The CPC’s Development Concept and Its Development in the New Era

In the practical struggle to achieve national prosperity and the people’s well-being, New China has traversed a glorious course of 76 years. In the early period after the founding of New China, under the premise of having established the socialist system, we embarked on a new journey of Chinese-style development amid twists and turns. On this basis, the Party’s development concept was formed, which is both continuous in lineage and advancing with the times. This article follows a research approach that unifies logic and history, and intends to systematically sort out and summarize the dimensions of the Party’s promotion of Chinese-style development, the basic content, characteristics, logical implications of the Party’s development concept, and its innovative development in the New Era, in order to provide a theoretically insightful and epochally distinctive perspective and guidance for China’s development, which contains “modernity.”

在实现国家富强、人民幸福的实践奋斗中，新中国走过了76年的光辉历程。新中国成立初期，在建立了社会主义制度的前提下，我们在曲折起伏中开启了中国式发展的新历程，在此基础上，形成了既一脉相承又与时俱进的党的发展理念。本文遵循逻辑与历史相统一的研究进路，拟对党推进中国式发展的维度、党的发展理念的基本内容、特征、逻辑意蕴及其在新时代的创新发展等问题进行系统梳理和总结，以期为蕴含着“现代性”的中国发展提供富有时代特色的理论观照与指导。

I. Four Dimensions of the CPC’s Promotion of Development

一、中国共产党推进发展的四个维度

With the establishment of development as the theme of the times, our Party constructed a development-studies perspective for understanding and solving China’s problems, thereby firmly entering a new period of “concentrating on the Four Modernizations”[1]1 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the National Conference on Propaganda and Thought Work” (August 19, 2013), in *Selected Readings of Xi Jinping’s Works*, vol. 1 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2023), p. 59. and initiating a new process of Chinese-style development. China’s development is a social systemic project, undertaken on the socialist path by a large Eastern country with a huge population and relatively backward economy and culture, characterized by complex elements, vast scale, numerous threads, and arduous tasks. The CPC is the leading subject of Chinese-style development, and the Chinese people are its foundational subject; together they constitute the complete picture of the subject of Chinese-style development.

随着发展之时代主题的确立，我们党建构了认识和解决中国问题的发展学视角，从而坚定地迈入了“聚精会神地搞四个现代化建设”的新时期，开启了中国式发展新进程。中国的发展，是一个人口众多、经济文化相对落后的东方大国，在社会主义道路上所开展的一项要素复杂、规模宏阔、头绪繁多、任务艰巨的社会性系统工程。中国共产党是中国式发展的领导主体，中国人民是中国式发展的基础主体，它们共同构成了中国式发展主体的完整图景。

The Party leads the people in promoting development mainly through four aspects: practical impetus, theoretical guidance, discursive articulation, and emotional verification, thereby giving rise to China’s development practice, development concept, development discourse, and development sentiment. Social development is the unity of practice and theory; development practice and the development concept or development theory are two sides of the same coin of social development, possessing foundational significance. However, development is a social project involving the participation of millions of people, requiring the mobilization of the broad masses, and thus it cannot do without the construction of development discourse and the cultivation of development sentiment. Compared with development practice and the development concept, development discourse and development sentiment are derivative and dependent. The above four aspects constitute the basic and complete dimensions through which our Party promotes development. Only by proceeding from these four dimensions can we accurately grasp the status and role of the Party’s development concept and deeply understand the objective necessity of its emergence.

党领导人民推进发展主要做四个方面的工作：实践推动，理论指导，话语言说，情感检验，由此形成了关于中国的发展实践、发展理念、发展话语和发展情感。社会发展是实践和理论的统一，发展实践和发展理念或发展理论是社会发展的一体两面，它们具有本源性的意义。但发展是千百万人参与的社会性工程，需要把广大民众发动起来，因而离不开发展话语的构建和发展情感的培养。相较于发展实践和发展理念，发展话语和发展情感具有衍生性、依附性。上述四个方面构成了我们党推进发展的基本而又完整的维度。只有从上述四个维度出发，才能准确把握党的发展理念的地位和作用，并深入了解党的发展理念出场的客观必然性。

1. Promoting Development in Practical Creation

1.在实践创造中推进发展

Promoting development in practical creation is a profound revelation of the close relationship between practice and development. From the perspective of the philosophy of development, social practice is the “key” to understanding social development. It is precisely in the unity of interdependence and interaction that the interdependent relationship between practice and development is demonstrated. The interdependence between practice and development means that neither can be separated from the other; each takes the other as the precondition for its own existence. Practice cannot be separated from development; practice is practice within development. Only in development can practice present its complete form and true meaning. Development also cannot be separated from practice; the foundation and basic material means of development are practice, and development occurs and is realized in practice. Examined from the perspective of praxeology, so-called development refers to a form of social movement, occurring within a specific time-space social system such as a national system, supported by social practice, that is both regular (conforming to laws) and purposeful (conforming to ends). The interdependence of practice and development is manifested through their mutual interaction, including mutual transformation. Analyzed from a positive perspective, the results of practice—whether material or spiritual—are transformed into the resources, driving forces, and other conditions needed for social development, as well as numerous symbolic elements that characterize the level of social development. All development achievements are in fact the achievements of social practice, especially productive practice. For example, new quality productive forces can promote “new development” in the New Era, and to advance new development, it is inseparable from vigorously cultivating new quality productive forces.

在实践创造中推进发展，是对实践与发展之间密切关系的深刻揭示。从发展哲学的角度看，社会实践是理解社会发展的“密钥”,正是在相互依存、相互作用的统一性关系中展示了实践和发展之间的依存关系。实践和发展之间的相互依存性，是指彼此谁也离不开谁，各以对方为自己存在的前提。实践离不开发展，实践是发展中的实践，只有在发展中实践才能呈现其完整的形态和真正的意义；发展也离不开实践，发展的基础和基本的物质手段就是实践，发展就是在实践中发生和实现的。从实践学角度考察，所谓发展，是指处于特定时空的社会系统如国家系统等在社会实践的支撑下而发生的一种既合规律性又合目的性的社会运动形式。实践和发展的相互依存是通过它们的相互作用包括相互转化表现的。基于正面分析，实践的成果——无论是物质性的还是精神性的，都转化为社会发展所需要的资源、动力等条件以及表征社会发展水平的诸多标志性要素。一切发展成就其实是社会实践特别是生产实践的成就，如新质生产力可以促成新时代的“新发展”,而要推进新发展就离不开大力培育新质生产力。

The fundamental methodological significance of promoting development through practical creation lies in the fact that Chinese-style development is first and foremost a practical issue, or an issue of “doing.” “The achievements of socialist China today did not fall from the sky, nor were they bestowed or given by others; they were achieved by the broad masses of the people under the Party’s leadership through hard work, wisdom, and courage!”[2]2 Xi Jinping, *Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects* — Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (October 16, 2022) (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2022), p. 46. Thus, the actuality of China’s development and progress lies crucially in the fact that it is a process of fully exerting and mobilizing the practical power of the Chinese people. Only by putting practical struggle into action can the country become prosperous, society progress, and the people achieve well-being.

通过实践创造来推进发展所具有的根本方法论意义在于，中国式发展首先是一个实践问题，或是一个“干”的问题。“社会主义中国发展到今天，取得的成就不是天上掉下来的，更不是别人恩赐施舍的，而是广大人民群众在党的领导下用勤劳、智慧、勇气干出来的!”可见，中国的发展进步之所以具有实然性，关键在于它是中国人民的实践力量充分发挥和调动的过程，只有付诸实践奋斗，国家才能富强，社会才能进步，人民才能幸福。

2. Promoting Development under Theoretical Guidance

2.在理论指导中推进发展

Social development is not a purely perceptual practical process; it also contains rational thinking and conceptual factors. On the one hand, practice has certain limitations in promoting development. That is, social practice, which possesses direct reality, cannot directly answer “development questions” such as “what is it,” “why is it so,” and “how is it going”; these can only be answered by theoretical concepts that originate from practice yet transcend it, possessing the function of abstraction and generalization. On the other hand, regarding the subject of development, the development subject, as a “real individual,” is a conscious, thinking social being. An important manifestation of the thinking and conceptual nature possessed by humans is that, before engaging in development activities, they have a clear purpose, and based on the existing reality of development, they construct theoretical concepts concerning specific development, formulate plans and policies for development, and then select certain means and methods to achieve the set goals. Thus, in the process of social development, human rational thinking factors run through it, guiding development and thereby forming theoretical concepts about development. The purpose of promoting development through theoretical concepts is to continuously eliminate errors, acquire true knowledge and methods about development, and thereby ensure that all construction and development activities gain consciousness and initiative under the guidance of scientific theory. How is development promoted under theoretical guidance? It is mainly manifested in the conceptual reflection, construction, shaping, and methodological guidance of social development by theory.

社会发展并非纯粹感性的实践过程，还存在理性的思维理念因素。一方面，实践在推进发展中存在着某种局限性，即具有直接现实性的社会实践，无法直接回答“是什么”“为什么”“怎么样”之类的“发展之问”,只能由源于实践而又高于实践的具有抽象概括功能的理论观念来回答。另一方面，就发展主体来看，发展主体作为“现实的个人”,是一种有意识、会思维的社会存在物。人所拥有的思维理念性的重要表现，就是在从事发展活动之先，有一个明确的目的，并根据发展的现实存在，建构起关于特定发展的理论观念，提出发展的计划方针，然后选择一定的方式手段去实现所设定的目标。可见，在社会发展进程中，始终贯穿着人的理性思维因素，它指导着发展，从而形成了关于发展的理论观念。通过理论观念推进发展的目的在于不断排除谬误，获取关于发展的真知及方法，从而使一切建设和发展活动都能在科学理论的指导下获得自觉性、主动性。在理论指导中如何推进发展?主要表现在理论对社会发展的观念性反映、建构、塑造以及方法论指导等方面。

Among the theoretical concepts about development, there must be objective content reflecting specific development activities. The objectivity of this reflective content determines the objectivity of development understanding, thereby forming the principle of truth that guides social development. On the basis of conceptual reflection, it is also necessary to engage in new theoretical construction based on the current position, evolutionary trends, facing tasks, existing problems, and other conditions of social development; that is, to create a development theory that originates from and transcends development reality and embodies the nature of advancing with the times. In the construction of thinking concepts, it also includes the shaping function of looking forward to the future. That is, besides the function of reflection or revelation, the development concept must also, based on this reflection or understanding, proactively shape in conceptual consciousness the ideal future existence of development, outlining through thought the beautiful prospects of future development. Because human thinking can not only reveal or reproduce the original state of a specific development existence, but also prospectively reveal the ideal state that social development should possess for human survival and development. The development concept also has the function of methodological guidance. That is, on the basis of profoundly revealing the laws of development, it tells the development subject how to engage in development creation, including what stance to adopt, what principles to follow, and what methods to employ in development practice.

