The Reach of the State

Abstract

We conceptualize the reach of the state by examining how the physical presence of the state helps the state project its power by signaling state interests and strength. We present a new measurement strategy to capture the territorial reach of the state using points-of-interest data provided by location-based service companies. Our measure exhibits several advantages: (1) it draws on firm-produced or crowd-sourced (rather than government-produced) data, (2) it includes highly precise, geo-referenced location information, which can be aggregated to any geographical or administrative level, (3) it traces temporal changes, and (4) it covers different types of state agencies. We illustrate its features using original databases that we compiled on state agencies in China and other countries. We demonstrate how researchers can use our measure by examining the locations and effects of coercive organizations and provide our data, code, and a tutorial to help researchers explore new avenues of inquiry.