Exploring the shifts in Japanese politics in the post-Koizumi era, this up-to-date study offers a comprehensive introduction to Japan’s current party system and political behavior.

The authors assess the contours and implications of the new party politics, with particular attention to new coalitions, the decline of the left, and election finance. They also place the party    More >

As China strives to achieve nothing less than a “harmonious society”—despite the pronounced and institutionalized class structure that divides rural Chinese from urban, eastern from western, and rich from poor—a key element of that effort is a “new socialist countryside.” Minzi Su assesses the prospects for China’s rural revitalization programs now in    More >

Gordon Means traces the evolution of Islamic politics in Southeast Asia, ranging from the early arrival of Islam in the region to the challenges it generates, and faces, today.

Means’s analysis encompasses both the events and actions shaping Islamic politics and the impact of Islamic politics on government and public policy outcomes. It also offers insightful answers to such    More >

With China now South Korea’s number one trading partner and destination for foreign investment and tourism, what are the implications for politics and security in East Asia?

Scott Snyder explores the transformation of the Sino–South Korean relationship since the early 1990s. Snyder considers the strategic significance of recent developments in China’s relationship    More >

Although China denies that it harbors ambitions to become a superpower, its leadership has made clear its intention that the country be a major player in the global arena. Against this backdrop,  Ian Taylor explores the nature and implications of China’s burgeoning role in Africa.

Taylor argues that Beijing is using Africa not    More >

How might China become a democracy? And what lessons, if any, might Taiwan's experience of democratization hold for China's future? The authors of this volume consider these questions, both through comparisons of Taiwan's historical experience with the current period of economic and social change in the PRC, and through more focused analysis of China's current, and possible future,    More >

Widespread dissatisfaction in Japan in the 1990s set the stage for numerous political reforms aimed at enhancing representation and accountability. But have these reforms in fact improved the quality of Japanese democracy? Through the lens of this question, the authors explore contemporary Japanese politics at the national, local, and grassroots levels. Their systematic analysis of when and how    More >

Confounding expectations, Taiwan reduced its military spending for many years even as its sole adversary, the People's Republic of China, modernized its military and significantly increased its defense budget. Michael Chase examines the key factors that have shaped Taiwan's security policy over a span of three decades.

Chase explores both the role of US security assurances in    More >

Assessing the trajectory of democratization in East Asia, this volume offers a systematic and tightly integrated analysis of party-system development in countries across the region.

The authors utilize unprecedented cross-national survey data to examine the institutional structure of party systems, the range of choices these systems represent, and their connection to voting    More >

How have shifts in both the international environment and domestic politics affected the trajectory of Japanese foreign policy? Does it still make sense to depict Japan as passive and reactive, or have the country's leaders become strategic and proactive? Japan in International Politics presents a nuanced picture of Japanese foreign policy, emphasizing the ways in which slow, adaptive    More >

Have the far-reaching political reforms enacted in Japan more than a decade ago succeeded in reducing corruption and the high costs of elections? Or have the results been "business as usual"? Matthew Carlson analyzes the ebb and flow of money in Japanese politics, drawing on extensive fieldwork and detailed campaign-finance data to investigate campaign practices, party strategies, and    More >

Covering China, Japan, the Koreas, and all of the ASEAN member states, Understanding Contemporary Asia Pacific provides a comprehensive introduction to one of the most complex and rapidly changing regions in the world today.

This accessible, up-to-date volume is designed to be used as a core text for "Introduction to Asia" and "Asian Politics" courses and also as a    More >

What does democracy look like in Pacific Asia? Can democratic governance in the region survive the challenges of corruption, violence, and soft authoritarianism? What impact are economic pressures likely to have? These are among the broad questions tackled in Pacific Asia in Quest of Democracy, a comparative study of democratic structures and practices in Indonesia, the Philippines, South    More >

Focusing on the nexus between global, regional, and national dynamics in Southeast Asia, Jörn Dosch explores the profound political changes that have occurred in recent years both within the region and in its international relations.

Dosch first examines the realm of foreign policy, with an emphasis on the link between democratization and the conduct of foreign affairs.    More >

This fully revised and updated text introduces students to China's foreign policy—past and present—and the factors that may influence the country's future policy agenda. Exploring the new dynamics of China's regional and international roles, the authors outline the political, security, economic, and social issues the country faces in the emerging 21st century.

Each chapter of the    More >

Departing from characterizations of Asian governments as benevolent overlords and Asian citizens as politically naive and/or docile, Fiona Yap explores the dynamic interactions between state and citizenry in the arena of economic policies.

Yap focuses on the cases of Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan to show that, with the strategic use of activities ranging from    More >

Long constrained as a security actor by constitutional as well as external factors, Japan now increasingly is called to play a greater role in stabilizing both the Asia-Pacific region and the entire international system. Japan's Security Agenda explores the country's diplomatic, political, military, and economic concerns and policies within this new context.

Hughes looks closely    More >

Understanding Contemporary India is an interdisciplinary book designed for use both as a core text for "Introduction to India" and "Introduction to South Asia" courses and as a supplement in a variety of discipline-oriented curriculums.

There are few books for classroom use that introduce students to India as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific    More >

A 2004 Choice Outstanding Academic Book

Islamic extremism in Southeast Asia has moved beyond a matter of local concern to one of global significance—as the events of the past decade have so clearly demonstrated. Drawing on intensive on-the-ground investigation and interviews with key militants, Zachary Abuza explains the emergence of radical Islamist groups in the    More >

Vidhu Verma tracks two simultaneous processes in Malaysia: the increasing aspirations for democratic governance, and the emergence of the Islamic party as a major force in Malaysian politics.

