The Politics of Bureaucratic Reputation in China

This panel explores the intricate dynamics of bureaucratic reputation within the context of China’s political landscape. Scholarly work on bureaucratic reputation has shown that governmental organizations strategically adjust their decision-making processes, diversify outputs, and employ targeted communication efforts to build, sustain, or enhance their reputations. These representational considerations significantly shape bureaucracies' behaviors, processes, and outcomes. However, the extent to which these efforts impact regulatory power, autonomy, authority, legitimacy, and public trust remains under explored, particularly in the Chinese context. This panel seeks to address this gap by inviting theoretical and empirical papers that examine how Chinese public organizations cultivate and manage their reputations, the effectiveness of these strategies, and the conditions under which they succeed or fail in securing support from their various audiences.