SIPA PhD Candidate Wins 2024 NSFC Grant for Outstanding International PhD Students
2025/4/1 14:48:20
Professor Chen Jie and his research team conducting field investigations (Liu Wendao, first from left)
Pioneering Research on Political Participation and Governance Satisfaction
Liu Wendao's research project, titled “Political Participation and Governance Satisfaction in China: The Role of Housing Class”, examines the relationship between political participation and governance satisfaction amid China's transition toward a service-oriented government. His work particularly focuses on how housing class plays a crucial role in shaping this dynamic.
The report from the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China explicitly emphasized the need to expand orderly political participation, making this topic a focal point of public interest. Against this backdrop, Liu's research aims to explore the link between political engagement and governance satisfaction while investigating the variations in governance models centered on public participation across different housing categories. His study sheds light on how factors such as housing ownership and housing type influence political behavior and citizens’ subjective evaluations of government performance. The findings are expected to contribute both theoretically and practically to enhancing grassroots governance systems that emphasize inclusivity and public participation.
Liu Wendao presenting at an academic conference
Academic Excellence and Impact
A U.S. national, Liu Wendao earned his undergraduate degree in finance from Baruch College, New York, before completing a Master’s in Public Administration at SIPA, SJTU. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Public Economics and Social Policy under the supervision of Professor Chen Jie, with research interests in political participation and policy implementation.
Throughout his doctoral studies, Liu has closely collaborated with Professor Chen and his research team, publishing five academic papers in high-impact international journals, including two as the first author in SSCI-indexed journals. One of his key publications, “How Intermediate Government Facilitates Top-Down Policy Experimentation: Empirical Insights from Rural Land Marketization in Shanghai”, appeared in the SSCI Q1 journal Journal of Asian Public Policy.
Beyond academia, Liu has also contributed numerous opinion and analysis articles to China Daily and China Focus, and has presented his research at major academic conferences both domestically and internationally. Additionally, he has been actively involved in policy research and advisory work, with one of his policy recommendations being adopted by the General Office of the State Council. His academic excellence and contributions to policy discourse underscore his profound impact in both research and practice.