Exploring the Horizontal Dimension of Political Trust in China

Abstract

China's uneven economic development over the past few decades has not only created significant socioeconomic disparities across regions but has also led to divergent effects on political trust at the subnational level. This study investigates the horizontal dimension of political trust by analyzing how perceived government performance relates to trust in both central and local governments across eastern and non-eastern regions. The findings suggest that uneven economic modernization primarily undermines public trust in the central government, rather than in local governments. Citizens in the eastern region are more critical of the central government, and levels of hierarchical trust are lower compared to their non-eastern counterparts. Among non-eastern citizens, positive evaluations of government economic performance are associated with greater trust in the central government, underscoring the political utility of wealth redistribution and its role in sustaining China's authoritarian political system. However, in the post-pandemic era, economic slowdown and fiscal constraints are likely to reduce financial aid to non-eastern regions, potentially weakening political trust.