在关于发展的理论观念中，一定含有反映特定发展活动的客观内容。这种反映内容上的客观性决定了发展认识的客观性，由此形成了指导社会发展的真理性原则。在观念反映的基础上，还要根据当下社会发展所处的方位、演进的趋势、面临的任务、存在的问题等情况进行新的理论建构，即要创建一种源于并高于发展现实及体现与时俱进性质的发展理论。在思维观念的建构中，还包括展望未来的形塑功能，即发展理念除了具有反映或揭示的功能之外，还要根据这种反映或认识，在观念意识中超前性地塑造出未来理想的发展存在，通过思维勾画出未来美好的发展前景。因为人的思维不仅能揭示或再现特定发展存在的本来状态，还能够前瞻性地揭示出社会发展对于人的生存和发展应当具备的理想状态。发展理念同时具有方法论指导功能，即它在深刻揭示发展规律的基础上，告诉发展主体应当如何从事发展创造，包括在发展实践中应该持有什么样的立场、遵循什么样的原则、采取什么样的方法等。

The fundamental methodological significance of promoting development through theoretical creation lies in adhering to the basic principle of theoretical innovation. The correct attitude we should hold towards the Party’s development concept is to adhere to the principle of upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground; that is, based on the ever-changing development practice, we must continuously open up new realms for the Party’s development concept. “As long as we are brave enough to combine new practice to continuously advance theoretical innovation and adept at using new theory to guide new practice,”[3]3 Karl Marx, *Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844*, in *Collected Works of Marx and Engels*, vol. 42 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1979), p. 169. we will surely enable the Party’s development concept to demonstrate a more powerful and more convincing force of truth in the process of Chinese-style development.

通过理论创建推进发展所具有的根本方法论意义在于，要坚持理论创新的基本原则。我们对于党的发展理念所持的正确态度，就是要坚持守正创新的原则，即要根据日新月异的发展实践，不断开辟党的发展理念新境界。“只要我们勇于结合新的实践不断推进理论创新、善于用新的理论指导新的实践”,就一定能够让党的发展理念在中国式发展进程中展现出更加强大、更具说服力的真理性力量。

3. Promoting Development in the Construction of Development Discourse

3.在发展话语的建构中推进发展

Advancing development through discourse means leading or promoting development by constructing and employing development discourse. Development discourse is the bridge connecting development theory and development practice, the basic channel for expressing, disseminating, or propagating the wishes, will, concepts, and policies of the Party and the people regarding development, and the basic means by which the Party organizes and mobilizes the broad masses to participate in development. Only when the Party’s development concepts are transformed into a certain development discourse can they be known and accepted by the public. So-called development discourse is a system of interrelated discourses constructed around the core concept of social development. The most notable sign of the formation of a discourse system is the proposal of its core concept and its universal acceptance and recognition. The core concept of Chinese-path development discourse is “development.” From a linguistic or semiotic perspective, Chinese-path development discourse is a vast system of development discourse composed of various symbols, rhetoric, metaphors, and other elements, which unfolds around the basic concept of “development.” The extensive and sustained use of the concept of “development” is clearly presented in the reports of all Party congresses since reform and opening up. From the report of the 12th National Congress of the CPC to the report of the 20th National Congress, the word “development” appeared 101 times, 167 times, 147 times, 171 times, 211 times, 264 times, 255 times, 212 times, and 214 times, respectively. Thus, over more than 40 years, in the political reports of nine Party congresses, “development” has always been a high-frequency concept. This fully demonstrates that “development” has become a mainstream discourse concept in China’s political life and social life in the new period, including the New Era.

以话语推进发展是指通过对发展话语的构建及运用来领导或推进发展。发展话语是连接发展理论和发展实践的桥梁，是表达、传播或宣传党和人民关于发展的愿望、意志、理念、政策等的基本渠道，是党组织和动员广大民众参与发展的基本手段。党的发展理念只有转化为一定的发展话语，方能为社会大众知晓并接受。所谓发展话语，是围绕社会发展这一核心概念而建构起来的具有关联性的话语体系。话语体系形成的最显著标志是其核心概念的提出并能为大家普遍接受和认同。中国式发展话语的核心概念是发展。从语言学或符号学角度看，中国式发展话语是一个由各种符号、修辞、寓意等要素构成的庞大发展话语系统，这个系统围绕着“发展”这一基础概念而展开。“发展”概念大量而持久地使用，在改革开放以来党的历次党代会报告中都得到了清晰呈现。从党的十二大报告到党的二十大报告，发展分别出现了101次、167次、147次、171次、211次、264次、255次、212次、214次。可见，40多年来，在9次党代会政治报告中，“发展”始终是高频率出现的概念。这充分说明，“发展”已然成了新时期包括新时代以来我国政治生活和社会生活中的主流话语概念。

The fundamental methodological significance of advancing development through discourse lies in the fact that, in Chinese-path development, efforts must be made to construct a development discourse system that meets the requirements of the times and has localized characteristics, and the construction of development discourse must be regarded as an important task in promoting social development, achieving a transformation from spontaneous construction and use of development discourse to conscious construction and use. The reason why the construction of development discourse and the mastery of the right to speak on development are so necessary lies in the key point that “backwardness leaves you vulnerable to attack, poverty leaves you vulnerable to hunger, and being voiceless leaves you vulnerable to criticism… After several generations of unremitting struggle, the first two problems have been basically solved, but the problem of ‘being criticized’ has not yet been fundamentally resolved. Securing the right to speak in international discourse is a major issue we must address well.” [1]1 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the National Conference on Propaganda and Thought Work” (August 19, 2013), in *Selected Readings of Xi Jinping’s Works*, vol. 1 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2023), p. 59. Therefore, we must follow the requirement emphasized in the report of the 20th National Congress of the CPC to “accelerate the construction of Chinese discourse and Chinese narrative systems,” in order to “strengthen international communication capacity building, comprehensively enhance the effectiveness of international communication, and form an international discourse power commensurate with China’s comprehensive national strength and international status.” [2]2 Xi Jinping, *Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects* — Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (October 16, 2022) (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2022), p. 46.

以话语推进发展所具有的根本方法论意义在于，在中国式发展中，要设法构建具有时代要求和本土化特征的发展话语体系，要将发展话语的构建视为推进社会发展的一项重要工作，实现从发展话语的自发构建与运用向自觉构建与运用转变。发展话语的构建及发展话语权的掌握之所以十分必要，关键在于“落后就要挨打，贫穷就要挨饿，失语就要挨骂……经过几代人不懈奋斗，前两个问题基本得到解决，但‘挨骂’问题还没有得到根本解决。争取国际话语权是我们必须解决好的一个重大问题”。因此，我们要遵照党的二十大报告所强调的“加快构建中国话语和中国叙事体系”的要求，以“加强国际传播能力建设，全面提升国际传播效能，形成同我国综合国力和国际地位相匹配的国际话语权”。

4. Advancing development through the cultivation of emotions

4.在情感培养中推进发展

The process by which our Party organizes and promotes development is also a process of cultivating the development emotions of the broad masses of the people. So-called development emotions refer to the positive, affirmative subjective attitudes and corresponding psychological experiences of the people toward a specific development. In Marx’s view, humans are “a passionate being. Passion, enthusiasm is the essential power of humans to pursue their objects intensely.” [3]3 Karl Marx, *Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844*, in *Collected Works of Marx and Engels*, vol. 42 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1979), p. 169. Under the leadership of development subjects full of passion, the process of social development is inevitably permeated with and reflects non-rational factors such as human emotions, will, and beliefs. Emotion is a relationship; development emotion is the relationship between the development subjects, or the broad masses, and specific development activities, and it is a confirmation of successful development practice. When a specific development practice and its achievements meet the needs of the broad masses and realize their interests, they will naturally hold positive attitudes such as satisfaction and approval toward development, and then generate attitudes and psychological experiences such as support, endorsement, and love toward the leading subjects who organize and promote development. As Mao Zedong pointed out: “When we have satisfied the needs of the masses, we will truly become the organizers of the masses’ lives, and the masses will truly rally around us and warmly support us.” [4]4 Mao Zedong, “Be Concerned with the Well-Being of the Masses, Pay Attention to Methods of Work” (January 27, 1934), in *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*, vol. 1 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1991), p. 137. General Secretary Xi Jinping also emphasized: “The people wholeheartedly support the CPC precisely because the CPC has always served the people wholeheartedly and sought happiness for all ethnic groups.” [5]5 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Central Conference on Work in Xinjiang” (May 28, 2014), in *Selected Readings of Xi Jinping’s Works*, vol. 1 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2023), p. 136.

我们党组织推进发展的过程，同时也是对广大人民群众发展情感培养的过程。所谓发展情感是人民群众对特定发展所持的积极的、肯定的主观态度及相应的心理体验。在马克思看来，人“是一个有激情的存在物。激情、热情是人强烈追求自己的对象的本质力量”。在富有激情的发展主体的主导下，社会发展进程注定渗透并体现着人的情感、意志及信念等非理性因素。情感是一种关系，发展情感是发展主体或广大民众和特定的发展活动之间的关系，它是对成功的发展实践的一种证成。当特定的发展实践及其取得的成果满足了广大民众的需要、实现了他们的利益，他们自然会对发展抱有满意、认可等积极态度，进而对组织和推进发展的领导主体生发出拥护、支持、热爱等态度和心理体验。正如毛泽东所指出的：“满足了群众的需要，我们就真正成了群众生活的组织者，群众就会真正围绕在我们的周围，热烈地拥护我们。”习近平总书记也强调：“老百姓衷心拥护中国共产党，就是因为中国共产党始终全心全意为人民服务、为各民族谋幸福。”

The emotional factors generated at the junction of the principle of truth and the principle of value have a non-negligible promoting effect on social development. The important roles of non-rational factors such as emotions are mainly manifested as follows: First, a major boosting effect on social development. Strong support and impetus for development are nothing less than the generation of a development “complex.” Over more than 40 years of reform and opening up, the Chinese people have generally harbored a strong development complex, and the idea that “development is the absolute principle” has increasingly taken root in people’s hearts, which undoubtedly generates powerful forces of support and maintenance for development. Second, an evaluation and testing effect on social development. How effective is development? Have the broad masses generally benefited from social development? Of course, this must be tested by the broad masses. The most important and effective “tool” for the people to test the effectiveness of development is their emotional attitude toward development. If the broad masses are satisfied with, approve of, endorse, and support development and its achievements, it shows that development is effective; conversely, it shows that there are problems in some aspects of development. Third, the “sensor” effect of development emotions. When a certain subject generates certain development emotions, it often radiates these emotions to other groups, forming an emotional interaction or so-called “empathy,” and only empathy can form a joint force for development. “Empathy is the bond connecting individuals; the happiness of others also has a share for me. That is to say, because of empathy, countless ‘what’s in it for me’ in the world are linked to the interests of everyone. Therefore, it is precisely because of empathy that we care about collective interests.” [6]6 [Jeremy] Rifkin, *The Empathic Civilization: The Race to Global Consciousness in a World in Crisis* (Beijing: China Renmin University Press, 2015), p. 10.

在真理原则和价值原则的结合点上所生成的情感因素，对社会发展具有不可忽视的促进作用。情感等非理性因素的重要作用主要表现为：第一，对社会发展的重大助推作用。对发展的强烈支持与推动，莫过于发展“情结”的生成。改革开放40多年来，国人普遍怀有浓厚的发展情结，“发展才是硬道理”日益深入人心，这无疑会生发出对发展的强大支持与维护力量。第二，对社会发展的评价检验作用。发展效果如何?广大民众在社会发展中是否普遍受益?当然要由广大人民来检验。而人民检验发展效果的最重要、最有效的“利器”,就是他们关于发展的情感态度。如果广大人民对发展及其取得的成果满意、认可和赞成、拥护，就说明发展是有成效的；反之，就说明发展在某些方面存在着问题。第三，发展情感所具有的“传感器”作用。当某一主体生成了一定的发展情感后，常常会把这一情感辐射到其他人群中去，从而形成一种情感上的互动或谓之为“共情”,而只有共情才会形成发展的合力。“共情是联络个体的纽带，其他人的幸福里也有我一份，也就是说由于有了共情，世界上无数个‘对我有什么好处’就和大家的好处连在一起。所以，正是有了共情心我们才会关心集体的利益。”

Since the founding of New China, especially since reform and opening up, our Party has mainly cultivated the development emotions of the broad masses from two aspects. First, through development and its achievements, on the basis of the people’s sense of gain, happiness, and security, cultivate people’s development emotions. Second, through the planning and design of grand future development blueprints, cultivate people’s development emotions. The series of medium- and long-term development plans successively formulated by our Party can be said to be grand blueprints for future development—this is a kind of aesthetically meaningful ought-to-be development, and under the inspiration of such development blueprints, a future-oriented development sentiment is generated. The goal of building “the Four Modernizations” proposed by our Party in the 1960s and 1970s, the goal of building a moderately prosperous society proposed in the new historical period, and the goal of comprehensively building a great modern socialist country proposed in the New Era and the new journey all possess the powerful force to inspire the people, unite popular strength, and stimulate popular sentiment. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “our Party uses the beautiful vision of Chinese-path modernization to inspire, encourage, and rally the people,” [7]7 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Central Conference on Economic Work” (December 11, 2023), *People’s Daily*, December 13, 2023. thereby being able to “gather the mighty force to comprehensively build a modern socialist country.” [8]8 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Central Conference on Economic Work” (December 11, 2023), *People’s Daily*, December 13, 2023.

