S&T policy evolution: A comparison between the United States and China (1950-present)

In view of the evolution of Chinese and U.S. American research policy in the past 60 years, the two countries have undergone different stages of development. The S&T policy system in the United States was gradually built up since World War II, the benefit of research freedom adding to academic interest. The intervention and support for science and technology from the government has been gradually strengthened, promoting S&T development. Since the 1990s, the U.S. government has defined the five functions of science as serving national objectives, emphasizing S&T progress to promote sustainable economic and social development, and continued innovation to maintain the U.S. American leadership position. Although the country has experienced a number of economic or financial crises, the U.S. government´s investment in basic research has followed a course of rapid growth, treating basic research as a source of innovation and power. The Chinese S&T system was established upon and developed on a very weak basis after the establishment of the new Chinese republic. In the 1950s, the recovery and establishment of the S&T system almost fully emulated the Soviet model. Up to the late 1950s, With the successful implementation of the 12-year S&T development plan, the key tasks and key engineering projects drove the development of the basic disciplines and initially established the basic research system in China. The Cultural Revolution decade made Chinese S&T undertakings grind to a standstill, further widening the gap in relation to advanced global levels. With the reform and opening up in 1979, the Chinese S&T system was restored again. Especially since the 1990s, the state increasingly invested in basic research more and more significantly, and S&T development in China entered a fast track of development while basic research as the source of innovation received more attention from government and community.