China hat einen rasanten Aufstieg zu einem zentralen Akteur der globalen Politik vollzogen. Die Diskussion der Rolle Chinas in der Welt folgt jedoch weiterhin oft Kategorien und Modellen, die diese Transformation nicht abbilden. Das Lehrbuch führt den Leser in die Grundlagen der chinesischen Staatsphilosophie und der politischen Geschichte sowie die Institutionenordnung der chinesischen Politik ein. Es unternimmt eine theoriegeleitete Analyse ausgewählter Teilfelder der chinesischen Politik und diskutiert theoretische Konzepte und Modellbildungen chinesischer Politikwissenschaftler. Berücksichtigt werden neben dem Ein-Partei-Staat der VR China auch die Grundmuster der chinesischen Sonderverwaltungsregionen (Hongkong, Macau) wie auch die Sonderrolle Taiwans.Testimonial"Much more than an ordinary textbook, Noesselt presents a comprehensive and dynamic analysis of Chinese political thinking, organization, and course of development. This is an original work of great insight, well grounded in China's own discourse about politics. It well rewards a close reading."Brantly Womack (Professor of Foreign Affairs, University of Virginia)"Noesselt shows how understanding China's international behaviour and global aspirations requires both area-studies type in-depth knowledge of Chinese domestic politics and also international relations disciplinary expertise. Fortunately for the reader, she has both in abundance."Shaun Breslin (Professor of Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick)Prof. Dr. Nele Noesselt's text is both comprehensive and readable, exploring the Chinese debates and the policy decisions. This in-depth treatment allows readers to understand how China sees the issues it is facing and what China's growing role in the world means for outsiders. Highly recommended. Joseph Fewsmith (Professor of International Relations and Political Science, Boston University) Traversing a variety of practical and scholarly divides, in Chinese sites on the one hand - historical/contemporary, domestic/international, central/local, and individual/institutional - and discursively on the other - social science/ideology, English/Chinese representations, and multiple PRC policy school perspectives-, Nele Noesselt demonstrates why and how understanding China can and must move beyond oversimplifying binaries. Shih Chih-yu (Professor of Cultural Studies and China Studies, National Taiwan University)This is a truly ground breaking textbook. Taking seriously the notion that Chinese concepts, debates, and institutions are crucial to understanding China's rise, it draws on a wide range of accessible materials to interweave China's domestic politics with its international aspirations.Julia C. Strauss (Professor of Chinese and Comparative Politics, University of London) Challenging and engaging, Nele Noesselt's book offers a sophisticated and insightful account of contemporary Chinese politics, ranging from the historical and philosophical foundations of the Chinese political system, the interplay between formal and informal institutions and policy processes, to the causal relations between the national and global dimension of Chinese politics. This is an outstanding textbook, which provides students with foundational knowledge and critical analytical skills to understand ever-changing politics and policy processes of the next superpower.Yongjin Zhang (Professor of International Politics, University of Bristol)