IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/jdevst/v52y2016i1p53-71.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Why Give it Away When You Need it Yourself? Understanding Public Support for Foreign Aid in China

Author

Listed:
  • Zhiming Cheng
  • Russell Smyth

Abstract

In this study we examine the determinants of public support for foreign aid in China. We find that while political ideology and sense of national identity are the most important determinants of support for foreign aid, several demographic characteristics, such as age, gender and income, are also important. We also find that those living in the lower income western provinces and in provinces with higher poverty rates express less support for giving foreign aid. We draw policy implications from the findings for better targeting engagement strategies designed to garner support for foreign aid.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhiming Cheng & Russell Smyth, 2016. "Why Give it Away When You Need it Yourself? Understanding Public Support for Foreign Aid in China," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(1), pages 53-71, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jdevst:v:52:y:2016:i:1:p:53-71
    DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2015.1068294
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/00220388.2015.1068294
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/00220388.2015.1068294?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 look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rene Bekkers, 2007. "Measuring altruistic behavior in surveys: The all-or-nothing dictator game," Artefactual Field Experiments 00102, The Field Experiments Website.
    2. Helen V. Milner & Dustin Tingley, 2013. "Public Opinion and Foreign Aid: A Review Essay," International Interactions, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(3), pages 389-401, July.
    3. Dreher, Axel & Nunnenkamp, Peter & Thiele, Rainer, 2011. "Are ‘New’ Donors Different? Comparing the Allocation of Bilateral Aid Between nonDAC and DAC Donor Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(11), pages 1950-1968.
    4. Jiajun Xu & Richard Carey, 2014. "China's Development Finance: What Issues for Reporting and Monitoring Systems?," IDS Bulletin, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 45(4), pages 102-113, July.
    5. Henson, Spencer & Lindstrom, Johanna, 2013. "“A Mile Wide and an Inch Deep”? Understanding Public Support for Aid: The Case of the United Kingdom," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 67-75.
    6. Kitano, Naohiro & Harada, Yukinori, 2014. "Estimating China’s Foreign Aid 2001-2013," Working Papers 78, JICA Research Institute.
    7. King, Gary & Pan, Jennifer & Roberts, Margaret E., 2013. "How Censorship in China Allows Government Criticism but Silences Collective Expression," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 107(2), pages 326-343, May.
    8. Richard Schiere, 2014. "The Impact of China on the Donor Landscape in African Fragile States," IDS Bulletin, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 45(4), pages 46-56, July.
    9. Strange, Austin M. & Parks , Bradley & Tierney, Michael J. & Fuchs, Andreas & Dreher , Axel, 2014. "Tracking Under-Reported Financial Flows: China’s Development Finance and the Aid-Conflict Nexus Revisited," Working Papers 0553, University of Heidelberg, Department of Economics.
    10. Jennifer van Heerde & David Hudson, 2010. "'The Righteous Considereth the Cause of the Poor'? Public Attitudes towards Poverty in Developing Countries," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 58, pages 389-409, June.
    11. Ali, Merima & Fjeldstad, Odd-Helge & Sjursen, Ingrid Hoem, 2014. "To Pay or Not to Pay? Citizens’ Attitudes Toward Taxation in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and South Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 828-842.
    12. Paxton, Pamela & Knack, Stephen, 2008. "Individual and country-level factors affecting support for foreign aid," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4714, The World Bank.
    13. Chong, Alberto & Gradstein, Mark, 2008. "What determines foreign aid? The donors' perspective," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 1-13, August.
    14. Naohiro Kitano, 2014. "China's Foreign Aid at a Transitional Stage," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 9(2), pages 301-317, July.
    15. Xiaobing Wang & Adam Ozanne & Xin Hao, 2014. "The West's aid dilemma and the Chinese solution?," Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(1), pages 47-61, February.
    16. Lena Edlund & Rohini Pande, 2002. "Why Have Women Become Left-Wing? The Political Gender Gap and the Decline in Marriage," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 117(3), pages 917-961.
    17. Goldsmith, Benjamin E. & Horiuchi, Yusaku & Wood, Terence, 2014. "Doing Well by Doing Good: The Impact of Foreign Aid on Foreign Public Opinion," Quarterly Journal of Political Science, now publishers, vol. 9(1), pages 87-114, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Christopher A. Simon & Michael C. Moltz, 2019. "Immigrant Citizens and Racial Resentment in International Policy Perspective: The Role of Nativity and Racial Resentment in Shaping Support for US Foreign Assistance Expenditure, 2002–2016," Development, Palgrave Macmillan;Society for International Deveopment, vol. 62(1), pages 186-195, December.
    2. Jianhong Qi & Kam Ki Tang & Da Yin & Yong Zhao, 2020. "Remaking China’s Global Image with the Belt and Road Initiative: Is the Jury Out?," Discussion Papers Series 635, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    3. Angelika J. Budjan & Andreas Fuchs, 2021. "Democracy and Aid Donorship," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 13(4), pages 217-238, November.
