Zhao Xuzhou: Leading the New Development of the "15th Five-Year Plan" with a Correct Outlook on Political Performance
The General Office of the CPC Central Committee issued the Notice on Cultivating and Practicing a Correct View of Performance Achievements Throughout the Party (hereafter referred to as the Notice), deciding to conduct a program of study and education across the entire Party from the end of the 2026 Spring Festival holiday through late July. This major deployment is both a profound tempering of the Party spirit of members and cadres, and a contemporary examination of the value pursuits, development concepts, and practical paths of a Marxist party.
For whom are achievements established? What kind of achievements should be established? By what means are they established? This "question of original aspiration and mission" is also a "question of the times and practice." Since the issuance of the Notice, philosophy and social science workers nationwide have engaged in deep study of its spirit, conducting intensive research into the theoretical connotations, practical paths, and the responsibilities of the social sciences regarding this study and education. This reporter recently interviewed several experts and scholars to decode the profound connotations and epochal value of a correct view of performance achievements from the dual dimensions of theory and practice, exploring the missional path for the social science community to serve the Party-wide study and education.
A Political Guarantee for a Good Start
The "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" period (2026–2030) is a critical period for consolidating the foundation and launching full-scale efforts to basically achieve socialist modernization. Jian Xiaowen, Party Committee Secretary of the Inner Mongolia Academy of Social Sciences, stated that conducting study and education on cultivating and practicing a correct view of performance achievements in the opening year of the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" serves two purposes: against the backdrop of the accelerating changes unseen in a century [1], it uses ideological education to unify the Party's thoughts, will, and actions, guiding all members and cadres to better seize strategic opportunities and meet risks and challenges; it also targets existing deviations such as the pursuit of quick fixes, formalism, and disconnection from reality. This ensures that cadres consciously persist in working for the people and acting according to objective laws, providing a strong political guarantee for a good start to the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan."
China is currently in a critical period of starting the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" and comprehensively advancing Chinese-path modernization. Profound shifts in the stage of development require a corresponding profound transformation in development concepts. Guan Ronghui, Party Branch Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Federation of Philosophical and Social Sciences, believes that at this historical juncture, the view of performance achievements is not only a "conductor’s baton" for development but also a "touchstone" for testing whether we truly understand the essential requirements of Chinese-path modernization. From the perspective of practical relevance, problems in certain fields—such as "vanity projects" [2] or "prioritizing visible achievements over latent achievements"—are rooted in deviations in the view of performance achievements. This study and education aim to correct the course from the ideological source, ensuring the correct view takes root.
The Party's practice of governance shows that once the view of performance achievements deviates, it not only weakens development quality and governance efficacy but also risks accumulating deep-seated systemic risks. Shang Qingfei, Party Committee Secretary of Nanjing Normal University, stated that this study and education will help firmly establish the conviction of "holding office for the public and benefiting the people" throughout the Party. Moreover, it will help guide cadres in the implementation of the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" to carry out the Central Committee’s decisions to the letter, make scientific decisions, and engage in "true grasping and solid work" [3], continuously pushing Chinese-path modernization toward new progress.
To achieve a good start, we must focus on improving the Party's ability and level in leading economic and social development. Xiao Xinjian, a researcher at the Xi Jinping Economic Thought Research Center, noted that this concentrated study and education will guide Party organizations and cadres to seek truth from facts, be pragmatic, and create achievements for the people through solid work, effectively preventing and correcting deviations. We must resolutely implement the major decisions of the Central Committee, implement the new development philosophy completely, accurately, and comprehensively, accelerate the construction of the new development pattern, and focus on promoting high-quality development. We must create achievements that can withstand the test of practice, the people, and history, providing a powerful guarantee for the great cause of national rejuvenation.
Supporting Study and Education with Theoretical Scholarship
This study and education pose new and higher requirements for the social science community. Jian Xiaowen stated that social science workers should refine the scholarly connotations of a correct view of performance achievements to provide academic support for the Party. They should persist in a problem-oriented approach, conducting in-depth research to summarize practical problems and experiences, elevating them to theoretical heights to provide intellectual support for ensuring the study and education "enters the heart and mind."
Social science workers shoulder the glorious mission of developing theory and offering suggestions for the Party and the people. Shang Qingfei believes that in this Party-wide study and education, China's "Five Armies" [4] of philosophy and social sciences should step forward and contribute. On one hand, they must strengthen theoretical interpretation, clearly explaining the essence, epochal significance, and practical logic of a correct view of performance achievements to "clear the source and consolidate the foundation" [5]. On the other hand, they must act as think tanks, organizing interdisciplinary teams to go to the grassroots to accurately diagnose the manifestations of deviations and propose targeted countermeasures and theoretical publicizing to serve grassroots rectification.
