IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/padxxx/v43y2023i2p163-175.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Decentralized governance and collective action dilemma: Sub‐national governments' responses to COVID‐19 in China

Author

Listed:
  • Ge Xin
  • Jia Chen

Abstract

While the Chinese government's responses to COVID‐19 since its outbreak have been widely discussed, scant attention has been paid to the cross‐regional variation in China in handling the pandemic in the early stage. This article adopts and synthesizes the theory of regionally decentralized governance and the institutional collective action dilemma framework to offer a novel analytical characterization of the pattern of sub‐national governments' counter‐COVID‐19 initiatives in different policy areas and highlights the peer effect and regional competition dynamics. We provide three brief case studies to illustrate various institutional collective action dilemmas under this framework that emerged in pandemic responses and must be addressed through re‐centralization. Despite its focus on China's regional responses to COVID‐19, this paper prompts the construction of a broad analytical framework for precipitating a better understanding of the complex structure of China's political and governance system in a time of crisis.

Suggested Citation

  • Ge Xin & Jia Chen, 2023. "Decentralized governance and collective action dilemma: Sub‐national governments' responses to COVID‐19 in China," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 43(2), pages 163-175, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:padxxx:v:43:y:2023:i:2:p:163-175
    DOI: 10.1002/pad.2004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/pad.2004
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/pad.2004?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Benjamin Edwards & Serdar Yilmaz, 2016. "Decentralization as a Post‐Conflict Stabilization Tool: The Case of Sierra Leone," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 36(5), pages 347-358, December.
    2. Hongtao Yi & Can Cui, 2019. "Coping with functional collective action dilemma: functional fragmentation and administrative integration," Public Management Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(7), pages 1052-1075, July.
    3. Faguet, Jean-Paul, 2014. "Decentralization and Governance," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 2-13.
    4. Birney, Mayling, 2014. "Decentralization and Veiled Corruption under China’s “Rule of Mandates”," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 55-67.
    5. Johan P. Olsen, 2007. "Organization theory, public administration, democratic governance," ARENA Working Papers 1, ARENA.
    6. Birney, Mayling, 2014. "Decentralization and veiled corruption under China's "rule of mandates"," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 45826, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    7. Edoardo Ongaro & Ting Gong & Yijia Jing, 2021. "Public administration: Context and innovation," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 41(1), pages 3-3, February.
    8. Li, Hongbin & Zhou, Li-An, 2005. "Political turnover and economic performance: the incentive role of personnel control in China," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(9-10), pages 1743-1762, September.
    9. Pranab Bardhan & Dilip Mookherjee, 2006. "Decentralisation and Accountability in Infrastructure Delivery in Developing Countries," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(508), pages 101-127, January.
    10. Jiwei Qian & Ka Ho Mok, 2016. "Dual Decentralization and Fragmented Authoritarianism in Governance: Crowding Out among Social Programmes in China," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 36(3), pages 185-197, August.
    11. Edoardo Ongaro & Ting Gong & Yijia Jing, 2021. "Public administration, context and innovation: A framework of analysis," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 41(1), pages 4-11, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Kahsay, Goytom Abraha & Medhin, Haileselassie, 2020. "Leader turnover and forest management outcomes: Micro-level evidence from Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    2. Ji, Mianmian & Lv, Wendai, 2022. "Demonstration zones reform and corporate philanthropy: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    3. Kong, Gaowen & Ji, Mianmian & Guo, Yuemei, 2021. "Political promotion events and energy conservation decisions: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    4. Xinyu Fan & Feng Yang, 2019. "Strategic promotion, reputation, and responsiveness in bureaucratic hierarchies," Journal of Theoretical Politics, , vol. 31(3), pages 286-307, July.
    5. Cao, Chunfang & Li, Xiaoyang & Xia, Changyuan, 2021. "The complicit role of local government authorities in corporate bribery: Evidence from a tax collection reform in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    6. van der Kamp, Denise & Lorentzen, Peter & Mattingly, Daniel, 2017. "Racing to the Bottom or to the Top? Decentralization, Revenue Pressures, and Governance Reform in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 164-176.
    7. Suárez Serrato, Juan Carlos & Wang, Xiao Yu & Zhang, Shuang, 2019. "The limits of meritocracy: Screening bureaucrats under imperfect verifiability," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 223-241.
    8. Zejin Liu & Steven Van de Walle, 2022. "The role of demonstration projects as policy instruments in the development of nonprofit organizations: Beyond instrumentality," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 42(4), pages 233-244, October.
    9. Pan, Yao & You, Jing, 2020. "Successful Social Programs over Local Political Cycles," MPRA Paper 98968, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Hong Gao & Adam Tyson & Guangxin Cheng, 2022. "Novel virus, novel response: Local discretion and responses to COVID‐19 in Hebei Province, China," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 5-22, January.
    11. Andrea Filippetti & Giovanni Cerulli, 2018. "Are local public services better delivered in more autonomous regions? Evidence from European regions using a dose‐response approach," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 97(3), pages 801-826, August.
    12. Roy Bahl & Richard M. Bird, 2014. "Decentralization and Infrastructure: Principles and Practice," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1408, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    13. Kvartiuk, Vasyl & Herzfeld, Thomas & Bukin, Eduard, 2022. "Decentralized public farmland conveyance: Rental rights auctioning in Ukraine," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    14. Changwony, Frederick Kibon & Paterson, Audrey S., 2019. "Accounting practice, fiscal decentralization and corruption," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(5).
    15. Jia, Junxue & Liang, Xuan & Ma, Guangrong, 2021. "Political hierarchy and regional economic development: Evidence from a spatial discontinuity in China," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    16. Liming Suo & Xue Li & Shuai Cao, 2023. "How governance boundaries affect regional collaboration on atmospheric governance—Evidence from China's Yangtze River Delta," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 40(4), pages 509-533, July.
    17. Kvartiuk, Vasyl & Herzfeld, Thomas, 2019. "Welfare effects of land market liberalization scenarios in Ukraine: Evidence-based economic perspective," IAMO Discussion Papers 287762, Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO).
    18. Rafiullah Kakar, 2023. "School Education in Post-18th Amendment Balochistan: A Political Economy Perspective (Article)," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 62(4), pages 467-492.
    19. Hanming Fang & Chang Liu & Li-An Zhou, 2020. "Window Dressing in the Public Sector: A Case Study of China’s Compulsory Education Promotion Program," NBER Working Papers 27628, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Tian, Yunlin & Pan, Xiaofei & Pang, Baoqing & Wu, Yiping, 2023. "Political career concerns and bank lending in China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).

    More about this item

    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:wly:padxxx:v:43:y:2023:i:2:p:163-175. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0271-2075 .

    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.