Dialectics of convergence and divergence: using a dynamic view of locality to understand China’s citizenship education of socialist patriotism

Amid debates on postcolonialism, this study uses a dynamic, historical, and dialectical view of locality to examine how citizenship discourses have been framed in socialist regimes. Drawing on a dialectic of convergence and divergence (DCD), it argues that tracking stable and shifting elements reveals the complexity of locality. A thematic analysis of China’s new Patriotic Education Law shows that Chinese citizenship education (CE) converges around the principle of ‘Three Loves’ – love for the nation, the Party, and socialism – while diverging by increasingly emphasising patriotism over socialism in students’ civic identity. This shift reflects a crucial change in Chinese CE, whereby institutional loyalty is legally mandated to take precedence over ideological commitment. In a post-liberal era of growing geopolitical rivalry, this study warns that a patriotism-first approach to CE may strengthen social cohesion and regime stability but could also alienate moderates, mobilise extremists and heighten ideological tensions internationally.