China is intensely conscious of its reputation, both at home and abroad. This concern is often interpreted as an undivided desire for higher status as a global leader. Yet Chinese leaders heatedly debate the country's standing and role in international affairs. At times, China positions itself not as a nascent world power but as a fragile developing country, a narrative at odds with the pursuit of higher status. Policymakers project multiple, sometimes contradictory, national images, which can make decoding and anticipating foreign policy a challenge. Xiaoyu Pu turns to the concept of branding to better understand China's display of status and positioning as an emerging force on the world stage.
As competing pressures mount across domestic and international concerns, China must pivot between different representational tactics. Rebranding China demystifies how the state represents its global position by analyzing recent military transformations, regional interactions, and international financial negotiations. Drawing on a sweeping body of research, including original Chinese sources and interdisciplinary ideas from sociology, psychology, and international relations, Rebranding China puts forward an innovative framework for interpreting China's contradictory status signaling.