"Double first-class" Project implementation: the influence of local government in china

This paper discusses the influence of local governments over the realization of «Double First-Class» project in China. Based on the qualitative analysis of 36 universities’ mid-term reports, the spillover effect on local economic and social development was found to be enhancing the core competitiveness of local governments. Text analysis of eight local governments’ «Double First-Class» implementation reports showed that the way of their promoting the «Double First-Class» construction were investment and talent introduction. The local participation in the «Double First-Class» competition under the constraint of national financial resources leads to the Matthew effect of university development. Universities selected for «Double First-Class» will get more resources and develop better, while other universities will be left behind. Therefore, the central government needs to intervene the competition of local governments.