Ideology and organization in post-communist China: The case of university student party branches

This research examines how variations in the orientation of student party members toward party membership interact with types of activities organized by university student party branches in China. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork at two universities in Beijing, I identify four types of branch organizational culture and three ideal types of student party members. I find that student party members differ not only in why they join the party but also in how they understand party membership, what they seek from branch life, and how they engage in party activities after admission. I also demonstrate that branches vary in how they organize procedural, instructive, and outreach activities, and that these variations shape participation and interpretation in different ways.