Abstract
Despite the escalating perception of China as a “threat” in some Western countries, existing cross‐national investigations lack a psychological framework that incorporates identity factors such as ontological security (OS) and diverse security value orientations to predict the threat. This study introduces a framework of self‐reported individual‐difference measures, tapping into ontological security and security value orientation, to analyze their influence on China threat perception in Australia, South Korea, and the USA. Based on our examination of four dimensions of ontological security (biographical, dread, self‐integrity, and trust), the findings challenge current theories that assume a coherent, integrated model of the four OS dimensions. We thus dispute OS as an initiated and unified form of security, revealing a tension between theoretical and empirical perspectives on individual‐level ontological security. In this tension, dread has a generalizing effect on China threat perception, while self‐continuity lacks substantial impact. Regarding security orientation values, individuals favoring an absolutist notion of security, alongside violent and collective means, are more prone than others to perceive China as a threat. This study contributes to the constructivist school in OS‐threat association within international relations and enhances ontological security research on China perception in the Asia‐Pacific context.