The Art of Criminal Investigation in China: A Typology of Policing Crimes*

How does strong state capacity in an authoritarian regime translate into police power? Do states with strong capacity enforce totalitarianlevel policies in all areas equally? This article uses an examination of frontline police work in three provinces in China to show that policing is enforced unequally by issue area, and that high degrees of variation exist even within the same policing agenda. Two factors are vital to explain the mode of daily frontline policing: political pressure (either oral or via written directive) and individual incentives (including promotion, pay, and sense of pride). The results indicate a typology of four policing modes: zealous, deceptive, selective, and lazy policing.