IB2021/9 Chinese Scholarly Interest in the Pacific

This In Brief examines the level of Chinese scholarly interest in Pacific Island countries (PICs), presents the main research themes explored by Chinese scholars and describes the policy-driven nature of the research conducted. It draws upon an analysis of 129 journal articles published by China-based Chinese scholars of Pacific studies between 2006 and 2019, as well as interviews with 44 of these authors. This research aims to enrich the literature on Pacific research in China, increase our knowledge of Chinas growing presence in the region through the eyes of Chinese scholars and offer a useful lens through which to assess the influence of Chinese policy on such research.