Abstract: “a sense of responsibilities and duties”, in the new era, though having been raised as an important indicator of official selection and evaluation by China’s central government, bears no clear definition in academic circles, while its antonym has been listed the focus of academic discussion. This study, based on literature review and text quantification, combs the relevant documents issued by 16 provinces such as Hubei, Hunan, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Gansu and Sichuan, and constructs a connotation model for the specific connotation of the sense of this kind from four aspects namely individual, organization, behavior and result. The connotation, the study tells, covers political consciousness (willingness), professionalism (capability), courage to undertake tasks (initiative), and good performance (pursuit of excellency). As a local concept, it reflects the value synthesis and strict standards, surpasses the “technocratic” behavior requirements of Weber’s bureaucratic model, and covers the new bureaucratic concept reflecting the “direct response” ethics in recent years. This connotation model thus provides an important research basis for enhancing China’s official selection system.

Key words: party and government officials, a sense of responsibilities and duties, technocrats, professionalism, assessing officials’ performance