Xiao Xinjian believes social science workers must base themselves on Chinese reality, take root in Chinese soil, and respond to social concerns. They should systematically and academically research the fundamental stance, basic connotations, and practical paths of a correct view of performance achievements, constructing a theoretical framework and researching institutional mechanisms to prevent deviations through case studies.
Realizing the Dialectical Unity of Party Spirit and Performance Views
"The nature and purpose of the Party determine that benefiting the people is the greatest achievement of Communists." Yang Kangkang, an associate researcher at the CASS Institute of Political Science, stated that cultivating and practicing a correct view of performance achievements is an inevitable requirement of the essential attributes of a Marxist party, an important component of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and deeply rooted in the Marxist views of the masses and history.
Zhou Wei, head of the Publicity Department and Dean of the School of Marxism at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, stated that a correct view of performance achievements directly relates to the Party’s governing foundation and the success of its cause. In the context of the New Era, it is an inevitable requirement for meeting risks and challenges and maintaining the Party's political character.
Regarding the general requirements of "holding office for the public, benefiting the people, scientific decision-making, and true grasping and solid work," Yang Kangkang believes these four constitute an organic whole: holding office for the public is the fundamental stance; benefiting the people is the core goal; scientific decision-making requires seeking truth from facts and following objective laws; and "true grasping and solid work" requires the resilience of "biting the green mountain and never letting go" [6] to ensure decisions are implemented.
Duan Yan, Deputy Director of the Faculty of Marxism at Northeast Normal University, explained the dialectical relationship between Party spirit and the view of performance achievements. "To cultivate the correct view, one must strengthen Party spirit. We must focus on the requirement of 'finding gaps and roots in Party spirit to strengthen cultivation.'" She stated that Party spirit is the cornerstone of a cadre’s life and work, centered on the people's stance and seeking truth from facts. It answers the fundamental questions of for whom, what, and how achievements are made. The view of performance achievements is the concentrated manifestation of Party spirit in practice.
A leading cadre’s view of achievements reflects their Party spirit and breadth of vision. Yang Kangkang stated that Party spirit is the foundation of one's life, and solid work is the basis of success. If Party spirit is weakened and selfishness takes hold, it is easy to fall into the trap of "seeking fame and wealth for oneself." Zhou Wei believes the ultimate standard for judging performance is the interest of the people, and the final goal is the people's happiness.
Precise Implementation Amidst Regional Differences
Establishing a people-centered view of performance means treating "holding office to benefit a region" and serving the people as the value pursuit of governance. Liang Daogang, Director of the Party Building Department at the Party School of the Guangdong Provincial Committee, stated that a people-centered view must seek truth from facts and be adapted to local conditions, fulfilling the specific functions of different regions and industries to improve the people's sense of gain, happiness, and security.
China's regional development varies greatly, with different challenges facing strategies like the Yangtze River Delta integration or the revitalization of the Northeast. Wu Licai, a professor at the China Institute of Rural Studies at Central China Normal University, stated that grassroots governments should implement national policies in light of local realities, encouraging cadres to exercise an innovative spirit and creating an environment that tolerates mistakes while encouraging exploration. Huo Chunlong, an associate professor at Lanzhou University, believes that practicing the correct view requires an operational identification and execution mechanism. This includes strengthening theoretical arming through Xi Jinping New Era Thought, adhering to local conditions, and promoting "whole-process people's democracy" to guide public and corporate participation.
Wang Lei, Director of the Institute of Sociology at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, noted that there is no "one-size-fits-all" template. At the start of the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan," the Northeast must abandon short-term utilitarian thinking and focus on high-quality development. This includes leading with technological innovation to develop new quality productive forces and optimizing the business environment, while expanding development space by meeting needs in elderly care, childcare, and employment.
"The key to making the correct view take root nationwide lies in converting value orientations into institutional efficacy," said Du Juan, an associate professor at East China Normal University. She suggested using public satisfaction as the yardstick for performance and building a mechanism where top-level design and grassroots exploration interact.
