The hazards in democratization: Reform in China from 1978 to 1989. (Volumes I and II)

This thesis is about the democratization of China, which started from 1978 when Deng Xiaoping's reform policies became the official line of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The thesis discusses the important dissident events, from the Democracy Wall Event of 1979 to the 1989 pro-democracy movement and its aftermath. The dissident intellectuals' thoughts and activities in these events were the focus of the study. Changes in social and economic spheres in China were elaborated in association with the study of the actors in the events.; Throughout the Ten Year Reform in China (1978-1989), the dissident intellectuals played an important role in enlightening the Chinese people and pushing forward the transition to democracy. Radicalism caused setbacks to the transition to democracy in China, but in the meantime the efforts of the dissident intellectuals played and are playing an important role in advancing the democratic cause in China.; Theories about the nature of transitions to democracy, about the sequence of political and economic changes in the transition, and about the causes of the adoption of reforms by the autocratic authorities have been discussed in this thesis. A game theoretical analysis has been applied to the study of the dissident movements not only to see how cooperation could have led to mutual benefits to the opposite parties in social conflicts, but also to offer some explanation about why the players were "rationally" radical given the specific situations in China.; The reform policies of Deng Xiaoping have provided China the opportunities to change socially and economically. Though not welcomed by the Chinese authorities, the political changes that correspond to the social and economic changes are likely to happen mainly because of the consistent efforts of the Chinese dissident intellectuals.