CEFC Taipei Seminar

Friday 16 April 2010, 2:30 pm

“ Identity Centrality and Identity Salience

in Taiwan’s Politics ”

(in English)

Don Rodgers, Ph.D.

Associate Professor/Chair of Political Science

Austin College, Sherman, Texas

Venue: Room B-202,

Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences,

Academia Sinica, Taipei

Abstract

While extensive attention is given to the issue of national and ethnic identity in analyzing and predicting political behavior in Taiwan, the studies to date give little attention to the issue of whether national or ethnic identity is consistently salient in the voter’s minds. While Taiwanese identity is strong and rising among the voters, it is not clear that this identity strongly and consistently influences political thought and behavior. I will discuss the 2008 presidential election and current political events in this context.

Bio

Don Rodgers is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Austin College and currently Visiting Associate Professor at Soochow University. He received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Georgia in 2000. His dissertation focused on the formation and content of political ideology in Taiwan and North Korea. He has long been working on Taiwan and Taiwanese politics, and his ongoing research focuses on issues of identity and political development in Taiwan.

The seminar will be held in English. The session will be chaired by Paul JOBIN, director of CEFC Taipei Office.

Contact: cefc@gate.sinica.edu.tw

Taipei Office – French Centre for Research on Contemporary China

Centre d’Etudes Français sur la Chine contemporaine (CEFC) – Antenne de Taipei

http://www.cefc.com.hk/taipei

Room B110, RCHSS, Academia Sinica,

128 Yanjiuyuan Road, Sec. 2, Nankang, Taipei

Tel : (886-2) 2789-0873 – Fax : (886-2) 2789-0874