. David D. Li, 1996. "A Theory of Ambiguous Property Rights in Transition Economies: The Case of the Chinese Non-State Sector," William Davidson Institute Working Papers Series 8, William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross Business School. [Downloadable!]
  14. Jiahua Che & Yingyi Qian, 1998. "Insecure Property Rights And Government Ownership Of Firms," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 113(2), pages 467-496, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  15. Rodrik, Dani, 2000. "Institutions For High-Quality Growth: What They Are And How To Acquire Them," CEPR Discussion Papers 2370, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  16. Yuanzheng Cao & Yingyi Qian & Barry R. Weingast, 1999. "From federalism, Chinese style to privatization, Chinese style," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 7(1), pages 103-131, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. North, Douglass C, 1991. "Institutions," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 5(1), pages 97-112, Winter. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Shang-Jin Wei, 1997. "Gradualism versus Big Bang: Speed and Sustainability of Reforms," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 30(4), pages 1234-47, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Marcelo de Paiva Abreu, 2005. "China´s emergence in the global economy and Brazil," Textos para discussão 491, Department of Economics PUC-Rio (Brazil). [Downloadable!]
  2. Gérard Roland, 2004. "Institutions and Economic Performance - Fast-moving and Slow-moving Institutions," CESifo DICE Report, Ifo Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 2(2), pages 16-21, October. [Downloadable!]
  3. Karen Eggleston & Keqin Rao & Jian Wang, 2005. "From Plan to Market in the Health Sector? China's Experience," Discussion Papers Series, Department of Economics, Tufts University 0501, Department of Economics, Tufts University. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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