    4. Asmus, Gerda & Eichenauer, Vera & Fuchs, Andreas & Parks, Bradley, 2021. "Does India use development finance to compete with China? A subnational analysis," Kiel Working Papers 2189, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    5. Terence Wood, 2018. "Aid Policy and Australian Public Opinion," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(2), pages 235-248, May.
    6. Cheng, Zhiming & Smyth, Russell, 2015. "Crime victimization, neighborhood safety and happiness in China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 424-435.
    7. Eunju Kim & KyungWoo Kim, 2022. "Public perception of foreign aid in South Korea: The effects of policy efficacy in an emerging donor," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 40(3), May.
    8. Christopher B. Primiano, 2019. "Should China Spend on UNPKOs? Findings from a Survey," China Report, , vol. 55(1), pages 41-56, February.
    9. Ben Zhe Wang & Zhiming Cheng, 2017. "Environmental Perceptions, Happiness and Pro-environmental Actions in China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 132(1), pages 357-375, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Linda Alvarez & Constantine Boussalis & Jennifer L. Merolla & Caryn A. Peiffer, 2018. "Love thy neighbour: Social identity and public support for humanitarian aid," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 36(S2), pages 935-953, September.
    2. Thilo Bodenstein & Jörg Faust, 2017. "Who Cares? European Public Opinion on Foreign Aid and Political Conditionality," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(5), pages 955-973, September.
    3. Heinrich, Tobias & Kobayashi, Yoshiharu & Bryant, Kristin A., 2016. "Public Opinion and Foreign Aid Cuts in Economic Crises," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 66-79.
    4. Angelika J. Budjan & Andreas Fuchs, 2021. "Democracy and Aid Donorship," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 13(4), pages 217-238, November.
    5. Henson, Spencer & Lindstrom, Johanna, 2013. "“A Mile Wide and an Inch Deep”? Understanding Public Support for Aid: The Case of the United Kingdom," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 67-75.
    6. Terence Wood, 2018. "Aid Policy and Australian Public Opinion," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(2), pages 235-248, May.
    7. Eunju Kim & KyungWoo Kim, 2022. "Public perception of foreign aid in South Korea: The effects of policy efficacy in an emerging donor," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 40(3), May.
    8. Jens Eger & Sebastian H. Schneider & Martin Bruder & Solveig H. Gleser, 2023. "Does Evidence Matter? The Impact of Evidence Regarding Aid Effectiveness on Attitudes Towards Aid," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 35(5), pages 1149-1172, October.
    9. Marson, Marta & Savin, Ivan, 2022. "Complementary or adverse? Comparing development results of official funding from China and traditional donors in Africa," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 189-206.
    10. Eichenauer, Vera Z. & Fuchs, Andreas & Brueckner, Lutz, 2018. "The Effects of Trade, Aid, and Investment on China's Image in Developing Countries," Working Papers 0646, University of Heidelberg, Department of Economics.
    11. Juan David Gómez-Quintero & Pilar Gargallo Valero & Jesús Miguel Álvarez, 2019. "Who Supports International Development Cooperation in Times of Crisis? Public Opinion in Rural Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-17, April.
    12. Lukas Wellner & Axel Dreher & Andreas Fuchs & Bradley C. Parks & Austin M. Strange, 2022. "Can Aid Buy Foreign Public Support? Evidence from Chinese Development Finance," CESifo Working Paper Series 9646, CESifo.
    13. Eichenauer, Vera Z. & Fuchs, Andreas & Brückner, Lutz, 2021. "The effects of trade, aid, and investment on China's image in Latin America," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 483-498.
    14. Nagae, Akira & Katayama, Hajime & Takase, Koichi, 2022. "Donor aid allocation and accounting standards of recipients," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    15. Asmus, Gerda & Eichenauer, Vera & Fuchs, Andreas & Parks, Bradley, 2021. "Does India use development finance to compete with China? A subnational analysis," Kiel Working Papers 2189, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    16. Schneider, Sebastian H. & Eger, Jens & Bruder, Martin & Faust, Jörg & Wieler, Lothar H., 2021. "Does the COVID-19 pandemic threaten global solidarity? Evidence from Germany," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    17. Sèna Kimm Gnangnon, 2011. "The consequences of Fiscal Episodes in OECD Countries for Aid Supply," Working Papers halshs-00613161, HAL.
    18. Qian Liu & Yingying Wang & Ning Kang, 2023. "Analyzing the Influence of BRI Foreign Direct Investment on Governance: Perspective from Southeast Asian Countries," Global Journal of Emerging Market Economies, Emerging Markets Forum, vol. 15(2), pages 289-305, May.
    19. Joel Atkinson, 2018. "The real East Asian Aid model: Development assistance as an instrument of comprehensive security in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 36(3), pages 265-284, May.
    20. Ronald U. Mendoza & Ryan Jones & Gabriel Vergara, 2009. "Will the global financial crisis lead to lower foreign aid? A first look at United States ODA," Fordham Economics Discussion Paper Series dp2009-01, Fordham University, Department of Economics.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D70 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - General
    • F50 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - General
    • P33 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist Institutions and Their Transitions - - - International Trade, Finance, Investment, Relations, and Aid

    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:taf:jdevst:v:52:y:2016:i:1:p:53-71. 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.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with 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: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/FJDS20 .

    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.