Table of Contents

Preface

Introduction. Taiwan at a Crossroads
(Cal Clark, Alexander C. Tan, and Karl Ho – Department of Political Science, Auburn University, Auburn, USA, et al.)

Chapter 1. Public Policy Preferences Revealed in Referendum Voting: The Case of Taiwan
(Chi Huang, Tzu-ching Kuo, and Yu-heng Jung – Department of Political Science and Taiwan Institute for Governance and Communication Research, National Chengchi University, Mucha, Taiwan, et al.)

Chapter 2. Leftist Proclivity in Taiwan’s Political Development
(Wei-chin Lee – Department of Politics and International Affairs, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, US)

Chapter 3. In the Eye of the Storm: Taiwan, China, and the U.S. in Challenging Times
(Steve Chan – Department of Political Science, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA)

Chapter 4. Taiwan’s Military Posture Toward China’s Confrontational Stance
(Elizabeth Freund Larus and Agata Wictoria Zietek – Department of Political Science and International Affairs, University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg, VA, US, et al.)

Chapter 5. Inconsistent Struggle Shadowed by the Dragon: Taiwan’s Defence Under the Tsai Ing-wen Administration
(Shang-su Wu – S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore)

Chapter 6. U.S.-China Relations from Trump to Biden: A Systems Theory Assessment
(John F. Copper – Department of International Studies, Rhodes College, Memphis, TN, US)

Chapter 7. Partisan Polarization and Fragmentation in the Taiwanese Electorate: Evidence from the 2020 Elections
(Cal Clark, Alexander C. Tan, and Karl Ho – Department of Political Science, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, US, et al.)

Chapter 8. An Etiology of Party System Development and Voter Alignments in Democratic Taiwan: Stability Before the Storm
(Alexander C. Tan – Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand, et al.)

Chapter 9. Taiwanese Party Manifestos and Their Purposes: Some Initial Findings and Thoughts
(Alexander C. Tan and Boyu Chen – Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of Canterbury, Canterbury, New Zealand, et al.)

Chapter 10. Revisiting Taiwan’s Semi-Presidentialism at a Critical Juncture
(Yu-shan Wu – Institute of Political Science, Academia Sinica, Nangang, Taiwan)

Chapter 11. Institutional Resilience and Change: The Case of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan
(John Fuh-sheng Hsieh – Department of Political Science, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, US)

Chapter 12. Mr. President Democracy: A Political Life in Modern Constitutionalism
(David K.C. Huang and Nigel N.T. Li – Constitutional Programme, Law, O. P. Jindal Global Law School, Delhi, India)

Chapter 13. Opposition to Gender Equity in Taiwan: A Linguistic Perspective of Social Conservative Language on Facebook
(Ping-Hsuan Wang – Georgetown University, Washington, DC, US)

Index

Reviews

“This edited volume titled Taiwan: Environmental, Political, and Social Issues by Clark, Tan, and Ho investigates a number of important and critical research topics on Taiwanese politics, ranging from referendum voting, social movement, defense policy, US-China-Taiwan relations, partisan polarization, party manifestos, to Taiwan’s institutional/constitutional design. For readers, international observers of Taiwan, and policymakers, this book serves as a newer frontier to better understand Taiwan’s politics and its political dynamics.”  – Yao-Yuan Yeh, University of St. Thomas, Minnesota, USA

“This edited book is an original and essential introduction to Taiwan. This delightful collection of scholarly work covers various issues in Taiwan and illustrates complex ideas appealingly. While readers with all backgrounds can enjoy this book, it also challenges the readers to think critically about this thriving young democracy through different lenses. This work deserves to be widely read. Recommended. – Dennis Weng, Associate Professor of Political Science, Sam Houston State University