Yang Zixiao, HKUST

Does Anti-Americanism correlate with Pro-China?A Regression Analysis to Sixteen Countries’ Public Opinions

Does Anti-Americanism correlate with Pro-China?A Regression Analysis to Sixteen Countries’ Public Opinions

HKPSA, 20-21 August 2009

• Research Questions:

what is the relation between global public opinion, or public attitudes of citizens in major countries, toward the China and the United States?

Key HypothesisKey Hypothesis

• Individuals with higher anti-Americanism will tend to express more amity toward China.

MethodologyMethodology

• Dataset: Pew Global Attitudes Project, Spring 2005.

• Conducted in sixteen countries: France, Germany, Spain, Britain, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, India, China, Canada, the US, Turkey, Pakistan, Indonesia, Lebanon Jordan and Morocco.

• Overall sample size: 15,575.

Key Dependent VariablesKey Dependent Variables

• Overall do you think that China’s growing economy is a good thing or a bad thing for our country?

• Overall do you think it would be a good thing or a bad thing if China were to become as powerful militarily as the US?

• Please tell me if you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of China?

Figure 2. Sixteen Countries' Public Opinion toward China, the US, Germany, France and Japan, Source: PEW 2005 Spring Survey

Figure 2. Sixteen Countries' Public Opinion toward China, the US, Germany, France and Japan, Source: PEW 2005 Spring Survey

Is your overall opinion of … : very favorable(=5); mostly favorable(=4);don't know(=3);mostly unfavorable(=2);very unfavorable(=1)?

1

2

3

4

5

Pakis

tan

Mor

occo

Britain

German

ySp

ain

Indo

nesia

India

Leban

on

Canad

a

Russia

Netherl

ands

Fran

ce

the U

S

Polan

d

Turke

y

Jord

an

nati

onal

ave

rage

sco

re

China

the US

Germany

France

Japan

Key Explanatory VariablesKey Explanatory Variables

• Five relevant questions about the US, including evaluations of its entire national image, superpower position, foreign policy, war on terror and President George W. Bush.

• Factor analyses help us to create a single “Pro-US” factor.

• In all 17,766 observations, the minimum and maximum values are 0 and 1; the average is 0.459 and standard deviation is 0.260.

Control VariablesControl Variables

• Age

• Gender

• Income

• Education

• Use of Internet

• Country Dummy Variables

• People who are more pro-American are “somewhat” likely to approve China’s rising economic power, “very” likely to disapprove China’s rising military power, and “moderately” likely to have a favorable view of China.

Demographic and Socioeconomic Variables:

Demographic and Socioeconomic Variables:

• Young people are most likely to be approval of China.

• Mid-high income people and people with high secondary educational degree show the least amity.

• Females are less likely to have a favorable view.

• There is no significant difference between netizens and non Internet users.