IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jpolmo/v47y2025i5p1037-1055.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Autocratic governance and decentralization in non-democratic regimes: China’s case study

Author

Listed:
  • Yousaf, Tahir
  • Ain, Qurat ul

Abstract

This research article examines the intricate dynamics of transitioning from a centralized to a decentralized governance system, with a specific focus on the autocratic context, using China as a prominent case study. The central argument centers on the concept that autocratic leaders face a challenging holdup problem when implementing sustainable development policies. In situations where effective mechanisms for establishing credible policy commitments are lacking, centralized decision-making often fails to accurately exhibit local preferences, eroding inducements. Decentralization emerges as a powerful mechanism for ensuring sustainable policy commitment by aligning fiscal policies with individual preferences, potentially enhancing efficiency. Our research sheds light on the motivations for autocratic rulers to opt for decentralization as a means of overcoming the challenges associated with centralized decision-making and fostering improved alignment between sustainable development policies and local residents' preferences and productive efforts.

Suggested Citation

  • Yousaf, Tahir & Ain, Qurat ul, 2025. "Autocratic governance and decentralization in non-democratic regimes: China’s case study," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 47(5), pages 1037-1055.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jpolmo:v:47:y:2025:i:5:p:1037-1055
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpolmod.2024.12.004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016189382500002X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jpolmod.2024.12.004?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jpolmo:v:47:y:2025:i:5:p:1037-1055. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505735 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.