新中国成立以来尤其是改革开放以来，我们党主要从两个方面培养广大民众的发展情感，一是通过发展及其取得的成果，在广大民众拥有获得感、幸福感、安全感的基础上培养人们的发展情感。一是通过对未来宏伟发展蓝图的规划设计以培养人们的发展情感。我们党接续制定的一系列中长期发展规划可以说是关于未来发展的宏伟蓝图——这是一种具有美学意味的应然性发展，在这种发展蓝图的激励下会生成一种面向未来时态的发展之情。我们党在20世纪六七十年代提出的建设“四个现代化”、在历史的新时期提出的建设小康社会以及在新时代新征程提出的全面建成社会主义现代化强国的奋斗目标，就具有振奋民心、聚合民力、激发民情的强大力量。习近平总书记指出，“我们党以中国式现代化的美好愿景激励人、鼓舞人、感召人”,从而能“凝聚起全面建设社会主义现代化国家的磅礴伟力”。

The fundamental methodological significance of advancing development through emotional sublimation lies in the need to adhere to the people-centered development thought in development, uphold the principle of “the people’s testing” of development, and take “realizing, safeguarding, and developing the fundamental interests of the broadest masses of the people, and taking whether the people support, approve, are happy, or agree as the fundamental criterion for measuring the gains and losses of all work.” [9]9 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Celebration of the 95th Anniversary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China” (July 1, 2016), in *Selected Readings of This “fundamental criterion” will promote the occurrence of a kind of “empathy,” thereby forming a powerful “spiritual synergy” to advance Chinese-path modernization.

通过情感升华来推进发展所具有的根本方法论意义在于，要在发展中坚持以人民为中心的发展思想，坚持发展的“人民检验”原则，把“实现好、维护好、发展好最广大人民根本利益，把人民拥护不拥护、赞成不赞成、高兴不高兴、答应不答应作为衡量一切工作得失的根本标准”。这一“根本标准”将会促成一种“共情”的发生，进而形成一种推动中国式现代化的强大“精神合力”。

It must be pointed out that in grasping the Party’s development concept, we must not only understand “what it is” but also know “why it is so.” The four dimensions of the Party’s promotion of development discussed above, especially “promoting development through theoretical guidance,” have already clarified the importance of the development concept within the entire development process, and in fact also answer the question of “why” a development concept is needed. From a genetic perspective, the development concept is an inherent and necessary link in the actual practice of development; this means that the generation or existence of a development concept is not subject to human will. As Lenin pointed out, “Without revolutionary theory, there can be no revolutionary movement.” General Secretary Xi Jinping has also clearly stated: “Concept is the precursor of action; a given development practice is always guided by a given development concept. Whether the development concept is correct fundamentally determines the effectiveness or even success or failure of development.” These important expositions profoundly indicate the significance of the development concept for the conduct and success of development practice, and are also the fundamental theoretical basis for our overall grasp of the “why” question of the development concept.

需要指出的是，我们把握党的发展理念，不仅要了解它“是什么”,还要知晓它“为什么”。上述我们党推进发展的四个维度尤其是“在理论指导中推进发展”,已经阐明了发展理念在整个发展中的重要性，事实上也回答了“为什么”需要发展理念的问题。从发生学的角度看，发展理念是现实的发展实践中内在的必要的一环，这意味着，发展理念的生成或存在是不以人的意志为转移的。正如列宁所指出的，“没有革命的理论，就不会有革命的运动”。习近平总书记也明确指出：“理念是行动的先导，一定的发展实践都是由一定的发展理念来引领的。发展理念是否对头，从根本上决定着发展成效乃至成败。”这些重要论述深刻指明了发展理念对于发展实践的开展及其成功所具有的重要意义，也是我们在总体上把握发展理念之“为什么”问题的根本的理论依据。

II. The Basic Content of the CPC’s Development Concept

二、中国共产党发展理念的基本内容

The CPC’s development concept is the theoretical concept concerning China’s realization of development formed since the founding of the People’s Republic, especially since reform and opening up. It is a scientific conceptual system concerning China’s development formed by integrating the basic principles of Marxist social development with China’s specific development practice. The Party’s development concept adheres to the Marxist worldview and methodology concerning development, and creatively answers the major questions of whether a large Eastern country that has embarked on the socialist path needs development, what kind of development it needs, and how to promote development. In answering these “questions of development,” four major theoretical components have been formed—development ontology, development epistemology, development axiology, and development methodology—which constitute the basic content of the Party’s development concept.

中国共产党的发展理念是新中国成立以来尤其是改革开放以来关于中国实现发展的理论观念，是马克思主义社会发展的基本原理与中国具体发展实践相结合而形成的关于中国发展的科学的观念体系。党的发展理念坚持马克思主义关于发展的世界观和方法论，创造性地回答了在走上社会主义发展道路的东方大国，要不要发展、要一种什么样的发展、如何推进发展等重大问题。在对上述“发展之问”的回答中，形成了关于发展的本体论、认识论、价值论和方法论等四大理论版块，构成了党的发展理念的基本内容。

1. Development Ontology Mainly Answers the Question of Whether Development Is Needed

1.发展本体论主要回答要不要发展的问题

“Whether development is needed” belongs to the question that development ontology answers. “Ontology” is an important philosophical category, affirming or expressing the most universal things and their attributes that occupy the highest status. “Development ontology” reveals and affirms the “identity” of development as occupying a supreme position and being the central task in the cause of the Party and the state. From the perspective of development ontology, we not only need development, but must from the very beginning place development in a paramount position, making it the most fundamental pursuit of the people across the country in practice since the new period: that is, “development” is a fundamental thing that the entire Party and the people of the whole country have uniformly recognized in ideology and universally “anchored” in practice since the new period. It is precisely under the great banner of development that we have united the vast majority of people, drawn the largest concentric circle [10]10 The “largest concentric circle” (最大同心圆) is a metaphor used by the CPC to describe the broadest possible unity of all social forces around the Party’s leadership and goals., and found what is most concerned about in the entire society.

“要不要发展”属于发展本体论所要回答的问题。“本体”是一个重要的哲学范畴，是对最具普遍性并拥有最高地位的事物及其属性的肯定或表达。“发展本体论”是对发展在党和国家事业中居于至上地位、属于中心任务这一“身份”的揭示与肯定。在发展本体论看来，我们不仅需要发展，而且一开始就要把发展置于至高无上的地位，使之成为新时期以来全国人民在实践中最为根本的追求：即“发展”是新时期以来全党和全国人民在思想观念上统一认定以及在实践中普遍“锚定”的一个根本性的东西。我们正是在发展的大旗下团结了绝大多数人，画出最大同心圆，找到了在整个社会中最受关注的东西。

Why does development occupy such an important position? First, within the perspective of dialectical materialism, motion is the mode of existence of all things; the motion and development of the material world itself has an ontological status. “Among the inherent characteristics of matter, the first and most important characteristic is motion” [11]11 This is a quotation from Lenin’s *Materialism and Empirio-Criticism* (1909), Chapter 3, Section 1.—this is the deepest philosophical basis for confirming the ontological status of development. Similarly, from the perspective of historical materialism, human society, under the influence of the natural law of metabolism and the social law of the movement of basic contradictions, presents an unceasing state of motion and development; creative development actually constitutes the mode of existence of humans and society, and therefore we must strive to value development and pursue development.

发展何以具有如此重要的地位?其一，在唯物辩证法的视域内，运动是万事万物的存在形式，物质世界的运动及发展本身具有本体性地位。“在物质固有的特性中，第一个特性而且是最重要的特性是运动”,这是我们确认发展之本体性地位的最为深厚的哲学依据。同样，在历史唯物主义看来，人类社会在自然性的新陈代谢规律以及社会性的基本矛盾运动规律的作用下，呈现出生生不息的运动发展状态，具有创造性的发展实际上构成了人和社会的存在形式，因而我们就要设法重视发展、追求发展。

Second, from the perspective of development philosophy, the reason development has ontological status lies crucially in the special value function that development itself possesses, containing the “magic” of transforming backwardness into strength. This “secret” inherent in development itself can be explained by the internal unity of development as both end and means. On the one hand, development has purposiveness or profit-seeking nature. As an end, development represents the hopes and interests of the broad masses of the people, possessing the power to undertake the tasks of building a strong country and rejuvenating the nation. In Deng Xiaoping’s view: “China’s main goal is development, to shake off backwardness, to strengthen the country’s power, and to gradually improve the people’s lives.” On the other hand, development also has the efficacy of instrumentality or instrumental rationality. The instrumentality or instrumental rationality of development means that development is the “fundamental law” for solving all of China’s problems. Specifically, we achieved prosperity through development, and now we must solve the problem of becoming strong through development. The reason this “fundamental law” has “magical” quality lies fundamentally in the fact that “development is the Party’s top priority in governing and rejuvenating the country, and the foundation and key to solving all of China’s problems.”

其二，从发展哲学的角度看，发展之所以具有本体性，关键在于发展本身拥有特殊的价值功能，蕴含着化落后为强盛的“神奇”。这种源于发展本身的“秘密”,可由发展是目的和手段的内在统一来解释。一方面，发展具有目的性或获利性。作为目的性的发展，它代表着广大人民的希望和利益，拥有承担强国建设、民族复兴重任的力量。在邓小平看来：“中国的主要目标是发展，是摆脱落后，使国家的力量增强起来，人民的生活逐步得到改善。”另一方面，发展还具有手段性或工具理性的效能。发展的手段性或工具理性意味着发展是解决中国一切问题的“根本大法”。具体而言，我们通过发展实现了富起来，现在又要通过发展解决强起来的问题。这一“根本大法”之所以具有“神奇性”,根本在于“发展是党执政兴国的第一要务，是解决我国一切问题的基础和关键”。

Third, in terms of practical lessons, we once took a detour in development, neglecting the ontological status of development and failing to shift the focus of the Party’s and state’s work to promoting the development of productive forces, resulting in widespread backwardness in social production. Faced with the situation of a poor people and a weak country at that time, Deng Xiaoping issued this query: “Socialism must demonstrate its superiority; how can it be like this, after more than twenty years still so poor? What is the use of socialism then?” Therefore, when the wheel of history entered the new period of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping demanded that the entire Party must consistently focus on the development of productive forces “this matter,” “revolving everything around this matter, without any interference… ‘stubbornly,’ unswervingly.”