The Spirit of "Success Does Not Have to Reside with Me"
Party members and cadres must establish a "green" view of performance achievements, promoting environmental protection and economic development in tandem. Liang Daogang stated that the correct view is one that aligns with the New Development Philosophy, as green development is inherent to high-quality development. Wang Lei argued that the Northeast should use its ecological advantages to fulfill its political responsibility for ecological civilization with the spirit of "success does not have to reside with me" [7].
In the context of the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan," balancing global and local interests, and short-term results with long-term development, is crucial. Du Juan believes the core is using institutional power to shift the focus from "short-term visible achievements" to "long-term latent achievements." This involves improving planning coordination to prevent resource misallocation and incorporating per-unit GDP energy consumption and livelihood expenditures into performance evaluations.
Xiao Xinjian proposed improving the evaluation system for high-quality development, normalizing supervision and accountability, and implementing the "Three Distinctions" [8] mechanism. This will guide cadres to cultivate the correct view and create a healthy environment where the capable are promoted, the excellent are rewarded, the mediocre are demoted, and the inferior are eliminated.
Writing a New Chapter of Social Science Responsibility
How can we integrate the research power of the national social science field to combine academic research with practical needs? Social science workers across the country have provided answers based on their own practices.
“The professional achievements of philosophy and social science workers are, in essence, the unity of theoretical consciousness and practical consciousness.” Guan Ronghui, integrating the experiences of Liaoning, proposed that integrating research strength requires effort across three dimensions. First, the combination of theoretical interpretation and technological innovation: building the “Liaoning AI Social Science” smart display to empower project review and the transformation of achievements through artificial intelligence, thereby promoting the leap of social science governance from an empirical to a scientific model. Second, the combination of academic research and serving the overall situation: organizing social science forces to participate deeply in the construction of a culture of integrity, focusing on forward-looking research on strategies such as the full revitalization of Northeast China [9] and the construction of "Digital Liaoning." Third, the combination of theoretical results and practical transformation: going deep into the grassroots to summarize typical cases where a “correct view of performance” leads development, and refining practical experience. “The achievement of social science workers lies in whether they provide solid academic support for the cause of the Party and the people.”
Philosophy and social science workers bear the important mission of interpreting theory, summarizing experience, and providing academic support. This study and education program has put forward more new requirements for the social science community. Zhou Wei stated that basic theoretical cultivation should be carried out from multiple dimensions to tap into the systematic and original potential of theoretical interpretation and to break down disciplinary barriers for cross-disciplinary integration. Regarding the construction of the disciplinary system, research directions related to the correct view of performance should be established; regarding the construction of the academic system, efforts should be organized to tackle major theoretical and practical problems to produce landmark achievements.
Research and interpretation on establishing and practicing a correct view of performance must be combined with the construction of an autonomous knowledge system [10] for Chinese philosophy and social sciences. Wang Lei stated that using the study of the view of performance as a breakthrough point can drive conceptual reshaping and theoretical innovation in related disciplines. Deeply analyzing the epistemological roots of an incorrect view of performance can retrospectively confirm what constitutes correct performance, providing realistic explanatory power for development economics and public management. By systematically summarizing the experiences and lessons from various regions and building a database of Chinese governance cases, fresh materials can be provided for solving regional development problems.
Learning and education in the field of social sciences should be deeply integrated with the rectification of Central Inspection [11] findings and the in-depth implementation of the Eight-Point Regulations. Duan Yan proposed that the academic interpretation of the correct view of performance should be linked with the rectification of problems such as academic boasting and the pursuit of quick successes and instant benefits. It is necessary to abandon the tendency toward the utilitarianization of scientific research and integrate the requirements of a correct view of performance into the entire process of project application and result review, effectively enhancing the pertinence and effectiveness of scientific research work.
The view of performance is a mirror; it reflects Party spirit, manifests sentiment, and tests responsibility. Standing at the new starting point of the "15th Five-Year Plan" [12], philosophy and social science workers across the country are, with a high sense of responsibility and mission, deeply studying and interpreting the core meaning of establishing and practicing a correct view of performance. They are closely integrating academic research with the practical needs of Chinese-path modernization, providing solid academic support for the Party's study and education, and contributing wisdom and strength to the construction of an autonomous knowledge system for Chinese philosophy and social sciences. In serving the overall national development, they are writing a new chapter of social science responsibility.
(Zhao Xuzhou, reporter for the Chinese Social Sciences Today; reporters Zha Jianguo, Li Yongjie, Ming Haiying, Wu Nan, and Zhang Yixin contributed to the interviews) Source: Chinese Social Sciences Today (March 16, 2026) Editor: Huihui