Analysis on Regional Differences and Spatial Convergence of Digital Village Development Level: Theory and Evidence from China

Xiaojing Li, Raj Bahadur Singh Chandel and Xianli Xia
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Xiaojing Li: School of Economics and Management, Yantai University, Yantai 264500, China
Raj Bahadur Singh Chandel: College of Economics and Management, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China
Xianli Xia: College of Economics and Management, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 2, 1-20

Abstract: In the context of the rapid development of the global Internet, evaluating the digital village development level (DVI) in different regions is important for policy formulation and scientific research in the field of rural digital development. Based on the measurement of DVI using panel data of provinces from 2005 to 2018, we also explored the causes of DVI development differences using the Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition and spatial convergence method. The study found that: (1) During the whole sample period, the DVI in China and the four major regions showed a significant upward trend as a whole, with the highest in the eastern region and the lowest in the western region, but the development of DVI among different provinces showed regional non-equilibrium characteristics. (2) DVI has a typical agglomeration effect in the spatial and geographical distribution, and regional differences are the primary source of differences in DVI development in China, but the overall regional differences show a decreasing trend. (3) Except for the northeast region, σ -convergence exists in the other three regions; in addition, all regions have significant conditional β -convergence, but the convergence speed is significantly different. (4) Rural population density, industrial structure, and economic development level significantly affect DVI. Therefore, we suggest strengthening the inter-regional connection and element flow and realizing the improvement of the overall DVI of the region through cooperation and mutual assistance.

Keywords: digital village development index; regional difference; decomposition; convergence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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