其三，就现实的教训而言，以前我们在发展中走过了一段弯路，忽视了发展的本体性地位，并未把党和国家的工作重心转移到促进生产力的发展上来，致使出现了普遍的社会生产落后问题。面对当时民穷国弱的状况，邓小平发出了这样的质问：“社会主义要表现出它的优越性，哪能像现在这样，搞了二十多年还这么穷，那要社会主义干什么?”因此，当历史的车轮驶入改革开放的新时期之后，邓小平就要求全党必须始终如一地关注生产力发展“这件事”,“一切围绕着这件事，不受任何干扰……‘顽固’一点，毫不动摇”。

Precisely because development is the unity of goal and means, or the unity of value rationality and instrumental rationality, we certainly need development, and certainly must place development in a paramount position, regarding it as the “hard truth,” the “master key,” the “top priority,” the “biggest politics,” and so on. The ontological status of development determines that all other problems are “secondary” problems; these “secondary” problems must cease questioning or inquiry before development.

正由于发展是目标和手段的统一，或是价值理性和工具理性的统一，因而，我们当然需要发展，当然要把发展置于至高无上的地位，视其为“硬道理”“总钥匙”“第一要务”“最大政治”等。发展的本体性地位决定了所有问题都属于“枝节性”问题，这些“枝节性”问题都必须在发展这里停止质疑或追问。

2. Development Epistemology Mainly Eliminates Blindness and Uncertainty Regarding Development

2.发展认识论主要消除对于发展的盲知性和不确定性

Development epistemology is the theory of people’s cognitive activities concerning social development; the development concept is precisely the direct conceptual result formed by people’s cognitive activities on development. Development epistemology with Chinese characteristics is a revelation and answer to what kind of development China should achieve since the founding of the People’s Republic, especially since the new period. Generally speaking, the reason people engage in cognitive activities concerning development lies crucially in the two major functions that development cognition possesses through the collection and grasp of information. First, eliminating blindness, that is, through cognitive activities to eliminate people’s ignorance about social development. Humans are the subjects of development; to engage in development activities, they must first, or at least simultaneously, understand social development, including grasping the essence, laws, attributes, relations, conditions, trends of development, as well as the purposes, steps, methods, means, requirements, etc., of people’s engagement in development. If people do not grasp this information about development itself and the development subject through cognitive activities, their development activities will be blind. Second, eliminating uncertainty, that is, through cognitive activities to continuously grasp information related to development in order to eliminate the uncertainty of development to the greatest extent. In the process of social development, there are various uncertain factors or phenomena, such as “black swan” or “gray rhino” events [12]12 “Black swan” events are rare, unpredictable occurrences with severe consequences; “gray rhino” events are highly probable, obvious threats that are often neglected. Both terms are used in Chinese policy discourse to describe types of risk.; overcoming and preventing these events or problems cannot be separated from fully grasping relevant true information.

发展认识论是人们关于社会发展认识活动的理论，发展理念正是人的发展认识活动所形成的直接的观念性结果。具有中国特色的发展认识论是对新中国成立以来尤其是新时期以来我国要实现什么样的发展的一种揭示与回答。一般而言，人们之所以要从事关于发展的认识活动，关键在于发展认识通过对信息的搜集与把握而拥有了两大功能。其一，消除盲知性，即通过认识活动以消除人们关于社会发展的未知性。人是发展的主体，人要从事发展活动，必须首先或至少同时了解社会发展，包括掌握发展的本质、规律、属性、关系、条件、趋势以及人们从事发展的目的、步骤、方式、手段、要求等。如果不通过认识活动以掌握这些有关发展本身及发展主体自身的信息，人们的发展活动就具有盲目性。其二，消除不确定性，即通过认识活动不断掌握与发展有关的信息以最大限度地消除发展的不确定性。在社会发展进程中，存在着种种不确定的因素或现象，如“黑天鹅”或“灰犀牛”事件，这些事件或问题的克服与防范就离不开对相关真实信息的充分掌握。

From the perspective of informatics, human cognitive activity is a process of receiving and processing information about things. Information, along with matter and energy, ranks as one of the three pillar elements of the development of human society. Social development involves not only the exchange and flow of matter and energy but also the generation, reception, processing, and dissemination of information. Wiener held that “information is information, not matter or energy. No materialism which does not admit this can survive today.” [13]13 Norbert Wiener (1894–1964), American mathematician and founder of cybernetics. The quotation is from his book *Cybernetics: Or Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine* (1948). The movement and development of the social system involves complex and diverse elements that support or sustain its operation; it is precisely the interaction among these elements that generates information characterizing social development. People’s developmental cognitive activity must collect and process this information, thereby generating new information capable of regulating development, so as to ensure the stability of social development. Hartley pointed out in *Transmission of Information* that information is the elimination of uncertainty in a message. In the 1940s, Shannon, the founder of information theory, held that information is that which eliminates random uncertainty. These views or perspectives reveal the key role of information: as a form of negative entropy, information represents the degree of order of things or organizations; the more fully real and useful information is grasped, the higher the degree of order. The basic contradiction in the practice of information processing is the dialectical relationship between certainty and uncertainty. On the one hand, information itself represents negative entropy, indicating the certainty of the state of existence and the pattern of movement and development of things. If information is grasped, it means certainty is grasped and uncertainty is eliminated. On the other hand, people cannot grasp information in a timely and accurate manner, remaining in a state of blind ignorance or unknownness. In such circumstances, people’s practical activities, especially developmental activities, largely involve risk or danger—that is, the uncertainty of development brings about the riskiness or unsafety of development. Thus, to achieve safe development, it is extremely important to fully grasp information through cognition. In today’s world, so-called developmental competition is in fact competition in the ability to collect and process developmental information. From the perspective of the information subject, the more fully, promptly, and accurately a developmental subject can grasp relevant information, the more that subject will often seize the initiative and take the first step in development, avoiding blindness, eliminating uncertainty, and enhancing the resilience of development.

从信息学角度看，人的认识活动是对事物信息的接收与处理的过程。信息和物质、能量并列为人类社会发展的三大支柱性要素，社会发展既存在着物质和能量的交换流动，也存在着信息的生成、接受、处理和传播。维纳认为：“信息就是信息，不是物质也不是能量，不承认这一点的唯物论，在今天就不能存在下去。”社会系统的运动发展，存在着复杂多样的支撑或维系其运行的要素，正是这些要素间的相互作用，产生了表征社会发展的信息。人们的发展认识活动就要搜集并处理这些信息，从而产生能够调控发展的新信息，以确保社会发展的稳健性。哈特莱在《信息传输》中指出，信息是消息中不定性的消除。20世纪40年代，信息论的奠基人香农认为，信息是用来消除随机不确定性的东西。这些看法或观点揭示了信息的关键作用，即信息作为一种负熵，表征着事物或组织的有序度，真实有用的信息掌握得越充分，有序度就会越高。信息处理实践的基本矛盾是确定性与不确定性的辩证关系。一方面，信息本身代表着负熵，表示着事物存在及运动发展样态的确定性，如果掌握了信息，就意味着确定性的掌握，不确定性的消除；另一方面，人们又不能及时准确地掌握信息，处于一种盲知或未知状态，在这种情况下，人们的实践活动特别是发展活动在很大程度上就存在着风险或危险，即由发展的不确定性带来了发展的风险性或非安全性。这样，要实现一种安全发展，通过认识以充分掌握信息是极其重要的。当今世界，所谓发展竞争，其实就是关于发展信息之搜集和处理能力的竞争。从信息主体的角度看，哪个发展主体能更充分、更及时、更准确地掌握相关信息，该发展主体在发展中往往就会占据先机、先行一步，避免盲目性，消除不确定性，增强发展的韧性。

Of course, developmental cognition must be accomplished through investigation, research, and study on the basis of developmental practice. As for study, our Party has always attached great importance to the study and research of social reality, including the laws of economic and social development. The Party’s history is a history of study. As Xi Jinping pointed out: “The Communist Party of China has always valued study and been good at study; the Party’s history of leading China’s revolution, construction, and reform is a history of creative study.” [14]14 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of the Central Party School” (2013), in *Xi Jinping: The Governance of China*, vol. 1. In other words, precisely because our Party is a Marxist ruling party that attaches great importance to the cognitive activity of development, it has ensured that our Party continuously achieves success in the process of leading China’s revolution, construction, and reform.

当然，发展认识要在发展实践的基础上通过调查研究和学习等方式来完成。就学习而言，我们党始终高度重视对社会现实包括经济社会发展规律的学习研究工作，党的历史就是一部学习的历史。正如习近平所指出的：“中国共产党历来重视学习、善于学习，党领导中国革命、建设和改革的历史就是一部创造性学习的历史。”换言之，正由于我们党是一个高度重视发展的认识活动的马克思主义执政党，才确保了我们党在领导中国革命、建设、改革的进程中不断地取得成功。

3. The Theory of Developmental Value Mainly Answers the Question of for Whom Development Is Carried Out

3.发展价值论主要回答发展为了谁的问题

The theory of developmental cognition also includes the theory of developmental value, i.e., value-based cognition concerning social development. Due to the particularity of the theory of developmental value, it is necessary for us to separate it out and place it alongside the theory of developmental cognition. The theory of developmental value is an exploration and grasp of issues such as the value attributes and functional significance of development, mainly answering the question of for whom development is carried out, so as to determine the fundamental direction of development. The theory of developmental cognition and the theory of developmental value together constitute the main content of the Chinese Communists’ worldview concerning development.

在发展认识论中，还包括发展价值论，即关于社会发展的价值性认识。由于发展价值论的特殊性，我们有必要将其独立出来而与发展认识论相并列。发展价值论是对发展的价值属性、意义功能等问题的一种探讨和把握，主要回答发展为了谁的问题，以确定发展的根本方向。发展认识论与发展价值论共同构成了中国共产党人关于发展之世界观的主要内容。

The purposefulness or value rationality inherent in development itself is the practical basis for our construction of the theory of developmental value. A fundamental starting point for our high regard for and active promotion of Chinese-path development is that Chinese-path development possesses the value function of benefiting the country and the people. Looking back at history, our Party has had a clear understanding of the value function of development. In the early period of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “We introduce advanced technology in order to develop productive forces and raise the people’s standard of living; it is beneficial to our socialist country and the socialist system.” [15]15 Deng Xiaoping, “We Introduce Advanced Technology to Develop Productive Forces” (1978), in *Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping*, vol. 2. The important thought of the Three Represents [16]16 The Three Represents (三个代表) is a guiding theory formulated by Jiang Zemin, holding that the CPC must always represent the development of advanced social productive forces, the direction of advanced culture, and the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the Chinese people. includes the value orientation that the Communist Party of China must always represent the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the Chinese people. At the beginning of the 21st century, our Party put forward the Scientific Outlook on Development, establishing a people-oriented value orientation. Entering the New Era, our Party created the people-centered development thought. The history of development since the founding of New China, especially since reform and opening up, shows that “leading the people to create a better life is the unswerving goal of our Party. We must always place the people’s interests in the highest position, let the fruits of reform and development benefit all the people more and more fairly, and continuously advance toward achieving common prosperity for all the people.” [17]17 Xi Jinping, “Secure a Decisive Victory in Building a Moderately Prosperous Society in All Respects and Strive for the Great Success of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” (2017), report to the 19th National Congress of the CPC.

