Institutional Genes

This book explores the origins and evolution of China’s institutions and communist totalitarianism in general. Contemporary China’s fundamental institution is communist totalitarianism. Introducing the concept of “institutional genes,” the book examines how the institutional genes of Soviet Russia merged with those of the Chinese imperial system, creating a durable totalitarian regime with Chinese characteristics – Regionally Administered Totalitarianism. Institutional Genes are fundamental institutional elements that self-replicate and guide institutional changes and are empirically identifiable. By analyzing the origins and evolution of institutional genes in communist totalitarianism from Europe and Russia, as well as those from the Chinese Empire, the Chinese Communist Revolution, the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and post-Mao reforms, the book elucidates the rise and progression of communist totalitarianism in China. The ascent of communist China echoes Mises’ warning that efforts to halt totalitarianism have failed. Reversing this trend necessitates a thorough understanding of totalitarianism.

Chenggang Xu is Senior Research Scholar at the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, a board member of the Ronald Coase Institute, and Research Fellow at the Center for Economic and Policy Research. He was the Chung Hon-Dak Professor of Economics at the University of Hong Kong, Special-Term Professor at Tsinghua University, the World-Class University Professor at Seoul National University, and Associate Professor at the London School of Economics. He also served as President of the Asian Law and Economics Association. He obtained his PhD in economics from Harvard University in 1991. Chenggang Xu was a recipient of the 2013 Sun Yefang Prize and the 2016 Chinese Economics Prize.