The Taiwanese/Chinese Identity of the Taiwan People

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to provide the reader with a picture of the distribution of an important political attitude of the Taiwan public-their Taiwanese/Chinese identity. The term \"Taiwanese/Chinese identity\" refers to whether individuals in Taiwan identify themselves as Taiwanese or Chinese. This identity is often considered a key variable in explaining how Taiwanese think about politics in general and cross-Strait politics in particular. The authors also seek to demonstrate how the distribution of Taiwanese/Chinese identity has changed in recent years. Survey data collected by the Election Study Center of National Chengchi University are used for the analysis. The results indicate that regardless of ethnic background, age, educational level, gender, and partisan identity, Taiwanese people`s Chinese identity ratio declined while their Taiwanese identity rose sharply.