发展本身所具有的目的性或价值理性是我们构建发展价值论的现实依据。我们高度重视并积极推进中国式发展的一个根本出发点，就是中国式发展具有利国利民的价值性功能。回望历史，我们党对于发展的价值功能有着清醒的认识。在改革开放初期，邓小平就指出：“我们引进先进技术，是为了发展生产力，提高人民生活水平，是有利于我们的社会主义国家和社会主义制度。”在“三个代表”重要思想中，就包含着中国共产党要始终代表中国最广大人民根本利益的价值指向。21世纪初，我们党又提出了科学发展观，确立了以人为本的价值取向。进入新时代，我们党创建了以人民为中心的发展思想。新中国成立以来尤其是改革开放以来的发展历史表明，“带领人民创造美好生活，是我们党始终不渝的奋斗目标。必须始终把人民利益摆在至高无上的地位，让改革发展成果更多更公平惠及全体人民，朝着实现全体人民共同富裕不断迈进”。

4. The Theory of Development Methodology Mainly Answers the Question of How to Achieve Development

4.发展方法论主要回答如何实现发展的问题

The theory of development methodology is a theoretical concept concerning why and how to promote development. Why do we promote development? Because development itself has the efficacy of a “fundamental law.” The so-called “fundamental law” refers to the fact that development itself possesses a powerful instrumental function, playing a fundamental role in the great cause of building a strong country and rejuvenating the nation. The basis for this judgment lies in the fact that “Marxists hold that human production activity is the most fundamental practical activity, determining all other activities.” [18]18 Mao Zedong, “On Practice” (1937), in *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*, vol. 1. As a means, development is the fundamental path for us to achieve phased goals and strategic goals. Since reform and opening up, our Party has had a clear understanding of development as a “fundamental law.” Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “The key to solving all of China’s problems lies in relying on our own development.” [19]19 Deng Xiaoping, “We Must Maintain the Principle of Stability and Unity” (1989), in *Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping*, vol. 3. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “Development is the foundation; if the economy does not develop, everything else is out of the question.” [20]20 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Central Economic Work Conference” (2012), in *Xi Jinping: The Governance of China*, vol. 1. The practical significance of development as a “fundamental law” lies in: we must firmly establish the ontological thinking concept of development, and always use the perspective and methods of development to deal with the various problems encountered in the course of progress.

发展方法论是关于何以要以及如何推进发展的理论观念。我们为什么要推进发展呢?因为发展本身具有“根本大法”的效能。所谓“根本大法”,是指发展自身具有强大的工具性功能，其在强国建设、民族复兴伟业方面具有根本的作用。这一判断的依据在于，“马克思主义者认为人类的生产活动是最基本的实践活动，是决定其他一切活动的东西”。作为手段性的发展，是我们实现阶段性目标和战略性目标的根本途径。改革开放以来，我们党对于作为“根本大法”的发展有着清醒的认知。邓小平指出：“中国解决所有问题的关键是要靠自己的发展。”习近平总书记强调：“发展是基础，经济不发展，一切都无从谈起。”作为“根本大法”的发展之实践意义在于：我们必须牢固树立发展的本体论思维观念，始终用发展的眼光和办法应对前进中所遇到的种种问题。

On the issue of how to promote or achieve development, our Party has also put forward a series of concepts, propositions, and requirements, such as overall consideration and balanced planning, comprehensive balance, reform and opening up, innovation, top-level design, crossing the river by feeling the stones, and adhering to the systems concept. Although the methods or practices for promoting development have differed in different periods, “overall consideration and balanced planning” can be said to be a consistently effective method of development adhered to by our Party. Mao Zedong regarded overall consideration and balanced planning, with each getting its due, as “our consistent policy.” [21]21 Mao Zedong, “On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People” (1957), in *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*, vol. 5. Deng Xiaoping demanded that in modernization construction “all aspects need comprehensive balance, not one-sidedness.” [22]22 Deng Xiaoping, “The Present Situation and the Tasks Before Us” (1980), in *Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping*, vol. 2. The Scientific Outlook on Development regarded overall consideration and balanced planning as the “fundamental method” for promoting scientific development. The 20th National Congress of the CPC established the major principle of “must adhere to the systems concept,” and General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that “the systems concept is a foundational thought and working method.” [23]23 Xi Jinping, “Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects” (2022), report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC. The systems concept is the practical application of the universal connection view of dialectical materialism in Chinese-path development, and it is the essence and key that we must grasp to deeply understand and correctly apply the Party’s development methodology. It should be noted that although the systems concept and overall consideration and balanced planning share homogeneity and same-directionality, they are after all different. The systems concept is the conceptual expression of overall consideration and balanced planning, its sublimation; overall consideration and balanced planning is the concrete manifestation of the systems concept, a bridge or intermediary for the systems concept to move toward practice.

在如何推进或实现发展的问题上，我们党还提出了一系列的理念、主张、要求等，如统筹兼顾、综合平衡、改革开放、创新、顶层设计、摸着石头过河、坚持系统观念等。尽管在不同时期如何推进发展的方法或做法不尽相同，但“统筹兼顾”可以说是我们党一贯坚持的一种行之有效的关于发展的方法。毛泽东把统筹兼顾、各得其所视为“我们历来的方针”,邓小平要求在现代化建设中“各个方面需要综合平衡，不能单打一”,科学发展观则把统筹兼顾作为推进科学发展的“根本方法”,党的二十大确立了“必须坚持系统观念”的重大原则，习近平总书记强调“系统观念是具有基础性的思想和工作方法”。系统观念是唯物辩证法的普遍联系观在中国式发展中的现实运用，是我们深刻领会和正确运用党的发展方法论所必须把握的精髓和关键。需要说明的是，系统观念和统筹兼顾虽然具有同质性、同向性，但二者毕竟有所不同。系统观念是统筹兼顾的观念性表达，是统筹兼顾的升华；统筹兼顾是系统观念的具体表现，是系统观念走向实践的桥梁或中介。

III. Important Characteristics of the CPC’s Development Concept

三、中国共产党发展理念的重要特征

The CPC’s development concept shares commonalities with the development ideas of other political parties or countries, such as all emphasizing the development of productive forces, emphasizing the application of science and technology in development, and emphasizing environmental protection in development. However, our Party’s development concept also has its particularities, and these particularities constitute the important characteristics of the Party’s development concept. Grasping these characteristics is of great significance for our in-depth understanding and earnest implementation of the Party’s development concept.

中国共产党发展理念和其他政党或国家关于发展的思想观念既有共性的一面，如都注重生产力发展、注重科学技术在发展中的运用、在发展中注重对环境的保护等，但我们党的发展理念还有其特殊性，这种特殊性构成了党的发展理念的重要特征。把握这些特征，对于我们深入认识和认真落实党的发展理念具有重要意义。

The characteristic of practicality. Practicality is the primary attribute of the Party’s development concepts. This characteristic profoundly expresses the roadmap by which the Party’s development concepts are generated from practice and ultimately return to practice. Returning to practice means, on the one hand, guiding development practice, and on the other hand, being tested by development practice and its effects. It is precisely in the contradictory movement of development practice and development concepts that the Party’s development concepts acquire the theoretical quality of advancing with the times.

实践性特征。实践性是党的发展理念的首要属性。这一特征深刻表达了党的发展理念从实践中生成最后又复归于实践的路线图。复归于实践一方面要指导发展实践，另一方面还要接受发展实践及其效果的检验。正是在发展实践和发展理念的矛盾运动中，党的发展理念拥有了与时俱进的理论品质。

The characteristic of people-centeredness. People-centeredness is the essential attribute of the Party’s development concepts. If practicality reveals the source and purpose of the Party’s development concepts from the material-technical level, then people-centeredness further reveals the source of the Party’s development concepts from the value level—namely, that the Party’s development concepts come from the people’s practice, embody the purpose of serving the people, contain the function of benefiting the people, and their effectiveness must be tested by the people. This characteristic requires that “we must firmly stand on the people’s side, grasp the people’s aspirations, respect the people’s creativity, and concentrate the people’s wisdom, to form a theory that is loved, recognized, and possessed by the people, making it a powerful ideological weapon to guide the people in understanding and transforming the world.”

人民性特征。人民性是党的发展理念的本质属性。如果说实践性是从物质技术层面揭示了党的发展理念的来源及其目的的话，那么，人民性则是从价值层面进一步揭示了党的发展理念的来源，即党的发展理念来自人民的实践，体现着为人民服务的宗旨，蕴含着造福人民的功能，其效果如何还要接受人民的检验。该特征要求“我们要站稳人民立场、把握人民愿望、尊重人民创造、集中人民智慧，形成为人民所喜爱、所认同、所拥有的理论，使之成为指导人民认识世界和改造世界的强大思想武器”。

The characteristic of dialectics. The Party’s development concepts are permeated with contradictory thinking and embody the characteristic of dialectics. From the perspective of the Party’s development concepts, Chinese-style development is manifested as the unity of theory and practice, the unity of observing objective laws and conforming to people’s purposes and desires, the unity of progress and cost, and the unity of long-term nature and stage-by-stage nature, among others. Faced with a complex developmental existence characterized by nonlinear features, only by adhering to contradictory thinking can it be scientifically grasped. The characteristic of dialectics requires us to view and guide development with Marxist dialectics. Mao Zedong pointed out: “We must act in accordance with dialectics. This was said by Comrade Deng Xiaoping.” [24]24 Mao Zedong, “Speech at the Closing Ceremony of the National Conference of the Communist Party of China” (March 5, 1958), in *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*, Vol. 7, p. 413. The original remark by Deng Xiaoping was made in 1957. General Secretary Xi Jinping demands that we “study and master the fundamental method of dialectical materialism, continuously enhance dialectical thinking ability, and improve the ability to handle complex situations and deal with complex problems.”

辩证性特征。党的发展理念贯穿着矛盾思维，体现着辩证性特征。在党的发展理念看来，中国式发展体现为理论与实践的统一、遵守客观规律与符合人的目的愿望的统一、进步与代价的统一、长期性和阶段性的统一等。面对复杂的具有非线性特征的发展存在，只有坚持矛盾思维才能予以科学把握。辩证性特征要求我们以马克思主义的辩证法看待并指导发展。毛泽东指出：“要照辩证法办事。这是邓小平同志讲的。”习近平总书记则要求“学习掌握唯物辩证法的根本方法，不断增强辩证思维能力，提高驾驭复杂局面、处理复杂问题的本领”。

The characteristic of stage-by-stage nature. The Party’s development concepts are not immutable but change with changes in development practice. “Practice tells us that development is a constantly changing process; the development environment will not remain unchanged, the development conditions will not remain unchanged, and naturally, development concepts will not remain unchanged.” In a certain sense, the Party’s development concepts are the unity of change and constancy. Regarding their constancy, it is mainly manifested in firmness in terms of theoretical origins, practical foundations, value orientations, and practical goals. Of course, there is also the aspect of changeability. Mao Zedong pointed out: “All things always have a ‘boundary.’ The development of things proceeds continuously from one stage to the next, and each stage also has a ‘boundary.’” [25]25 Mao Zedong, “Speech at the Tenth Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China” (September 24, 1962), in *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*, Vol. 8, p. 302. Precisely because the development of things is “bounded” or has stages, “correctly understanding the historical position and development stage of the Party and the people’s cause is the fundamental basis for our Party to clarify the central tasks of a given stage and formulate lines, principles, and policies, and it is also an important experience for our Party to continuously achieve victory in leading revolution, construction, and reform.” [26]26 Xi Jinping, “Correctly Understand and Grasp the Long-term Nature of the Primary Stage of Socialism,” in *Selected Readings of Xi Jinping’s Works*, Vol. 2, p. 372. Precisely because there are changes in “historical position and development stage,” the stage-by-stage characteristic of the Party’s development concepts arises.

