Why West doesn’t understand China, according to ex-Harvard Chinese author

Western frameworks fail to grasp China's development, according to Nie Huihua, an economics professor at Renmin University. He argues that an effective understanding necessitates a shift away from Western-centric viewpoints.

Nie, who received economics training at Harvard, suggests that China's governance system is self-consistent and adaptive. This model, he explains, arises from the coupling of formal institutions, informal grassroots mechanisms, and cultural collectivism.

His perspective, shared with SCMP Plus readers in the Open Questions series, emphasizes the need for an integrated view. This approach recognizes the unique interplay of factors that drive China's progress, moving beyond a singular, externally imposed lens.

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an effective understanding of China’s development requires a shift from Western-centric frameworks to an integrated perspective that recognises how formal institutions, informal grass-roots mechanisms and cultural collectivism couple together to create a self-consistent and adaptive governance system.