Verma argues that rapid and often forced modernization and development have created severe tensions in contemporary Malaysia, providing Islamist parties with the space to create a    More >

On publication in France, Jean-Marie Bouissou's depiction of modern Japan was acclaimed as "the best of its kind." This English-language translation has been updated to cover events through 2001 and augmented with an overview of Japan's pre-1945 historical legacy.

In the tradition of French scholarship—which rejects a narrowly focused approach—the book encompasses all    More >

Despite isolation, an impoverished economy, mass starvation, and the challenge of leadership succession, North Korea's socialist state continues to survive. Han Park explores the reasons for this resilience, concentrating on the implications of mass beliefs and political ideology for the country's political life.

Park begins with an examination of Juche, or self-reliance, the    More >

What makes a national community out of a state? Addressing this fundamental question, Rajagopalan studies national integration from the perspective of three South Asian communities—Tamilians in India, Sindhis in Pakistan, and Tamils in Sri Lanka—that have a history of secessionism in common, but with vastly different outcomes.

Rajagopalan investigates why integration is relatively    More >

Moving from the 1950s to the present, Zachary Abuza explores Vietnamese politics and culture through the lens of the internal debates over political reform.

Abuza focuses on issues of representation, intellectual freedom, the rise of civil society, and the emergence of a "loyal opposition," assessing the prospects for change. He finds that, while some mildly dissident groups may add    More >

On March 18, 2000, Taiwan's voters stunned the world by choosing Chen Shui-bian, the candidate of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), to be their president. A host of new issues quickly became the subject of debate. What is the DPP? Where did it come from and what does it stand for? How will it use its newly won power? Will it risk war with mainland China in pursuit of    More >

China Under Jiang Zemin represents the first major scholarly effort to analyze the evolution of China’s new leadership, taking as its starting point the pivotal Fifteenth Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, held in September 1997.

Proceeding from a detailed portrait of the political landscape at the opening of the Jiang Zemin era, the authors provide rich detail of the    More >

Managing ethnic nationalism within the People's Republic of China has become increasingly challenging. As new reforms widen economic disparities between minorities and the Han majority, even the most assimilated of minorities, the Zhuang, have begun to demand special treatment from the central government.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officially recognized the sixteen million Zhuang as    More >

his original analysis of South Asia's political experience with democracy in the 1990s assumes that, if democratic norms are to be universalized, they must first absorb the interpretations and experiences of the non-Western countries.

Chadda contends that any discussion of democratization must be founded on mapping its course amid the constraints of state consolidation, national integration,    More >

Since its inception in 1987, Korean democracy has been an arena of continual drama and baffling contradictions: periodic waves of societal mobilization and disenchantment; initial continuity in political leadership, followed by the successive election to the presidency of two former opposition leaders and the arrest of two former heads of state; a constant stream of party renamings and    More >

As China enters a stage of economic reform more challenging and risky than any that has gone before, the pressure for political liberalization grows apace. This volume explores the dilemmas of this new phase of complex change.

The authors—most of whom write with the insight that comes from having lived and worked within the Chinese system—analyze how the evolution of China’s    More >

This volume deepens analysis of China’s transition from communism and places the Chinese case in comparative and theoretical perspective. Six chapters probe the transition process in the three main sectors of the Chinese party-state—military and police, taxation and investment, and social and cultural policies. Introductory and concluding sections address post-Leninist transitions more    More >

This systematic study of China's structural transformation during the past two decades emphasizes the balance-of-power game so ably played by Deng Xiaoping and others among the post-Mao national leadership.

Chen argues that to prevent party cadre opposition to market restructuring—the nemesis of change in other communist states—national leaders manipulated legislative channels and    More >

This broad, historically grounded study examines the relationship between democratic governance and economic development in postindependence India (1947-1998). Sharma addresses the fundamental paradox of India’s political economy: why have five decades of democratically guided strategies failed to reconcile economic growth with redistribution or to mitigate the condition of extreme poverty    More >

Mixed Motives, Uncertain Outcomes looks critically at China's efforts to adapt its vast military- industrial complex to the service of its socialist market economy. The authors—all of whom have witnessed or participated first-hand in the country's defense conversion—offer political, macroeconomic, business, and military perspectives on this complex issue.

The book    More >

Few people are aware that, throughout the British raj, France managed to retain a foothold in parts of India. French India survived for a full fifteen years after the Union Jack was lowered in Delhi, and as a result of French colonization, there remain today, scattered throughout the Union Territory of Pondicherry, thousands of ethnic Indians who still possess French citizenship. The    More >

As China's reforms take root, the differences between the traditional value of harmony and the socialist norm of class struggle are becoming increasingly obscured. Chinese citizens are, in fact, theoretically allowed—even encouraged—to be socialist and profit-driven at the same time.

Chih-yu Shih looks at this precarious dyad, demonstrating what reform has done to the country's    More >

China Opens Its Doors explains and documents the complex relationship between the politics and economics of China's recent "Open Policy," covering the period from 1978 up to the Party Congress of November 1992.

Though emphasizing the political essence of this policy process, Howell also looks at the sociopolitical changes that it has engendered, including its impact on the    More >

Looking at China's foreign policy, this book focuses on the Confucian-based need of Chinese leaders to present themselves as the supreme moral rectifiers of the world order.

Shih outlines the diplomatic principles cherished by the Chinese—socialism, antihegemonism, peaceful coexistence, statism, and isolationism—and explores how each has been applied in the past forty years. He    More >