阶段性特征。党的发展理念并非一成不变，而是随着发展实践的变化而变化。“实践告诉我们，发展是一个不断变化的进程，发展环境不会一成不变，发展条件不会一成不变，发展理念自然也不会一成不变。”在某种意义上说，党的发展理念是变和不变的统一。就其不变性来看，主要表现为在理论渊源、实践基础、价值取向、实践目标等方面的坚定性。当然还有可变的一面。毛泽东指出：“一切事物总是有‘边’的。事物的发展是一个阶段接着一个阶段不断地进行的，每一个阶段也是有‘边’的。”正由于事物的发展是“有边”的或是有阶段的，因而“正确认识党和人民事业所处的历史方位和发展阶段，是我们党明确阶段性中心任务、制定路线方针政策的根本依据，也是我们党领导革命、建设、改革不断取得胜利的重要经验”。正由于存在着“历史方位和发展阶段”的变化，导致了党的发展理念的阶段性特征。

During the period of the New Democratic Revolution, the main task our Party faced was to use revolutionary means to “strive for national independence and the liberation of the people, and to create the fundamental social conditions for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” [27]27 *Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party’s Centenary Struggle* (November 11, 2021). At that time, revolution was the core content of the Party’s development concepts. “Although the Marxists of that time could not yet clearly define the nature and characteristics of the Chinese revolution, they had already soberly recognized that ‘revolution’ was the primary task of development; before the complete victory of the revolution, modern China had no social soil or material foundation for modernization development. Therefore, achieving revolutionary victory first became a consensus within the Party, and based on this, the formulation of systems and policies was promoted.” [28]28 The source of this quotation is not specified in the original text; it appears to be a paraphrase of a common scholarly view. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, our Party began the initial construction of development concepts. In the 1950s, works published by Mao Zedong, such as *On the Ten Major Relationships* and *On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People*, as well as a series of principles and policies formulated at the Eighth National Congress of the CPC, [29]29 The Eighth National Congress of the CPC was held in September 1956. It formulated a correct line for socialist construction, emphasizing the development of productive forces and the resolution of the contradiction between the advanced socialist system and the backward productive forces. incisively analyzed the ten major relationships and twelve issues with overall significance in China’s socialist construction, answering questions about which direction China should develop in and how to develop under the historical conditions of that time. During the new period of reform and opening up and socialist modernization, our Party carried out creative theoretical construction on a series of “development questions” such as whether to develop, what kind of development to pursue, and how to develop, constructing development concepts that suited China’s actual development at that time. These mainly included: in terms of the development model, breaking away from the traditional socialist model, abandoning the practice of mechanically copying others, proceeding from China’s actual conditions, and “taking the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics”; in terms of political guarantees for development, unswervingly adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles; [30]30 The Four Cardinal Principles are: upholding the socialist path, upholding the people’s democratic dictatorship, upholding the leadership of the Communist Party of China, and upholding Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought. They were articulated by Deng Xiaoping in March 1979. in terms of the focus of development, emphasizing the foundational role of economic construction and raising the productive forces as quickly as possible; in terms of the strategic goal of development, committing to achieving socialist modernization and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation; in terms of the fundamental orientation of development, re-examining and paying high attention to the needs and interests of the broad masses of the people, taking meeting the needs of the broad masses and realizing their interests as the highest value pursuit of China’s social development; in terms of the driving force of development, adhering to the basic state policy of reform and opening up, pursuing scientific and technological progress, injecting continuous momentum into China’s development through reform and opening up, and supporting and leading China’s development through scientific and technological progress; in terms of the testing mechanism for development, adhering to the “three favorable” [31]31 The “three favorable” standard, proposed by Deng Xiaoping in 1992, judges the success of reform and opening up by whether it is favorable to developing the productive forces of socialist society, to increasing the overall national strength of a socialist country, and to raising the people’s living standards. measurement standard; in terms of the steps of development, adhering to the “three-step” [32]32 The “three-step” development strategy, formulated in the 1980s, set goals for China’s modernization: first, doubling the 1980 GNP and ensuring adequate food and clothing by 1990; second, quadrupling the 1980 GNP and achieving a relatively comfortable standard of living by the end of the 20th century; third, reaching the level of moderately developed countries and achieving basic modernization by the middle of the 21st century. development strategy of steady, step-by-step, and phased progress; in terms of the relationships involved in development, insisting on coordinating and handling various relationships, “comprehensive balance” and “grasping both aspects simultaneously,” [33]33 “Grasping both aspects simultaneously” (两手都要抓) refers to the principle of simultaneously promoting material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, a formulation often used by Deng Xiaoping. to achieve scientific development. The above series of propositions and practices regarding development constituted the basic picture of the Party’s development concepts in the new period. In the New Era of comprehensively deepening reform, accompanying the change in the principal contradiction in Chinese society, China’s development has overall entered a historical stage of transformation from factor-based development to holistic development. Accompanying the turn toward holistic development, the Party’s development concepts have also exhibited prominent holistic or systematic characteristics. This holistic development concept is mainly manifested in the following aspects: the new development concept with holistic qualities, the reform view of comprehensively deepening reform, the ecological view of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature, the holistic view of national security, and the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, which reflects that “humanity is a whole.”

在新民主主义革命时期，我们党面临的主要任务，就是以革命的手段“争取民族独立、人民解放，为实现中华民族伟大复兴创造根本社会条件”。彼时，革命是党的发展理念的核心内容。“尽管当时的马克思主义者还不能明确中国革命的性质与特点，但他们已经清醒地认识到‘革命’是发展的第一要务，在彻底取得革命胜利之前，近代中国是没有社会土壤和物质基础去进行现代化发展的。因而，首先取得革命胜利成为党内的一致共识，并以此为基准推动制度、政策的制定。”在社会主义革命和建设时期，我们党开始了发展理念的初建工作。20世纪50年代，毛泽东发表的《论十大关系》《关于正确处理人民内部矛盾的问题》等论著以及党的八大所制定的一系列方针政策，精辟分析了我国社会主义建设中带有全局性的十大关系和十二个问题等，回答了在当时的历史条件下，中国应当向哪个方向发展以及怎样发展等问题。在改革开放和社会主义现代化建设新时期，我们党对于要不要发展、要什么样的发展以及如何发展等一系列“发展之问”展开了创造性的理论建构工作，构建了符合当时中国发展实际的发展理念，主要包括：在发展的模式上，突破传统的社会主义模式，抛弃照抄照搬的做法，从中国实际出发，“走中国特色社会主义道路”;在发展的政治保障上，始终如一地坚持四项基本原则；在发展的重点上，强调经济建设的基础性作用，尽快把生产力搞上去；在发展的战略目标上，致力于实现社会主义现代化和中华民族伟大复兴；在发展的根本取向上，重新审视和高度关注广大人民的需要和利益问题，把满足广大人民需要、实现他们的利益作为我国社会发展的最高价值追求；在发展的动力上，坚持改革开放的基本国策，追求科技进步，通过改革开放为我国发展注入源源不断的动力，通过科技进步来支持和引领我国的发展；在发展的检验机制上，坚持“三个有利于”的衡量标准；在发展的步骤上，坚持稳步、逐级、分段进行的“三步走”发展战略；在发展所涉及的关系问题上，坚持协调处理好各种关系，“综合平衡”“两手都要抓”,以实现科学发展。上述在发展方面的一系列主张做法，构成了新时期党的发展理念的基本图景。在全面深化改革的新时代，伴随着我国社会主要矛盾的变化，我国发展在总体上进入了一个由要素性发展向整体性发展转变的历史阶段。伴随着整体性发展的转向，党的发展理念也呈现出突出的整体性或系统性特征。这种具有整体性的发展理念主要表现在这样几个方面：具有整体性特质的新发展理念、全面深化型的改革观、人与自然和谐共生的生态观、总体国家安全观、折射着“人类是一个整体”的人类命运共同体理念等。

The characteristic of innovation. The historical stage-by-stage nature of the Party’s development concepts does not occur out of thin air; behind it lies an innovation mechanism and the characteristic of innovation thus formed. Adhering to theoretical innovation is a valuable experience accumulated by the Party in leading the people’s great struggle over more than 100 years, and this experience is fully applicable to the Party’s development concepts. The innovation mechanism is the mechanism of the contradictory movement between development practice and development concepts, that is, development practice is changeable, while development concepts have relative stability or even lag. When development practice changes—such as the emergence of new development trends, new goals and tasks, and especially new problems—it becomes necessary to create new development concepts or new forms of development concepts to respond to such changes. This “response” is manifested in two aspects: worldview and methodology. In terms of worldview, by forming new development concepts or new forms of development concepts, it reflects and reveals the changes in new development practice, thereby continuously answering “development questions”; in terms of methodology, by forming new development concepts, it guides people on how to achieve the new goals set in development and solve the new problems arising in development.

创新性特征。党的发展理念的历史阶段性并非凭空发生的，在其背后存在着创新机制及由此形成的创新性特征。坚持理论创新是100多年来党领导人民进行伟大奋斗所积累的一条宝贵经验，这一经验也完全适用于党的发展理念。创新机制是发展实践和发展理念的矛盾运动机制，即发展实践具有易变性，而发展理念具有相对的稳定性甚至滞后性。当发展实践发生了变化——如出现了新的发展态势、新的目标任务尤其是出现了新的问题时，就需要创建新的发展理念或发展理念的新形态以回应这种变化。这种“回应”表现在世界观和方法论两个方面。在世界观方面，通过形成新的发展理念或发展理念的新形态以反映和揭示新的发展实践的变化，从而不断回答“发展之问”;在方法论方面，通过形成新的发展理念以指导人们如何实现发展中设定的新目标、解决发展中出现的新问题。

IV. The Logical Dimensions of the CPC’s Development Concepts

四、中国共产党发展理念的逻辑维度

The logical dimension reveals the rich connotation and epochal significance of the Party’s development concept, and is a further grasp of its practical function based on the theoretical connotation of the Party’s development concept. Among these, practical logic is the primary logical form of the Party’s development concept. This logic reveals the dialectical principle that development practice has primacy, that the development concept has secondariness, and that the development concept exerts a major counteractive effect on development practice. It is on the basis of practical logic that political logic, reform logic, and world logic, among others, are generated.

逻辑维度展现的是党的发展理念的丰富内涵和时代意义，是基于党的发展理念的理论内涵而对其现实功能的进一步把握。其中，实践逻辑是党的发展理念的首要逻辑形态，该逻辑揭示了发展实践具有第一性、发展理念具有第二性以及发展理念对于发展实践具有重大反作用的辩证关系原理。正是在实践逻辑基础上生成了政治逻辑、改革逻辑和世界逻辑等。

1. Political Logic

1.政治逻辑

Political logic reveals the political characteristics and political functions of the Party’s development concept, and is a reflection of our Party’s logical approach to always planning development from a political perspective. Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “Socialist modernization is the greatest politics for us at present.” [34]34 Deng Xiaoping, “Current Situation and Tasks,” Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping, Vol. 2, 2nd ed. (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1994), p. 163. The Central Economic Work Conference held at the end of 2023 also put forward the judgment that “promoting Chinese-path modernization must be taken as the greatest politics.” [35]35 “Central Economic Work Conference Held in Beijing,” People’s Daily, December 13, 2023. The formulation of the so-called “greatest politics” vividly expresses the political function of Chinese-style development or Chinese-path modernization. On the one hand, China’s development in reality has distinct political characteristics, that is, it is development that adheres to the Party’s leadership and the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Adhering to the Party’s leadership is the most valuable experience accumulated by our Party over more than 100 years, and this experience is fully reflected in the course of China’s revolution, construction, and reform. The Party’s leadership determines that China’s development must always adhere to the direction of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and socialism with Chinese characteristics endows China’s development with the nature of a political path. “Facts have eloquently proved that to develop China and stabilize China, to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects and accelerate socialist modernization, and to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must unswervingly uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics.” [36]36 Hu Jintao, “Unswervingly Advance Along the Path of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive to Build a Moderately Prosperous Society in All Respects,” Selected Important Documents Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Vol. 1 (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2014), p. 74.

