Polarization or Equilibrium: Spatial and Temporal Patterns and Divergent Characteristics of Rural Restructuring in Unevenly Developed Regions

Lin Shao (), Bochuan Zhou, Yeyang Li, Qiaoli Huang and Xuening Fang
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Lin Shao: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Bochuan Zhou: School of Finance and Business, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Yeyang Li: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Qiaoli Huang: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China
Xuening Fang: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-25

Abstract: Rural areas are experiencing significant changes in socio-economic and spatial patterns, and research on the characteristics of rural restructuring is conducive to the planning of rural revitalization. However, few studies have focused on the changes in regional development imbalances in the process of rural restructuring. This study aims to explore whether rural restructuring mitigates or exacerbates existing regional disparities, and to assess the degree of coordination among economic, social, and spatial restructuring dimensions. In this study, the evolution of spatio-temporal patterns and divergence characteristics of unevenly developed regions in the process of rural restructuring from 2010 to 2020 were investigated by using the TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) model and the coupled coordination model. We found the following: (1) The level of rural development has increased significantly and the overall pattern has not changed. Meanwhile, the degree of regional imbalance has deepened, evolving from a low level of disequilibrium to a pattern of high levels but more pronounced spatial polarization. (2) The impacts of different dimensions of rural restructuring on regional imbalance are not consistent, and the social and spatial dimensions are significantly more unbalanced than the economic dimension. (3) The analysis of the driving mechanism shows that there are significant spatial and temporal differences between a variety of driving factors, the strength of their role, positive and negative have evolved in stages, and the transition from a government-led to a market-driven trend is gradually obvious. In the future, rural planning should pay more attention to resource inputs in the social and spatial dimensions, and improve the equilibrium of the social and spatial dimensions, which is more conducive to mitigating the trend of regional polarization.

Keywords: rural development; uneven development; rural restructuring; comprehensive evaluation; coupled coordination (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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