About Me

I am a PhD Candidate in Political Science at Northwestern University, specializing in Comparative Politics and Research Methods. My research focuses on comparative political economy, institutional change, and bureaucratic politics. Methodologically, I explore how machine-learning algorithms can complement qualitative induction. My dissertation book project examines the varieties of regional economies in China, their historical evolution, and China's integration into global capitalism. It also advances a new approach to concept formation by combining quantitative clustering with qualitative typology.

My dissertation examines the divergent economic trajectories of China's regions over four decades of Reform and Opening. Utilizing machine-learning analysis, I identify four distinct types of regional economies—quasi-liberal, dual-market, state-retreating, and state-dominated—each shaped by varying degrees of market development and state dominance. Through extensive fieldwork in 14 provinces over two years, I find that policy choices made by provincial leaders in the 1980s were decisive, setting in motion path-dependent trajectories that have since been reinforced. The study underscores the importance of the early autonomy granted by Deng Xiaoping, which enabled local officials to pursue tailored development strategies and localized institutional innovation—effects that continue to shape regional economies today.