政治逻辑揭示的是党的发展理念的政治特性及政治功能，是对我们党始终基于政治角度谋划发展的逻辑思路的一种反映。邓小平指出：“社会主义现代化建设是我们当前最大的政治。”2023年底举行的中央经济工作会议也提出了“必须把推进中国式现代化作为最大的政治”的判断。所谓“最大的政治”的提法，鲜明地表达了中国式发展或中国式现代化所具有的政治功能。一方面，现实的中国发展具有鲜明的政治特性，即它是坚持党的领导、坚持中国特色社会主义道路的发展。坚持党的领导是100多年来我们党所积累的最为宝贵的经验，这种经验充分体现在中国革命、建设、改革的进程中。党的领导决定了中国发展必须始终坚持中国特色社会主义方向，而中国特色社会主义赋予了中国发展以政治道路性质。“事实雄辩地证明，要发展中国、稳定中国，要全面建成小康社会、加快推进社会主义现代化，要实现中华民族伟大复兴，必须坚定不移坚持和发展中国特色社会主义。”

On the other hand, Chinese-style development not only has political characteristics but also has political functions, that is, the Party’s development concept contains the implication and requirement of achieving the Party’s political goals through development. In other words, only successful development can eloquently prove that the Communist Party of China is capable, that socialism is good, that Marxism works, and that Marxism adapted to the Chinese context and the needs of the times works. Deng Xiaoping believed that “if we uphold socialism and want to build a socialism that is superior to capitalism, we must first get rid of poverty. Although we are also engaging in socialism now, it is in fact not up to standard. Only when we reach the level of moderately developed countries by the middle of the next century can we be said to have really engaged in socialism, and can we confidently say that socialism is superior to capitalism.” [37]37 Deng Xiaoping, “We Are Engaged in a Great and Pioneering Undertaking,” Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping, Vol. 3 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1993), p. 225. Therefore, in Deng Xiaoping’s view, “when talking about socialism, the first thing is to develop the productive forces; this is the main point. Only in this way can the superiority of socialism be demonstrated.” [38]38 Deng Xiaoping, “Socialism Must Eliminate Poverty,” Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping, Vol. 3 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1993), p. 314.

另一方面，中国式发展除了具有政治特性之外，还具有政治功能，即在党的发展理念中，包含着通过发展以实现党的政治目标的意蕴和要求。换言之，只有成功的发展，才能雄辩地证明中国共产党能、社会主义好、马克思主义行、中国化时代化的马克思主义行。邓小平认为，“我们坚持社会主义，要建设对资本主义具有优越性的社会主义，首先必须摆脱贫穷。现在虽说我们也在搞社会主义，但事实上不够格。只有到了下世纪中叶，达到了中等发达国家的水平，才能说真的搞了社会主义，才能理直气壮地说社会主义优于资本主义”。所以在邓小平看来，“讲社会主义，首先就要使生产力发展，这是主要的。只有这样，才能表明社会主义的优越性”。

2. Reform Logic

2.改革逻辑

Reform logic expresses the theoretical implication and practical orientation contained in the Party’s development concept of promoting or realizing Chinese-style development through reform. Reform and opening up is the crucial magic weapon that enabled China to catch up with the “tide” of world development in big strides. Regarding the relationship between reform and development, on the one hand, development is the foundation and purpose of reform; development governs reform. Different development leads to different reform; development and reform generally have isomorphism, synchronicity, and co-directionality. In the past, China’s development and reform largely presented a situation of factor-based development and domain-specific reform. “In the past, we also proposed reform goals, but most were proposed from specific domains.” [39]39 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform’,” Selected Important Documents Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Vol. 1 (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2014), p. 509. Since entering the New Era, China’s development and reform have increasingly presented a situation of holistic development and synergistic reform. This synergistic reform is a comprehensive deepening-type reform. Such reform “is not about advancing reform in one domain, nor about advancing reform in a few domains, but about advancing reform in all domains.” [40]40 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform’,” Selected Important Documents Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Vol. 1 (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2014), p. 510. “This project is extremely grand; piecemeal adjustments won’t work, nor will fragmented repairs. It must be comprehensive, systematic reform and improvement, the linkage and integration of reforms and improvements across all domains.” [41]41 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform’,” Selected Important Documents Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Vol. 1 (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2014), p. 510. Such development and reform reflect the objective process of Chinese-style development moving from the first half to the second half. [42]42 “First half” and “second half” refer to the two stages of China’s reform and opening up: the first half focused on establishing a basic socialist market economy system, while the second half focuses on perfecting and developing this system in a comprehensive and deepened manner.

改革逻辑表达的是党的发展理念蕴含着以改革推进或实现中国式发展的理论意蕴和实践指向。改革开放是中国大踏步赶上世界发展“潮头”的重要法宝。就改革与发展的关系来看，一方面，发展是改革的基础和目的，发展支配着改革；发展不同，改革也不同；发展和改革一般具有同构性、同步性、同向性。以往我国的发展和改革在很大程度上呈现的是要素性发展和领域性改革的态势。“过去，我们也提出过改革目标，但大多是从具体领域提的。”进入新时代以来，我国的发展和改革更多呈现出整体性发展和协同性改革的态势，这种协同性改革就是一种全面深化型的改革。这样的改革“不是推进一个领域改革，也不是推进几个领域改革，而是推进所有领域改革”,“这项工程极为宏大，零敲碎打调整不行，碎片化修补也不行，必须是全面的系统的改革和改进，是各领域改革和改进的联动和集成”。这样的发展和改革反映了中国式发展由前半程进入后半程的客观进程。

On the other hand, reform is the means and driving force of development; reform plays a huge role in promoting China’s development. Since the new period, and especially since the New Era, China’s development has always been advanced through reform. Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “Without reform, there will be no sustained development in the future.” [43]43 Deng Xiaoping, “Reform is the Only Way for China’s Development,” Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping, Vol. 3 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1993), p. 131. Reform removes all obstructive factors in China’s development and straightens out the various relationships and institutional mechanisms that support development. Of course, the problems existing in China’s development also reflect problems in reform. Therefore, since the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC, our Party has issued the call of the times for comprehensively deepening reform. “Reform and opening up has no finish line, only a starting line. The whole Party must consciously place reform in a more prominent position, closely focusing on promoting Chinese-path modernization to further comprehensively deepen reform.” [44]44 “Communiqué of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China,” People’s Daily, July 19, 2024. Directly influenced by China’s “reform-driven development,” the Party’s development concept itself is also generated in the rapidly changing practical transformation, embodying upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground. The Party’s development concept contains a rich worldview and methodology concerning reform.

另一方面，改革是发展的手段和动力，改革对于中国发展发挥着巨大推动作用。新时期以来尤其是新时代以来，中国的发展始终是在改革中推进的。邓小平指出：“没有改革就没有今后的持续发展。”改革破除着我国发展的一切阻碍性因素，理顺着支持发展的各种关系和体制机制。当然，我国在发展方面存在的问题折射的也是改革方面的问题，所以，党的十八届三中全会以来，我们党发出了全面深化改革的时代号召。“改革开放只有进行时，没有完成时。全党必须自觉把改革摆在更加突出位置，紧紧围绕推进中国式现代化进一步全面深化改革。”受我国“改革式发展”的直接影响，党的发展理念本身也是在日新月异的实践变革中生成的，体现着守正与创新；在党的发展理念中，包含着丰富的关于改革的世界观和方法论。

3. World Logic

3.世界逻辑

World logic means that the Party’s development concept is both rooted in China and oriented towards the world, unifying the happiness of the Chinese people with the well-being of the people of the world in its value pursuit, presenting a world vision in terms of scope of concern and value orientation. The Party’s development concept is generated in an open world and in the practice of opening up to the world. Guided by historical materialism, it integrates China’s development reality and absorbs and draws upon all beneficial theoretical achievements of human development. It requires both adhering to independence and self-reliance and adhering to the Chinese path, and also requires standing on the right side of history and the side of human progress. This characteristic of the unity of universality and particularity contains a unique human sentiment and world-historical significance, presenting the valuable theoretical quality of “profoundly observing the trends of human development and progress, actively responding to the common concerns of people of all countries, and making contributions to solving the common problems facing mankind.” [45]45 Xi Jinping, “Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects,” Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2022), p. 21.

世界逻辑是指党的发展理念既立足中国也面向世界，在价值追求上把中国人民的幸福和世界人民的福祉统一起来，呈现出一种在关照范围和价值取向上的世界视野。党的发展理念是在开放的世界以及向世界开放的实践中生成的，它以唯物史观为指导，结合中国的发展实际，吸收借鉴了人类发展的一切有益的理论成果，既要求坚持独立自主、坚持中国道路，也要求站在历史正确的一边、站在人类进步的一边。这种普遍性和特殊性相统一的特质，蕴含着特有的人类情怀和世界历史意义，呈现出“深刻洞察人类发展进步潮流，积极回应各国人民普遍关切，为解决人类面临的共同问题作出贡献”的可贵理论品质。

It should be pointed out that world logic runs through the entire process of the development of socialist China. Mao Zedong pointed out: “China ought to make greater contributions to humanity.” [46]46 Mao Zedong, “On the Ten Major Relationships,” Selected Works of Mao Zedong, Vol. 5 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1977), p. 312. This “greater contribution” is mainly realized through China’s own development and progress; a “poor and weak” China naturally could not make a greater contribution to humanity. Deng Xiaoping emphasized, “China regards its own development as a matter of contribution to humanity and a matter of ensuring world peace. We must rely on our own efforts to make contributions to humanity.” [47]47 Deng Xiaoping, “China’s Development is a Contribution to Humanity,” Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping, Vol. 3 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1993), p. 57. Since the New Era, facing the great era pattern of “China’s development cannot be separated from the world, and the world’s prosperity also needs China,” [48]48 Xi Jinping, “Working Together to Build a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind,” Selected Important Documents Since the 19th National Congress of the CPC, Vol. 1 (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2019), p. 461. General Secretary Xi Jinping creatively proposed building a community with a shared future for mankind and the “Four Global Initiatives.” [49]49 The “Four Global Initiatives” refer to the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative, and the Global Governance Initiative, proposed by Xi Jinping between 2021 and 2023. He pointed out: “Our country must unswervingly promote Chinese-path modernization, use Chinese-path modernization to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and continuously make new and greater contributions to humanity.” [50]50 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Opening Ceremony of the ‘CPC in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting’,” People’s Daily, March 16, 2023.

