Untangling policy analysis, politics and democracy: the Chinese exception

by Nicolò Wojewoda

1. Introduction
Recent literature shows and studies have confirmed that a clash occurs between policy analysis and
politics, while a positive link exists instead between policy analysis and democracy. This essay will
argue how these relations do not hold true in the case of China, not because of contingent factors,
but due to a different structure and nature of the country's administrative system. It will do so by
illustrating the arguments with examples that reflect the different processes in action in China and in
another country of reference with a very different governance structure, The Netherlands..

2. Policy analysis vs. politics

Researchers in the field of policy analysis posit a clash between their discipline and politics.
Politicians often pursue individual goals (Swank, 1999; Letterie, 1997) and are not entirely
concerned with the total welfare brought by one policy measure or another. In these cases,
information is excluded from the political debate, as policy analysis studies are not fully internalized
by decision-makers, who rarely read more than the executive summary of a report. On the other
hand, information is used as a tool for winning political confrontations, as demonstrated by the fact
that experts and advisors are usually appointed by politicians themselves. This approach results in
selective use of policy studies for political purposes, which leads to an incorrect interpretation of the
analysis itself, deviating from its scientific basis.
For example, The Netherlands' High Speed Railway Line Betuwerute has been source of major
political battles that reflect how study results can be used with partisan purposes. Politicians
interpreted and mentioned different parts of reports, or even different reports, in order to support
their particular political position. This inhibited a clear perspective on the full outcomes of the
studies themselves.
China, instead, seems to be an exception to the rule. Its dominant-party system doesn't leave much
room for political debate, resulting in policy analysis studies finding their way across more easily
than in other contexts. The Three Gorges Dam project is an example of how a study's outcomes laid
out a couple of decades ago still go unchallenged by political actors and have instead been
internalized fully and extensively.

3. Policy analysis vs. democracy

Another connection highlighted by part of the literature is the one between policy analysis and
democracy. In contrast with a traditionalist view, that considers policy analysis as a tool for
providing the decision-maker with better options and better policies to be implemented, it is also
argued that policy might be instead a tool for democracy (Shulock, 1999). According to this view,
the transparency and the scientific rigour of the policy analysis process provides the general public
with a more accountable and documented perspective on issues of interest, allowing them to be
engaged in a democratic process more easily, due to the increased amount of structured and justified
knowledge.
The Netherlands' Delta Work project is a major example of the country's “polder model” in action:
an extensive and prolonged consultations of all the stakeholders involved, aimed at reaching total
consensus on a determined course of action. Policy studies, in this case, have provided the
stakeholders with a tool for reaching consensus, a common point to refer to in case of
disagreements.
In China, contrarily, again due to the dominant position of China's Communist Party (CCP), policy
analysis is often carried out internally to the party structures and few times the results (let alone the
processes) see the light of the general public. On the other hand, democratic processes are indeed
adopted, but independently from external policy advisoring activities.
Again, the example of the Three Gorges Dam shows how the government, throughout the complex
and decades-long procedure, made sure to involve all the interested stakeholders, although keeping
the ultimate decision for itself.

4. Conclusion
Through this short essay, I wanted to argue that the three elements that literature shows to be
significantly interrelated, lose their mutual interdependence in the case of China. By comparing
policy analysis studies being used in decision-making processes in China and in The Netherlands, I
showed how this argument holds true. The important feature of these exceptions is characterized by
the fact that exceptions occur not due to accidental circumstances, but because of profound
differences in the administrative systems of the two countries. The rapid pace of development that
China is experiencing in the last years is changing its administrative structures with it, so we might
expect a different relation between the three elements of this essay in a few years from now.

References
Swank, A theory of policy advice, 1999
Letterie, Learning and signalling by advisor selection, 1997
Shulock, The paradox of policy analysis: if it is not used, why do we produce so much of it?, 1999