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Confucian cultural heritage, political ideology, and government trust in contemporary China
  • xingxin yang
xingxin yang

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Abstract

Chinese people have indicated a high satisfaction level with China’s political system. To explore the factors influencing the high political satisfaction of Chinese citizens, we conducted a regression analysis and a moderating analysis on data from the Social Consciousness Survey completed by professor Ma Deyong. The results show that the Chinese people’s political satisfaction is high (3.49/5). Moreover, the Confucian Political Heritage ideology’s citizen-oriented dimension (β=-0.121***(-4.960),β=-0.121***(-4.960),β==-0.127***(-7.372)), National Accountability ideology’s stability maintenance dimension (β=0.061***(5.998),β=0.061 * * * (5.998),β=0.070***(9.731)), the nation-oriented dimension (β=-0.045*(-1.460),β=-.094***(-3.232),β=-0.064**(-3.047)), and high-level government trust (β=0.409***(8.298),β=0.409* * * (8.298), (β=0.410 * * * (11.832))are the main factors predicting political satisfaction. The interaction between benevolent government and grassroots government trust (β=0.045*(2.393)) as well as between the citizen-oriented dimension and high-level government trust (β=0.183***(6.562))also significantly predict political satisfaction. Further, the analysis of different income levels shows that the Confucian Political Heritage does not predict political satisfaction among low- and middle-income citizens, but among high income citizens, the benevolent government dimension does predict political satisfaction (β=0.008*(0.450)). These findings confirm the theory of cultural change. Once citizens have gained a certain level of material abundance, they prefer post-modern liberalism and value a harmonious society, leaning toward the traditional Confucian political ideal of a society with Great Harmony. However, notable at all income levels,