SHANGHAI — Despite China's remarkable economic rise, and its efforts to spread its influence in Asia through what is known as "soft power," the country still lags far behind the United States in that sphere, according to a survey to be released Tuesday.
The survey suggests that China has a long way to go before it is perceived as a multi-faceted power and that the country has not yet found a way to translate economic gains into soft power — or the ability to influence people and nations through nonmilitary means, like culture, diplomacy, politics and education.
The study (Global Views 2008: Soft Power in East Asia), conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the East Asia Institute in South Korea, is the latest effort to assess China's rise at a time when American influence is widely believed to be in decline, partly because of the war in Iraq.
Many academics say China is seeking to become a global super power that relies on soft power rather than on military might, and that trade deals have helped it gain tremendous influence in the developing world.
But the study concludes that many Asians fear China's rise as much as they admire it, and worry that China could become a military threat.
The study was conducted from January to March in China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia and the United States, before riots erupted in China’s ethnic Tibetan regions and a devastating earthquake struck. Between 800 and 1,250 adults were interviewed in each country.
"There’s been a lot of coverage lately about the relative decline of U.S. influence globally and a China that's ascendant," said Christopher B. Whitney, executive director for studies at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. "But we came to some surprising conclusions. There's been a significant decline in perceptions of the U.S., but there’s still this fount of good will in the region because of U.S. companies, brands, education and diplomacy."
American perceptions of China have grown increasingly negative, the survey showed, because of concerns over human rights, the rule of law and worries about China as a strategic competitor.
The authors of the study accompanying the survey said that many respondents respected China’s cultural heritage, but found the influence of China's politics or popular culture less impressive.