China,s University Think Tanks for Ethnic Studies in the New Era:Functional Orientations, Dilemmas, and Pathways

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY， VOL. 15， NO.02， 114-121， 2024 （CN51-1731/C， in Chinese）.

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2024.02.013

Abstract：

The functional targets of university think tanks for ethnic studies in China are to deepen research of consolidating the sense of community for the Chinese nation and promote high-quality development of ethnic work in the new era of China. The think tanks，"first function orientation is to encourage the construction of a disciplinary system， an academic system， and a discourse system of Chinese ethnology， pursuing a uniquely Chinese paradigm， plan， and pathway for addressing Chinese ethnic problems. Secondly， in response to strategic imperatives and practical policy requirements of the party and the state， these think tanks focus on the theory and practical implementation of ethnic development and security concerns and seek to conduct high-quality policy analysis in order to provide decision-making advisory services on ethnic issues. Thirdly， these university-based think tanks offer academic support for the Party，s ethnic work， aiming to facilitate the modernization of the governance system， enhance the operational capacity of ethnic affairs， and promote the construction of community for the Chinese nation.

This paper， furthermore， identifies four main dilemmas in the construction of university think tanks for ethnic studies： Firstly， a structural conflict between academic research objectives and the practical outputs expected from think tank research is a conceptual dilemma in the construction of university think tanks for ethnic studies. Secondly， a conflict between the administrative management of universities and the needs of socialized management of think-tank is the management dilemma in the construction of university think tanks for ethnic studies. Thirdly， this challenge is about functional positioning; it revolves around defining and clarifying the distinct roles and functions of universities vis-à-vis their affiliated think tanks for ethnic studies. The fourth dilemma is a rank evaluation dilemma： It concerns balancing the recognition of think tanks，"achievements with the evaluation of professional titles in the construction of the university think tanks for ethnic studies.

This paper proposes three strategic pathways for the construction of university think tanks for ethnic studies： The first one is to eliminate the cognitive bias towards the decision-making consultancy report，which requires popularizing the knowledge about think tanks and integrating members of academic groups into think tank memberships， enhancing the translation of academic research results into decision-making reports， balancing the management thinking to equally value academic research and think tank research， and the building of the specialized administrative teams to support think tank operations. The second solution is to improve institutional support mechanisms for the construction of university think tanks， which would require establishing and improving guarantee mechanisms for undertaking research tasks for party and governmental institutions， improving the assessment criteria for think tank achievements， and advancing incentive structures to foster research excellence. The third solution would be to establish and enhance the mechanism for talent exchange and cooperation among think tanks. This would require adopting a new approach for personnel management in think tanks， breaking down disciplinary barriers to cultivate interdisciplinary expertise， and improving the “revolving door” mechanism for Chinese think tanks. In addition， it is also deemed necessary to establish and enhance a standard mechanism for exchanges and cooperation among think tanks， seeking to enhance their engagement in global issues， potentially constructing effective discourse systems among Chinese think tanks as well as building policy communication channels for positive interaction between the government and the public.

Key Words：

university think tanks for ethnic studies; consolidating the sense of community for the Chinese nation; dilemmas; mechanism