Research on the Coupling and Coordination Between New-Quality Productivity and Digital Transformation in China’s Provinces

Debao Dai, Shali Cao () and Min Zhao
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Debao Dai: School of Management, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Shali Cao: School of Management, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
Min Zhao: SILC Business School, Shanghai University, Shanghai 201800, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 9, 1-35

Abstract: Against the backdrop of the global digital wave and the “dual carbon” goals, the coordinated development of new-quality productivity and digital transformation has emerged as a critical engine for high-quality economic growth. This study constructs an evaluation system for new-quality productivity incorporating 20 indicators, including green innovation and digital infrastructure, and a 17-indicator system for digital transformation. Using the entropy method, modified coupling coordination model, and Dagum Gini coefficient, the spatiotemporal coupling characteristics of 31 provinces in China from 2011 to 2023 are systematically analyzed. The findings reveal a gradient distribution of coupling coordination degree, with higher levels in the East and lower in the West. The Eastern region forms a “technology-ecology” dual-driven model through digital innovation and environmental protection investment, while Central and Western regions face dual constraints of lagging digital infrastructure and insufficient pollution control capacity. Difference decomposition shows that inter-regional disparities contribute 64–70% to overall differences, with green technology innovation and digital infrastructure efficiency identified as core influencing factors. This study proposes a differentiated coordination mechanism of “eastern leadership-central rise-western revitalization”, aiming to promote a sustainable development pattern integrating digital empowerment and ecological protection through improving cross-regional digital infrastructure networks, innovating market-based factor allocation, and establishing green technology sharing platforms.

Keywords: new-quality productivity; digital transformation; coupling coordination degree; Gini coefficient; influence degree model (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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