資訊不對稱（Asymmetry of Information）是資訊經濟學（Economics of Information）探討的主題之一。該理論認為為了使市場有效運作，須儘可能使買、賣雙方站在一資訊公平、對稱的立足點上，交易方容易達成。另就理性的個別買、賣雙方言之，均欲掌握愈多的資訊，才不至於在交易之時，遭到矇騙。在我國歷代的王朝中，專制皇帝對國家的統治，必然需要官僚----皇帝的分身。皇帝如何保證官僚，唯唯謹謹的遵守皇帝的敕令，專心治理百姓？績效若何？中國幅員廣懋，皇帝深居九重，眾多的官員與人民分散各處，形成「天高皇帝遠」的態勢，皇帝可說處於「資訊不對稱」的劣勢。歷代皇帝均採取各種方法加以扭轉。奏摺制度是清朝皇帝為了扭轉資訊不對稱的有效利器之一，其發展的最高點為清世宗在位時期。因之，本研究遂以此時期為主要的探討範圍。本文探討的主題為：資訊不對稱的理論，奏摺的意義、奏摺產生原因，奏摺扭轉資訊不對稱的機制與奏摺對資訊不對稱的意義。

In the ancient China, the emperors had to depend on his/her large number of bureaucrats to govern the nation. In order to effectively dominate this vast country, the emperors were required to know if the bureaucrats had followed orders, and if the people around the country lived comfortably under management of the bureaucrats. However, all of the information would be unacknowledged if no one presented it. How were the emperors supposed to understand the true condition of the country? From the view of allocation of information, emperors were placed at a disadvantage. How did he/she reverse this poor situation? The Palace Memorial System was a useful method for helping the Ching emperors to, esoterically, capture the actual information under the bureaucrats' own will. The system was developed most completely in the Yung-cheng Reign. The purposes of this article are to introduce the palace memorial system, to analyze the formation of the system, and to study the mechanics of the system that led the emperors to an advantageous position.