Negative Incentives and Disciplinary Action in China’s Food Safety Regulation

Jia Liu is Lecturer and Master’s Supervisor for the Department of Public Administration, School of Urban Economics and Public Administration, Capital University of Economics and Business, Beijing, China. She holds dual doctoral degrees in Public Administration and Public Policy (jointly awarded by Renmin University of China and City University of Hong Kong), with specialized research expertise in food safety regulation, risk governance, and principal–agent dynamics in public administration.

• Chapter 1: When Punishment Shapes Regulation: Unpacking Negative Incentives in China’s Food Safety Governance Chapter 2: From Criticism to Crackdown: Seventy-Five Years of China’s Food Safety Disciplinary System (1949–2024) Chapter 3: The Missing Piece: Why Negative Incentives in Non-Western Regulation Have Been Overlooked Chapter 4: Inside the Black Box: A Mixed-Methods Journey to Study Regulatory Discipline Chapter 5: Two Cities, One Challenge: How Shenzhen and Beijing Shape Disciplinary Choices Chapter 6: Incentives Under Pressure: A Principal–Agent Framework for Regulatory Discipline Chapter 7: Numbers Don’t Lie: Quantifying What Drives Regulatory Discipline Chapter 8: Beyond Punishment: Rethinking Regulatory Accountability in China and Globally

"If the food we eat is safe, we can thank unseen regulators. Drawing on in-depth case research, Jia Liu's fascinating book sheds light on how food safety regulators operate in China - under high pressure from multiple principals who rely on negative incentives."Nick Petrovsky, Department of Public and International Affairs, City University of Hong Kong