Taiwan's Rising Rationalism 3 Rather than looking at public opinion trends in the aggregate,this study breaks down the data to see how views are patterned across age groups.At the moment,policymakers are most sensitive to the preferences of older Taiwanese,who form the bulk of the political elite and the active electorate.In the future,however,the political center of gravity will shift toward today's young leaders and voters.If these two groups preferences diverge,we may see a shift in Taiwan's policy direction.Alternatively,the views of the young might come to resemble those of the older generation once they reach a similar age. This study argues that the preference patterns of different age groups in Taiwan differ in important ways,and maintains,moreover,that these age-related attitudinal disparities are not merely a function of age (are not life-cycle effects)but are manifestations of enduring generational differences.Taiwan's recent history has given rise to four distinct generations.The first generation acquired its Taiwan's recent history political identity during the period of Japanese has given rise to four colonization.The second generation was socialized during the height of KMT distinct generations (Kuomintang,or Chinese Nationalist Party) single-party authoritarianism.The third gener- ation reached maturity during the transition to democracy as the KMTs authoritarian control was fading.And the fourth generation came of age after democratization was well under way,so that democracy is the only political system this generation has ever known. This monograph contends that the differences in life experience and political socialization among these four generations have produced signif icant discrepancies in their attitudes toward Taiwan's domestic politics, cross-strait relations,and mainland China.Specifically,the older genera- tions-especially the second generation-tend to hold strong,emotional- ly charged views about China and cross-strait relations whereas younger people tend to be more moderate and pragmatic.And while older Taiwanese tend to view the relationship between Taiwan and China in zero-s terms (to be pro-Taiwan is to be anti-China and vice versa), many young Taiwanese resist the idea that they must choose berween Taiwan and China. Because few young Taiwanese embrace the either/or logic of today's politically dominant generation,when they move into leadership posi-