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Why they willingly complied: Ordinary people, the big environment, and the control of COVID-19 in China

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  • Cai, Yifeng Troy
  • Mason, Katherine A.

Abstract

During the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese public consistently demonstrated a high level of compliance with some of the most restrictive infection control measures in the world. As a result, as of early 2022 China achieved remarkable control of a virus that had devastating effects in other parts of the world. In this article we take seriously the complexities of a simple question: Why did most urban Chinese citizens so willingly comply with the state's COVID-19 control measures for so long? Based on two years of ethnographic research conducted primarily in Shanghai, China between June 2020 and May 2022, we argue that the strong support the Chinese government enjoyed among China's self-described laobaixing (“ordinary people”) in implementing its COVID-19 control measures emerged from a combination of self-interest, nationalistic pride, and “conscious indifference to transparency,” rooted in ongoing critical evaluations of governmental competence. With these evaluations changing in the wake of new outbreaks in 2022, the future of China's zero-COVID policy is in jeopardy.

Suggested Citation

  • Cai, Yifeng Troy & Mason, Katherine A., 2022. "Why they willingly complied: Ordinary people, the big environment, and the control of COVID-19 in China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:309:y:2022:i:c:s0277953622005457
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115239
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Marc Oliver Rieger & Mei Wang, 2022. "Trust in Government Actions During the COVID-19 Crisis," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 159(3), pages 967-989, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jun Qian & Tongda Zhang & Xiao Sun & Yueting Chai, 2023. "The coordination of collective and individual solutions in risk-resistant scenarios," The European Physical Journal B: Condensed Matter and Complex Systems, Springer;EDP Sciences, vol. 96(2), pages 1-15, February.

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