Physical Integrity Rights Score in China
China: Physical Integrity Rights Score was -1.2 in 2019. ▲ Rising
Physical Integrity Rights Score in China, 1946–2019
Source: Fariss et al. (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for physical integrity rights score in China is -1.2, measured in 2019.
The figure is down 1.7% on the previous year and up 17.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, physical integrity rights score in China peaked at -1.03 in 1986 and was at its lowest, -3.03, in 1969.
That places China 166th out of 193 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Physical Integrity Rights Score in China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1946 | -1.52 | — |
| 1947 | -1.94 | +27.9% |
| 1948 | -1.88 | -3.3% |
| 1949 | -2.03 | +8.1% |
| 1950 | -2.25 | +10.7% |
| 1951 | -2.26 | +0.8% |
| 1952 | -2.09 | -7.8% |
| 1953 | -2.01 | -3.6% |
| 1954 | -1.97 | -1.9% |
| 1955 | -1.95 | -1.1% |
| 1956 | -1.92 | -1.5% |
| 1957 | -1.95 | +1.3% |
| 1958 | -2.01 | +3.4% |
| 1959 | -2.19 | +9.0% |
| 1960 | -1.99 | -9.1% |
| 1961 | -1.92 | -3.8% |
| 1962 | -1.88 | -2.1% |
| 1963 | -1.89 | +0.4% |
| 1964 | -1.9 | +0.7% |
| 1965 | -2 | +5.3% |
| 1966 | -2.73 | +36.5% |
| 1967 | -2.92 | +6.9% |
| 1968 | -3 | +3.0% |
| 1969 | -3.03 | +0.8% |
| 1970 | -3 | -1.1% |
| 1971 | -2.92 | -2.6% |
| 1972 | -2.84 | -2.7% |
| 1973 | -2.79 | -1.7% |
| 1974 | -2.71 | -2.7% |
| 1975 | -2.51 | -7.7% |
| 1976 | -1.97 | -21.3% |
| 1977 | -1.78 | -9.6% |
| 1978 | -1.48 | -16.8% |
| 1979 | -1.36 | -8.4% |
| 1980 | -1.28 | -6.0% |
| 1981 | -1.21 | -5.5% |
| 1982 | -1.12 | -7.1% |
| 1983 | -1.09 | -2.4% |
| 1984 | -1.09 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | -1.05 | -3.9% |
| 1986 | -1.03 | -1.6% |
| 1987 | -1.09 | +4.9% |
| 1988 | -1.22 | +12.8% |
| 1989 | -2.35 | +91.7% |
| 1990 | -1.41 | -39.7% |
| 1991 | -1.19 | -16.0% |
| 1992 | -1.12 | -6.1% |
| 1993 | -1.06 | -4.8% |
| 1994 | -1.16 | +9.3% |
| 1995 | -1.16 | +0.2% |
| 1996 | -1.18 | +1.1% |
| 1997 | -1.25 | +6.1% |
| 1998 | -1.27 | +1.8% |
| 1999 | -1.27 | -0.3% |
| 2000 | -1.28 | +1.1% |
| 2001 | -1.3 | +1.8% |
| 2002 | -1.35 | +3.6% |
| 2003 | -1.35 | +0.2% |
| 2004 | -1.36 | +0.8% |
| 2005 | -1.37 | +0.5% |
| 2006 | -1.34 | -2.2% |
| 2007 | -1.34 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | -1.76 | +30.7% |
| 2009 | -1.46 | -17.1% |
| 2010 | -1.34 | -7.8% |
| 2011 | -1.29 | -4.0% |
| 2012 | -1.22 | -5.7% |
| 2013 | -1.17 | -3.5% |
| 2014 | -1.16 | -1.3% |
| 2015 | -1.16 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | -1.15 | -0.5% |
| 2017 | -1.12 | -2.8% |
| 2018 | -1.18 | +5.2% |
| 2019 | -1.2 | +1.7% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's -1.2 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.55. (57 countries reporting)
- China's -1.2 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.85. (29 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Physical Integrity Rights Score in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | -91.7% | -1.22 | -2.35 |
| 1990 | +39.7% | -2.35 | -1.41 |
| 1966 | -36.5% | -2 | -2.73 |
| 2008 | -30.7% | -1.34 | -1.76 |
| 1947 | -27.9% | -1.52 | -1.94 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | -1.84 | -2.03 | -1.52 | 4 |
| 1950s | -2.06 | -2.26 | -1.92 | 10 |
| 1960s | -2.32 | -3.03 | -1.88 | 10 |
| 1970s | -2.34 | -3 | -1.36 | 10 |
| 1980s | -1.25 | -2.35 | -1.03 | 10 |
| 1990s | -1.21 | -1.41 | -1.06 | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.39 | -1.76 | -1.28 | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.2 | -1.34 | -1.12 | 10 |
Countries ranked near China
More social development data for China
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 230 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 153,962 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 153,962 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is physical integrity rights score in China?
- Physical integrity rights score in China was -1.2 in 2019, according to Fariss et al. (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest physical integrity rights score recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was -1.03 in 1986.
- What is the lowest physical integrity rights score recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was -3.03 in 1969.
- How does China rank for physical integrity rights score?
- China ranks 166th out of 193 countries with data for 2019.
- Is physical integrity rights score rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Fariss et al. (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Physical Integrity Rights Score. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The score captures the extent to which citizens are protected from government killings, torture, political imprisonments, extrajudicial executions, mass killings and disappearances. Large positive scores mean abuses are rare relative to other countries and years, large negative scores that abuses are relatively widespread.