The return of strongmen politics, exemplified by Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, has raised questions about societal influence on authoritarian regimes' foreign policies. Despite authoritarian rule... Show moreThe return of strongmen politics, exemplified by Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, has raised questions about societal influence on authoritarian regimes' foreign policies. Despite authoritarian rule tightening, vibrant debates on foreign policy persist in China. Scholars have pinpointed actors capable of influencing China's foreign policy and identified channels for exerting this influence. However, conditions under which Chinese societal actors impact foreign policy remain unclear. This dissertation investigates the influence of experts from Chinese foreign policy think tanks and International Relations scholars. Analyzing 100 official foreign policy statements, 500 think tank reports, and around 2000 academic articles using frame analysis and quantitative content analysis, I found no perfect transmission between official and societal constructs of China's national interest. This necessitates considering the impact of domestic structures. I argue that societal actors' proximity to the state and the state's openness to societal input facilitate or constrain their influence on the official construction of the national interest. My examination of political institutions and state-society relations changes under Xi Jinping reveals shifts in the state's receptivity to societal input, differing for think tanks and scholars. Additionally, I introduce a new measure of think tanks' and scholars' proximity to the state, providing fresh insights for reevaluating societal actors' impact on authoritarian regime foreign policies. Show less
