(iPoster) The Digital Double Movement: Democracy and Chinese Technology Transfers

• In Event: Poster Sessions: Participation and Representation & Democracy and Autocracy II
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: Democracy and Autocracy II

Abstract

Why do some low- and middle-income states that adopt Chinese-sourced digital infrastructure sustain their democratic trajectories, while others experience democratic backsliding? At home, China’s technological infrastructure serves two purposes: (1) a basis for economic development and modernization, and (2) a platform of authoritarian control. As a major exporter of digital infrastructure, many scholars have argued that when China finances technology transfers abroad, it exports both hardware and authoritarian know-how. A small but growing body of research, however, finds that Chinese technology transfers have little effect on a state’s democratic trajectory and, in some cases, are associated with improvements in legal protection of digital spaces. This paper puts forward a theory to explain this puzzling outcome, arguing that the expansion of digital access in countries that receive Chinese technology transfers can expose institutional weaknesses and create focal points for civil society to demand reform. Drawing on data from the Global Barometer Network, the Digital Society Project, and AidData, this paper evaluates these theoretical mechanisms through a variety of statistical tests. In short, it finds that countries with higher levels of government mistrust and stronger civil liberties are most likely to introduce digital safeguards following the adoption of Chinese technology transfers, highlighting the conditions under which democracies can remain resilient under the authoritarian pressure of an increasingly globalized China.

Author

• Unregistered Participant