Fish cannot See Water: Rethinking China's Quest for Great Power Status through a Cultural Lens (1992-2021)

This study aims to investigate the cultural impacts on Chinese diplomacy —concentrating on mianzi, which translates literally as ‘face’ and signifies a cultural understanding of respect, honor and social standing. Under the assumption that nations, akin to individuals, possess face-related needs, this study explores how the cultural phenomenon of “having more face” may have affected China’s decision to upgrade its global status during the post-Cold War era. Building on constructivist insights, this study identifies the cultural-specific dimensions of ‘face’ —encompassing concerns related to gaining or saving face (bao mianzi or liu mianzi)— and incorporates them into a role-theoretical framework for analysis. Subsequently, it employs a process-tracing methodology to test how ‘face’ shapes China’s pursuit of status (or recognition, in this context), positing that cultural nuances are most vividly expressed through behavioral patterns that guide actions. To empirically operationalize “face culture”, this study investigates two exemplary cases: (1) China’s growing role in the UN peacekeeping operations, and (2) the development of cooperative relations between China and the United States. Through a meticulous analysis of these cases, the study seeks to elucidate the mechanisms by which face considerations influence state behavior in the global stage. The empirical findings support the hypotheses, demonstrating that China, to a notable extent, pursues its great-power status in a manner framed by a distinctive cultural value of ‘face maintenance’ (weihu mianzi). The case studies also yielded the following conclusions: (1) ‘face’ is socially constructed, meaning that its significance for the Chinese people must be evaluated from a social perspective, and (2) the way in which ‘face’ influences Chinese foreign policy may vary, necessitating case-by-case analysis. Consequently, this study contributes to the existing literature on “status research” in international relations, by offering a non-Western explanation for China’s ambition for a higher global power ranking. Furthermore, by analyzing the conditions, functions, and consequences of ‘face-work’, the analysis sheds lights on the cultural foundations that underpin Chinese diplomatic practice.

Name thesis:degree_name

PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Politics and International Relations

Grantor dc:publisher

ResearchSpace@Auckland

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Ge, Jingjing

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Noakes, Stephen
• Sakamoto, Rumi

• Chinese Cultural Values
• China's Pursuit of Great-Power Status
• China's Peacekeeping Engagement
• Sino-US Relations
• Studies on Contemporary Chinese Foreign Relations

Statement dc:rights

• Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2292/71108

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:researchspace.auckland.ac.nz:2292/71108