ABSTRACT
In 1979, China sought reform through the modernization of four aspects of its economy.2 e “central kingdom” aggressively pursued an open-door policy to attract foreign investment, expand international trade, build domestic industries, and develop the local economy.3 e reform process was as successful in creating wealth as in breeding criminality. Historically, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has enjoyed exceptionally low crime rates4 due to its closed society,5 static economy,6 administrative control,7 family discipline, and individual cultivation. It was Confucius who rst observed: “Wishing to govern well in their states, they would rst regulate their families. Wishing to regulate their families, they would rst cultivate their persons. Wishing to cultivate their persons, they would rst rectify their minds.”8 Famously, this philosophy represents the internal, informal, and communal crime control model9 being challenged by the reform process.
