Rate My Professor Jie Chen

Jie Chen is an Associate Professor in Political Science and International Relations in the School of Social Sciences at the University of Western Australia. He earned his PhD in International Relations from the Australian National University in 1995 and his MA in International Relations from the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing in 1987. Chen's research focuses on the transnational politics and international relations of Greater China, including China-Taiwan relations, overseas Chinese democracy movements, diaspora politics, and the interactions between transnational social movements and political developments in China and Taiwan. His expertise extends to Asian social movements, diasporic mobilisations, civil society, and security issues in the Indo-Pacific region, such as tensions across the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.

Prior to his current role, Chen served as a Lecturer in the Politics Department at the University of Adelaide from 2001 to 2003 and as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Monash Asia Institute from 1997 to 2000. He is the sole author of three books: Foreign Policy of the New Taiwan: Pragmatic Diplomacy in Southeast Asia (Edward Elgar, 2002), which received the Outstanding Academic Title award for 2003 from CHOICE, a publication of the American Library Association; Transnational Civil Society in China: Intrusion and Impact (Edward Elgar, 2012); and The Overseas Chinese Democracy Movement: Assessing China’s Only Open Political Opposition (Edward Elgar, 2019). Chen also edited Taiwan and the Cause of Democratization in China: Inspiration and Support (Edward Elgar, 2024). His peer-reviewed articles have been published in leading journals including Asian Survey, Journal of Contemporary China, China Perspectives, Europe-Asia Studies, and The Pacific Review. Notable publications include "China's Spratly Policy: With Special Reference to the Philippines and Malaysia" (Asian Survey, 1994), "The NGO Community in China" (China Perspectives, 2006), and "Transnational Environmental Movement: Impacts on the Green Civil Society in China" (Journal of Contemporary China, 2010). Currently, he leads a research project funded by the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation. Chen frequently comments on Asia-Pacific affairs for media outlets such as Sky News and SBS Mandarin. His scholarship has accumulated over 100 citations.