需要指出的是，世界逻辑贯穿于社会主义中国发展的整个过程。毛泽东指出：“中国应当对于人类有较大的贡献。”这种“较大的贡献”主要是通过中国自身的发展进步来实现的，一个“积贫积弱”的中国当然不可能对人类有较大贡献。邓小平强调，“中国把自己的发展看作是对人类贡献的问题，是保证世界和平的问题。我们要为人类做贡献要靠自己努力”。新时代以来，面对“中国的发展离不开世界，世界的繁荣也需要中国”的时代大格局，习近平总书记创造性地提出了构建人类命运共同体和“四大全球倡议”。他指出：“我国要坚定不移推进中国式现代化，以中国式现代化推进中华民族伟大复兴，不断为人类作出新的更大贡献。”

V. Using Chinese-Path Modernization to Promote Innovation in the Development Concept and Development Practice

五、以中国式现代化推进发展理念和发展实践的创新

The report of the 20th National Congress of the CPC points out: “From now on, the central task of the CPC is to unite and lead the people of all ethnic groups across the country to comprehensively build a great modern socialist country, achieve the second centenary goal, and comprehensively advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization.” [51]51 The “second centenary goal” refers to the goal of building China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful by the middle of the 21st century, the centenary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. On the new journey of the New Era, advancing Chinese-path modernization has become the overriding central task, and the comprehensive advancement of Chinese-path modernization indicates that Chinese-style development has entered a new historical stage and taken on a new historical form. This means that the Party’s development concept and the Chinese people’s development practice in the New Era must persistently adhere to the general direction of Chinese-path modernization. The Party’s development concept and the Chinese people’s development practice will undoubtedly continue to manifest the essence of development as the “first priority,” but the core lies in highlighting the “modernization” form of development or “modernization”-style development. In view of this, against the backdrop of the New Era, when we reflect on the development concept and development practice, we should take Chinese-path modernization as the “grasp” for reflection. On the one hand, we must understand and advance development from the perspective or context of Chinese-path modernization; on the other hand, we must also promote innovative changes in the Party’s development concept around Chinese-path modernization. In other words, we must seek to construct theory around Chinese-path modernization, further unify the Party’s development concept with Chinese-path modernization, form a theoretical system concerning Chinese-path modernization, and enable the Party’s development concept, on the basis of keeping pace with the times, to better play its guiding role for Chinese-path modernization.

党的二十大报告指出：“从现在起，中国共产党的中心任务就是团结带领全国各族人民全面建成社会主义现代化强国、实现第二个百年奋斗目标，以中国式现代化全面推进中华民族伟大复兴。”新时代新征程，推进中国式现代化成为压倒一切的中心任务，而中国式现代化的全面推进，表明中国式发展步入了新的历史阶段，体现出了新的历史形态。这意味着，新时代党的发展理念和中国人民的发展实践要不断坚持中国式现代化这一大方向。党的发展理念和中国人民的发展实践无疑要继续彰显发展之“第一要义”的底蕴，但其核心在于要突出强调发展的“现代化”形式或“现代化”式的发展。有鉴于此，在新时代的背景下，我们反思发展理念和发展实践，应将中国式现代化作为反思的“抓手”。我们一方面要在中国式现代化的视角或语境下理解和推进发展，另一方面还要围绕中国式现代化来促进党的发展理念发生创新性变化。易言之，我们要设法围绕中国式现代化进行理论建构，把党的发展理念进一步统一到中国式现代化上来，形成关于中国式现代化的理论体系，使党的发展理念在与时俱进的基础上更好发挥其对中国式现代化的指导作用。

Throughout the various stages of development since the founding of New China, building socialist modernization can be said to be a “main thread” running through them, and it has always been the “background color” of our Party’s development concept. General Secretary Xi Jinping points out: “From the first Five-Year Plan to the 14th Five-Year Plan, the consistent theme is to build our country into a modern socialist country… In this process, our Party has deepened its understanding, matured its strategy, and enriched its practice in building a modern socialist country.” [52]52 The “first Five-Year Plan” (1953–1957) was the initial national economic plan of the PRC; the “14th Five-Year Plan” (2021–2025) is the current plan. Our Party has successively used concepts or formulations such as “the four modernizations,” “socialist modernization,” and “Chinese-path modernization” to construct or express the Party’s development concept and development policies. Over more than 70 years of development, “socialist modernization” has played a fundamental role in shaping and enriching the Party’s development concept: it has made the Party’s development concept, in terms of content reflection and practical orientation, closely adhere to socialist modernization, reflect the reality of modernization, serve the practice of modernization, solve the problems of modernization, and change with the changes in the connotation and form of socialist modernization. In a certain sense, the Party’s development concept is precisely the theoretical concept concerning China’s socialist modernization. Compared with China’s modernization in the past, a prominent feature of China’s modernization in the New Era is its comprehensiveness or holistic synergy. Such a new form of modernization-style “development” naturally requires our theoretical concepts to adapt to changes in development practice and undergo corresponding changes.

新中国成立以来的历次发展阶段，建设社会主义现代化可以说是贯穿其中的一条“主线”,也始终是我们党的发展理念的“底色”。习近平总书记指出，“从第一个五年计划到第十四个五年规划，一以贯之的主题是把我国建设成为社会主义现代化国家……在这个过程中，我们党对建设社会主义现代化国家在认识上不断深入、在战略上不断成熟、在实践上不断丰富”。我们党先后用“四个现代化”“社会主义现代化建设”“中国式现代化”等概念或提法来构建或表达党的发展理念和发展政策。在70多年的发展进程中，“社会主义现代化建设”为党的发展理念的形成和丰富起到了基本的限定作用：使党的发展理念在内容的反映和实践的指向上都贴近社会主义现代化建设，反映现代化建设的实际，服务现代化建设的实践，解决现代化建设的问题，并随着社会主义现代化建设内涵和样态的变化而变化。在某种意义上说，党的发展理念就是关于中国社会主义现代化建设的理论观念。和以往我国的现代化建设相比较，新时代我国现代化建设的一个突出特征就是具有全面性或整体协同性。这样一种具有新样态的现代化式的“发展”,自然要求我们在理论观念上要适应发展实践的变化而发生相应变化。

On the new journey of the New Era, comprehensively building a modern socialist country must undoubtedly be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This is because this scientific thought “has achieved a new leap in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times and provides the fundamental guidance for Chinese-path modernization.” [53]53 This is a quotation from the report of the 20th National Congress of the CPC (October 2022). Within the profound and extensive theoretical system of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the theory of Chinese-path modernization is an important component. In the New Era, our Party “has further deepened its understanding of the connotation and essential nature of Chinese-path modernization, summarized and formed the Chinese characteristics, essential requirements, and major principles of Chinese-path modernization, and initially constructed the theoretical system of Chinese-path modernization, making Chinese-path modernization clearer, more scientific, and more tangible and feasible.” [54]54 This is a quotation from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at a study session on the study and implementation of the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the CPC (February 2023). Thus, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, which includes the theory of Chinese-path modernization, provides fundamental guidance in terms of worldview and methodology for our comprehensive building of a modern socialist country in the New Era.

新时代新征程，全面建设社会主义现代化国家无疑要以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导。因为这一科学思想“实现了马克思主义中国化时代化新的飞跃，为中国式现代化提供了根本遵循”。在习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想博大精深的理论体系中，中国式现代化理论是其重要的组成部分。新时代，我们党“进一步深化对中国式现代化的内涵和本质的认识，概括形成中国式现代化的中国特色、本质要求和重大原则，初步构建中国式现代化的理论体系，使中国式现代化更加清晰、更加科学、更加可感可行”。可见，包含着中国式现代化理论在内的习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想，为新时代我们全面建设社会主义现代化国家提供了世界观和方法论等根本指导作用。

On the basis of Chinese-style development practice in the New Era, and in the face of new development situations, tasks, and problems, our Party has put forward the new development concept. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasizes: “Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, we have put forward many major theories and concepts regarding economic and social development, among which the new development concept is the most important and primary.” [55]55 This is a quotation from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at a study session on implementing the new development concept (January 2016). This important assertion indicates that the main form of the Party’s development concept in the New Era is precisely the new development concept, which plays a direct and specific guiding role in Chinese-style development or Chinese-path modernization. In the practice of comprehensively advancing Chinese-path modernization, as we hold high the great banner of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we must firmly grasp the new development concept as the “theoretical grasp.” So why is the new development concept “the most important and primary”? Because the new development concept possesses the systematic nature of theoretical form and the commanding nature of practical form.

在新时代中国式发展的实践基础上，面对新的发展形势、任务及问题，我们党提出了新发展理念。习近平总书记强调：“党的十八大以来我们对经济社会发展提出了许多重大理论和理念，其中新发展理念是最重要、最主要的。”该重要论断表明，新时代党的发展理念的主要形态就是新发展理念，它对中国式发展或中国式现代化建设发挥着直接而具体的指导作用。在全面推进中国式现代化建设的实践中，我们高举习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的伟大旗帜，必须牢牢抓住新发展理念这个“理论抓手”。那么，新发展理念何以“是最重要、最主要的”呢?因为新发展理念具有理论形态的系统性和实践形态的统领性。

First, “the new development concept is a systematic theoretical system,” and “the new development concept is a whole.” [56]56 These are quotations from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speeches on the new development concept (2016 and 2021). General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important exposition profoundly reveals the systematic character of the new development concept. This systematic nature is manifested through the unity of the new development concept’s status, the integration of its content, and the one-dimensionality of its orientation toward practice, thereby highly aligning with the holistic and synergistic Chinese-path modernization of the New Era, and playing a major guiding role in positioning, orienting, and setting rules for Chinese-path modernization from multiple angles and aspects. Second, from the perspective of practical form, “implementing the new development concept is a profound transformation concerning the overall situation of China’s development.” [57]57 This is a quotation from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at a study session on implementing the new development concept (January 2016). The practical orientation of this “profound transformation” is to foster a kind of “new development” in the process of vigorously cultivating new quality productive forces and actively achieving high-quality development, thereby supporting Chinese-path modernization. Specifically, the new development concept emphasizes: using the innovation development concept to stimulate the strong driving force of Chinese-path modernization; using the coordinated development concept to balance the major and complex relationships faced by Chinese-path modernization; using the green development concept to realize the harmonious coexistence between humans and nature prescribed by Chinese-path modernization; using the open development concept to construct a new development pattern of unimpeded domestic and international flows for Chinese-path modernization; and using the shared development concept to realize the common prosperity for all the people pursued by Chinese-path modernization. Therefore, “whether at the central level or the departmental level, whether at the provincial level or levels below the province, in implementation and application, it is necessary to fully grasp, accurately understand, and comprehensively implement it, and carry the new development concept through the entire process and all fields of economic and social development.” [58]58 This is a quotation from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at the fifth plenum of the 19th Central Committee (October 2020). What is called “comprehensive implementation” and “carrying the new development concept through the entire process and all fields of economic and social development” fully reveals the major guiding significance of the new development concept for the practice of Chinese-path modernization. It requires that in advancing the process of Chinese-path modernization, we must comprehensively implement the new development concept, so that Chinese-path modernization, under the guidance of the scientific new development concept, can proceed steadily and stride forward toward the established goals.

首先，“新发展理念是一个系统的理论体系”,“新发展理念是一个整体”。习近平总书记的重要论述，深刻揭示了新发展理念的系统性特质，这种系统性又通过新发展理念地位的一元性、内容的一体性、面向实践的一维性等体现出来，从而和新时代具有整体协同性的中国式现代化高度契合，并从多角度、多方面为新时代中国式现代化发挥着定位、定向、定则等重大指导作用。其次，就实践形态来看，“贯彻新发展理念是关系我国发展全局的一场深刻变革”。这一“深刻变革”的实践指向就是要在大力培育新质生产力、积极实现高质量发展的进程中促成一种“新发展”,以此支撑中国式现代化建设。具体而言，新发展理念强调要以创新发展理念激发中国式现代化的强劲动力，以协调发展理念平衡中国式现代化面临的重大复杂关系，以绿色发展理念实现中国式现代化所规定的人与自然和谐共生，以开放发展理念为中国式现代化构建内外畅通的新发展格局，以共享发展理念实现中国式现代化所追求的全体人民共同富裕。因而，“无论是中央层面还是部门层面，无论是省级层面还是省以下各级层面，在贯彻落实中都要完整把握、准确理解、全面落实，把新发展理念贯彻到经济社会发展全过程和各领域”。所谓“全面落实”以及“把新发展理念贯彻到经济社会发展全过程和各领域”,充分揭示了新发展理念对中国式现代化实践的重大指导意义，它要求我们在推进中国式现代化进程中必须全面贯彻新发展理念，使中国式现代化在科学的新发展理念的指导下向着既定的目标行稳致远、阔步前进。