| ID | 167490 |
| Title Proper | Beyond the Left-Right Spectrum |
| Other Title Information | a typological analysis of ideologues in china’s weibo space |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Huang, Ronggui |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This study aims to investigate Weibo users’ political ideologies in China. It argues that a left-right spectrum cannot adequately depict the ideological landscape, and proposes a typological framework to guide the analysis of competing ideologies. Based on a sample of 3440 Weibo users, this article uses latent class model to identify sub-types of ideologues. It discerns five ideological groups, namely Maoists, regime defenders, full-fledged liberals, economic liberals, and political liberals, as well as one politically silent group. The results show that liberal leaning Weibo users are not a homogeneous group, and should not be holistically conceived as regime challengers in opposition to regime defenders. To a certain degree, economic liberals are more similar to regime defenders than Maoists, and this can be better understood from a typological perspective than a spectrum perspective. This article concludes with a discussion on the political implications of the findings. |
| `In' analytical Note | Journal of Contemporary China Vol. 28, No.119; Sep 2019: p. 831-847 |
| Journal Source | Journal of Contemporary China Vol: 28 No 119 |
| Key Words | Left-Right Spectrum ; China’s Weibo Space |