COMPLETION REPORTNew Development of Japanese Perspective of Chinese Political and Economic System
Dr. Shan Liu(+1)
Associate Professor
School of Political Science and Public Administration
Wuhan University
1.

what you did,

The following activities and research are what I did with the funding of this program(1). Library research in various places, including:(a). Wuhan University, Beijing University, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences;(b). The University of Melbourne and La Trobe University in Australia;(c). Online library research.
(2). Published a part of this research in an essay on Social Sciences Abroad (2017, Vol. 4), the essay titled “A viewon the predicament of Contemporary Chinese Studies from the current situation of overseas Chinese Economic
Textbooks” (从海外中国经济教材现状看当代中国研究的困境)(3). Consulted and discussed this research topic in various institutions with scholars from China, Japan, the UnitedStates, Australia and South Korea.
(4). Parts of my research has been compiled into a research guide on Japanese China studies in the area of SinoJapanese relations.
2.

in case, you did overseas business trip, please describe your research activity in your trip

Since my Japanese language skill is limited, it is cost-effective for me to conduct this research in an Englishenvironment. Due to the amount of funding, however, I have travelled only to Melbourne, Australia and South
Korea to collect research materials and discuss my research with relevant scholars. These include the University ofMelbourne and La Trobe University in Australia, and a meeting held by Seoul National University in Jeju do,South Korea. During my trips, I contacted Japanese experts, and discussed my research results with them.
3.

what you found, what was the result through your research,

The Japanese perception of China is complex and controversial. I here summarized my finding as follows:(1). In general, China study in Japanese gradually recognized that China’s development model has someadvantages in enhancing China’s economy, while a major understanding in the China studies circle is that China
has a possibility in catching up, or even surpassing, the United States in terms of national GDP in the future.
(2). The China Model, however, is an authoritarian model of social and economic development. This model iscertainly not a model for the world to learn from, neither could other Chinese establishments be examples for theworld to follow, including Chinese mechanism of innovation, Chinese value system, and social culture. In general,
Chinese value, or even the value of East Asia, can hardly take the place of Western values as universal guiding
principles for all human beings.
(3). There are periodic upturns and downturns in Sino-Japanese relationship in recent decades. Even thoughChina’s rise and assertiveness have been the main reasons behind the deterioration of Sino-Japanese relationshipsince 2010, the good relationship between Japan and China should be based on the change of the stereotyped old
thinking on China, and on the Japanese self-perception based on the history of recent 100 years.
(4). China studies in Japan, like the same research field in America, may have a direct impact on the decision–
making of political figures. It is, hence, not merely an academic issue of the perception of Japanese scholars on
China Model, and on the changes of China’s foreign policy towards Japan. It is thus a vital factor in Sino-Japaneserelationship for the exchange of ideas between Japanese scholars and Chinese scholars on a frequent scale.
4.

what is your advice if any you have,My suggestion to Chinese government is that the universal value in international relationship should be the guiding
principle of China’s foreign policy in practice, while the East Asian countries are no longer in the traditional
tributary system, and are not willing to go back to an ancient international system.
5. what kind of action will be required in future etc through your research.
If it is possible, I would like to continue this research, since Sino-Japanese relationship is coming to a threshold of
becoming amicable again, while the China Model is facing a serious test of sustainable development.
Publication of the Results of Research Project:
Verbal Presentation (Date, Venue, Name of Conference, Title of Presentation, Presenter, etc.)
I discussed my research result several on various occasions, with scholars from China, Australia and South
Korea, though my discussions with them are not formal presentations.

Thesis (Name of Journal and its Date, Title and Author of Thesis, etc.)
A part of this research has been published in an essay on China’s Social Sciences Abroad (2017. Vol. 4, pp. 1723) of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, which titled “A view on the predicament of Contemporary
Chinese Studies from the current situation of overseas Chinese Economic Textbooks” (从海外中国经济教材现
状看当代中国研究的困境). I am the first author of this essay.

Book (Publisher and Date of the Book, Title and Author of the Book, etc.)