Are rural entrepreneurs really happy? Evidence from China

Xuedong Liang (), Wanting Fu (), Letian Ren () and Peng Luo ()
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Xuedong Liang: Sichuan University
Wanting Fu: Sichuan University
Letian Ren: Sichuan University
Peng Luo: Sichuan University

The Annals of Regional Science, 2025, vol. 74, issue 2, No 25, 26 pages

Abstract: Abstract Does social influence impact rural entrepreneurship, and are rural entrepreneurs happier? To provide initial insights, we conducted a literature review on happiness and rural entrepreneurship using secondary data from the China Land Economics Survey (CLES), encompassing 2,395 farmers residing in 52 administrative villages. Grounded in the socio-cultural context of rural China, this paper employs the social capital theory to investigate the effect of social influence on rural entrepreneurship and the effect of rural entrepreneurship on happiness while also considering the moderating role of entrepreneurial failure experience. The findings underscore the noteworthy positive impact of social capital on rural entrepreneurship and, concurrently, the significant positive effect of rural entrepreneurship on happiness. Meanwhile, entrepreneurial failure experience moderates the above two pathways. This paper has crucial theoretical implications for enhancing and developing related theories of happiness, as well as providing practical insights to inform government policy.

JEL-codes: I31 L26 Z13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s00168-025-01394-2

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