Abstract
Since the first programs were established in 2011, China's design doctoral education has expanded to 37 institutions by 2024, yet Chinese scholars remain marginalized in international venues like DRS (3.6% of papers, 2012–2024). Through mixed-methods analysis of 426 dissertations, 95 conference papers, 6,239 citations, 40 author trajectories, and 9 interviews, we reveal systematic divergence rather than exclusion. Citation analysis demonstrates a 50.9 percentage point shift: scholars cite 54.5% Chinese-language sources in dissertations but only 3.6% in DRS papers. Author tracking shows 72.5% became one-time participants with no subsequent first-author international publications, evidencing strategic credential-seeking over sustained engagement. Keyword analysis confirms Chinese research concentrates on cultural heritage (58.2%) while international discourse emphasizes user-centered approaches (44.5%). We theorize this as institutionalized epistemic sovereignty: active construction of parallel knowledge infrastructure serving mainland China's knowledge demands independently of international norms, raising fundamental questions about for whom design knowledge should be produced.
Keywords
design doctoral education; academic publishing; international participation; knowledge circulation
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1660
Citation
Li, L., Zhu, W., and Zheng, T. (2026) Producing knowledge for whom? Parallel knowledge worlds in Chinese doctoral education in design and international design research, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1660
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Included in
Producing knowledge for whom? Parallel knowledge worlds in Chinese doctoral education in design and international design research
Since the first programs were established in 2011, China's design doctoral education has expanded to 37 institutions by 2024, yet Chinese scholars remain marginalized in international venues like DRS (3.6% of papers, 2012–2024). Through mixed-methods analysis of 426 dissertations, 95 conference papers, 6,239 citations, 40 author trajectories, and 9 interviews, we reveal systematic divergence rather than exclusion. Citation analysis demonstrates a 50.9 percentage point shift: scholars cite 54.5% Chinese-language sources in dissertations but only 3.6% in DRS papers. Author tracking shows 72.5% became one-time participants with no subsequent first-author international publications, evidencing strategic credential-seeking over sustained engagement. Keyword analysis confirms Chinese research concentrates on cultural heritage (58.2%) while international discourse emphasizes user-centered approaches (44.5%). We theorize this as institutionalized epistemic sovereignty: active construction of parallel knowledge infrastructure serving mainland China's knowledge demands independently of international norms, raising fundamental questions about for whom design knowledge should be produced.