Social consequences: does think tanks’ influence matter?

Most political scientists who conduct research on think tanks focus on questions like “Do think tanks matter?”1 However, their consideration is almost always limited to the specific question “Do think tanks exert influence, and if so, how is it manifested?” After dealing with these questions in this chapter, I plan to answer a further question: “Do think tanks’ influences matter?” Specifically, I will try to determine whether and to what extent think tanks’ influential behaviors impact the social stratification order in transitional China.