- 20 Apr 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
The Emergence of Mafia-like Business Systems in China
This study sheds light on the political pathology of fraudulent, illegal, and corrupt business practices. Features of the Chinese system—including regulatory gaps, a lack of formal means of property protection, and pervasive uncertainty—seem to facilitate the rise of mafia systems.
- 08 Dec 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Party-State Capitalism in China
China’s political economy has evolved from “state capitalism” to a distinctly party-driven incarnation. Party-state capitalism, via enhanced party monitoring and industrial policy, deepens ambiguity between the state and private sectors, and increases pressure on foreign capital, prioritizing the regime’s political survival above all.
- 05 May 2020
- Research & Ideas
China Tariffs and Coronavirus a Double Hit to American Retailers
American retailers have yet to pass along higher prices caused by Chinese tariffs, but shrinking product demand caused by the coronavirus could change that, warns Alberto Cavallo. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Corruption, Government Subsidies, and Innovation: Evidence from China
Governments subsidize a growing number of innovation efforts, many of which may face the challenge of corruption. Using Chinese data, this study finds corruption-related distortions in government R&D subsidies, which diminished after the 2012 anti-corruption campaign and rotation of provincial officials. It provide insights for designing effective R&D subsidy programs.
- 02 Mar 2017
- What Do You Think?
Is China About to Overtake the US for World Trade Leadership?
SUMMING UP. It's better for the United States if China is an economic ally rather than a competitor for world trade leadership, James Heskett's readers conclude. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Jan 2017
- Research & Ideas
Can China Maintain Its Economic Power?
Professor F. Warren McFarlan made his first visit to China in 1979 and has been returning ever since. He discusses the country's market-based reforms and its challenges to further growth. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 21 Nov 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Intellectual Property Rights Protection, Ownership, and Innovation: Evidence from China
As China’s top leaders promote innovation as the key to the country’s sustained economic growth, the extent to which the state can drive innovation without sound institutions and economic incentives remains in question. The evidence in this study of innovation and intellectual property rights (IPR) protection strongly supports the view that effective economic institutions matter, even in China. In order to successfully transition the country from a development model dependent on cheap labor and physical investments to one that is innovation-driven, these results suggest that the role of the private sector will be crucial. Private firms are more innovative both in terms of quantity and quality of patents, and are more so in cities with strong IPR protection.
- 23 Nov 2015
- Book
The Historian Who Came in from the Cold
While much has been written about the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, Jeremy S. Friedman’s Shadow Cold War: The Sino-Soviet Competition for the Third World is the first book to explore in detail the significance of the “Second Cold War” that China and the Soviet Union fought in the shadow of the communist and capitalist struggle. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Jan 2015
- Working Paper Summaries
Henry A. Kissinger as Negotiator: Background and Key Accomplishments
played a central role in helping to end 23 years of diplomatic isolation and mutual suspicion between the United States and China as well as, after the 1973 Yom Kippur war, to orchestrate disengagement agreements between Egypt and Israel as well as Syria and Israel. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 25 Mar 2014
- Research & Ideas
Book Excerpt: ‘Can China Lead?’
Creativity and innovation can be nurtured in different educational and institutional settings, but does China have a good institutional framework for innovation? An excerpt from Can China Lead? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 25 Mar 2014
- Research & Ideas
China’s Economic System has Difficult Road Overcoming its Political System
It's fashionable to be bullish on China. But the new book "Can China Lead?" urges a more cautious view on the prospects of the country, where government bureaucracy stifles innovation. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 11 Mar 2014
- Working Paper Summaries
Return Migration and Geography of Innovation in MNEs: A Natural Experiment of On-the-Job Learning of Knowledge Production by Local Workers Reporting to Return Migrants
markets' of multinationals. The results are also important for managers: Given the great many Fortune 500 MNE R&D centers in countries such as China and India, and the large fraction of these centers managed by return migrants, the findings may assist those who set up and manage current and future MNE R&D Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 09 Jan 2014
- Working Paper Summaries
Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China
for gradually transitioning labor into the private sector? 2) What is the adaptability of labor demand in the new private sector during economic transition? Data from urban China and show that delinking housing benefits from state-sector employment accounts for more than a quarter of the overall Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 23 May 2013
- Working Paper Summaries
Board Games: Timing of Independent Directors’ Dissent in China
Independent directors are an integral part of corporate governance. Despite the copious scholarly debates surrounding board independence, however, little progress has been made in studying the inner workings of public boards. Fortunately, the regulatory environment in China offers a rare window to Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Mar 2012
- Working Paper Summaries
Big BRICs, Weak Foundations: The Beginning of Public Elementary Education in Brazil, Russia, India, and China
hinge on understanding why most societies failed to develop adequate primary education in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This study sheds new light on the comparative experiences of Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC) during the formative years of their primary education Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Jun 2011
- HBS Case
KFC’s Explosive Growth in China
In China, Yum! Brands is opening a KFC store every day. But this is not the KFC you know in America. A recent case study written by professor David Bell and Agribusiness Program director Mary Shelman reveals how the chicken giant adapted its famous fast-food formula for the local market. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 May 2011
- Working Paper Summaries
Big BRICs, Weak Foundations: The Beginning of Public Elementary Education in Brazil, Russia, India, and China, 1880-1930
developing nations at the turn of the twentieth century: Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC). Research was conducted by Aldo Musacchio of Harvard Business School, Laktika Chaundhary of Scripps College, Steven Nafziger of Williams College, and Se Yan of Peking University. Key concepts include: BRIC Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 23 Mar 2011
- Research & Ideas
China’s 60-Year Road from Revolution to World Power
In a new book, The People's Republic of China at 60: An International Assessment, HBS professor William C. Kirby discusses common assumptions about pre-revolutionary China and its development into an economic power. Key concepts include: Essays in the book address four main themes: politics; social Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 Nov 2010
- Working Paper Summaries
The New Face of Chinese Industrial Policy: Making Sense of Anti-Dumping Cases in the Petrochemical and Steel Industry
against arguments that antidumping actions in China have been driven by retaliation or national industrial strategy alone. Key concepts include: Existing patterns of antidumping investigations in China mainly reflect how firms may respond to economic challenges in the context of structural Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
The Entrepreneurial Journey of China’s First Private Mental Health Hospital
The city of Wenzhou in southeastern China is home to the country’s largest privately owned mental health hospital group, the Wenzhou Kangning Hospital Co, Ltd. It’s an example of the extraordinary entrepreneurship happening in China’s healthcare space. But after its successful initial public