Prevention is embedded in the PRC macro-control system, which uses all elements of power in managing deviants and nondeviants simultaneously. The Maoist ideology has been sustained through 'political education' that takes advantage of the traditional cultural acceptance of intervention before a legally-defined criminal act has been committed. Recent developments in the PRC, however, suggest that the macro-control props of political education are being weakened, as indicated by the recent resort to crime control methods. It appears that, although the uniqueness of the Chinese sociocultural system must be recognized, the PRC regime faces some of the problems faced by western societies that must share power in endeavoring to implement prevention programs. (Author abstract)