Research

Image: word cloud of most frequently used words in all China-related televised US election campaign advertisements from 2006 to 2018.
Image: demographic and dispositional correlates of anti-Asian sentiment as measured by the Asian American Resentment (AAR) scale

Dissertation

The Rise of China and Anti-Asian Racism in the United States

My dissertation examines the role of anti-Asian racism in contemporary U.S.-China relations with a particular focus on American public opinion on China. Building on theories of American racial hierarchy and Asian American politics, I first propose a new scientific measure of anti-Asian sentiments in the United States, the Asian American Resentment (AAR) scale. Utilizing public opinion surveys, survey experiments, and text analyses, I first empirically test the relationship between anti-Asian racial resentment and Americans’ views toward China and U.S. China policy. I also examine the central role such racial attitudes play in shaping American public opinion on international trade and economic relations with China. I then shift my focus to the effects of anti-China political rhetoric on growing anti-Asian sentiments across the United States and the racialization of public views toward China. My dissertation contributes to advancing scholarly discussions on the increasingly salient yet overlooked racial dimension of contemporary Sino-American relations.

Peer-Reviewed Articles

“The Chinese Virus?: The Politicization of COVID-19 and the Rise of Anti-Asian Racism in the United States,” Journal of Experimental Political Science. Conditionally Accepted.

“Race in International Relations: Beyond the ‘Norm Against Noticing’,” (with Bianca Freeman and David Lake) Commissioned for Annual Review of Political Science.

“The Geopolitical Consequences of COVID-19: Assessing Hawkish Mass Opinion in China,” (with Joshua Byun and Sichen Li) Political Science Quarterly. Conditionally Accepted.

Working Papers

“Anti-Asian Racial Resentment and American Public Opinion on China.”

“Anti-Asian Racial Resentment: Theory and Measurement”

“Oceans Apart? Perceptions of Perceptions and Dangerous Spirals in U.S.-Chinese Public Opinion,” (with Joshua Byun, Sichen Li, and Weiyi Shi)

“Emotions and Public Support for Preventive Conflict: Experimental Evidence,” (with Joshua Byun and Nicholas Campbell-Serementis)

“Country Identification Strategy and the Use of Heuristics in IR Survey Experiments,” (with Alexandra Lange)

Image: The distribution of Chinese public beliefs about China’s military rise vis-a-vis the U.S. as response to the question “How long do you think it will take for China’s military power to catch up with and surpass that of the United States?” Source: Byun, Kim & Li (2021)