A Behavioural Perspective of Taiwan’s Obstacles
Dr. Chengwei Liu (PhD Cantab)
Chengwei.Liu@wbs.ac.uk
Associate Professor of Strategy and Behavioural Science
University of Warwick
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Quiz
• Which is further east: Bristol or Edinburgh?
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Source: Google Map
The network we are embedded in determine how
we see the world
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Source: Google Image
Misunderstanding, confusion, distrust
often follow…
External obstacles faced by Taiwan
Being involved in the “coopetition” (or cooperative
competition) between two super powers is not a
easy position for any leader.
Internal obstacles faced by Taiwan
Resistance from various interest groups to
trade liberalization
Who gain? Who lose? How to
reconcile?
• Ideally, policies should follow evidence:
‘Identify the interest groups on the basis of
“industrial sectors” not “social class”.’
• However, ‘Benefit of trade liberalization is not
well recognized but its cost can be easily
identified.’
One of the more robust findings in
behavioral sciences
But this is just one of the many hurdles…
Game: State a Number
Task
• Name a number (integer)
between (and including) 0
and 100.
Payoff
• The person whose number
is closest to 2/3 times the
average number is the
winner
Sometimes it leads to spiral of silence
Shall we join
that FTA?
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Asch’s experiment
Sometimes it leads to group
radicalisation
How to fix this?
• Professor Chow suggests several thoughtful
solutions
– Stackelberg leader: need charismatic president…
– Transparency in procedure: loss aversion and
social dynamics can interfere
• In sum, politics should not override economic
rationales. But they often do.
• Are we doomed?
Fortunate favours the marginalised?
Who could have predicted this?
If we can have the best deal, we still
need to prepare for the worst. If we
cannot, we just move on.
"Learning to see – habituating the eye to repose, to
patience, to letting things come to it; learning to defer
judgment, to investigate and comprehend the individual
case in all aspects. This is the first preliminary schooling
in spirituality. ”
Friedrich Nietzsche