Abstract: The terms describing the rapidly rise of big countries, such as G2, the BRICs, gives us the impression that one or several superpowers are about to be born. In recent years, however, most major emerging countries have all encountered difficulties.
In the discussion of the Chinese model of development, there is a misconception that the Chinese Model has succeeded and the only task left is to identify the reasons behind it. I disagree with this misguided view and believe that the key to correct this misconception is to clarify the criteria for development. As a successful example of the development models, the East Asian model is that at once the economy has achieved substantial development, the fruit of development is shared in the society. This “shared growth” then served as a foundation for political democratization, which enabled the East Asian countries to complete the transition peacefully. Instead of shared growth, the Chinese model features “high growth and low sharing,” which resembles the development model of Southeast Asia, rather than that of East Asia. Therefore, an adjustment is urgently needed.