Digital Economy and Rural Consumption: A Dual-Path Model Integrating Industrial Revitalization with Cultural Heritage Synergy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.62517/jse.202511502

Author(s)

Liying Huang1, Tingting Yi2,*, Zhiqing Wei2, Lixia Wang1, Julie Jie Wen3

Affiliation(s)

1Guangzhou College of Commerce, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China 2South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China 3Western Sydney University, Australia, Penrith, Australia *Corresponding Author

Abstract

In recent years, the digital economy has become an important engine driving rural revitalization in China. It has enhanced productivity and market accessibility in rural areas, while also reshaping consumption behaviors and psychological patterns. However, existing research has mainly focused on industrial pathways such as e-commerce and mobile payments, with insufficient attention paid to the role of traditional culture in shaping consumption behaviors, identity formation, and psychological paradigms. Therefore, this study proposes a dual-path mechanism that combines industrial revitalization with cultural inheritance, aiming to provide a more comprehensive understanding of how the digital economy unleashes rural consumption potential. To this end, we construct an integrated theoretical model and, based on balanced panel data from 30 provincial-level regions in China between 2014 and 2022, employ two-way fixed effects models, stepwise mediation analysis, and interaction term regressions to systematically examine the direct, indirect, and synergistic effects of the digital economy. Robustness is tested through variable reconstruction, winsorization, and the exclusion of outlier regions. In addition, the study investigates regional heterogeneity from the perspectives of agricultural productivity, digital infrastructure, and cultural resource endowment. The results indicate that the digital economy significantly promotes the release of rural consumption potential, with the industrial revitalization pathway contributing 12.8% and the cultural inheritance pathway contributing 13.3%, together accounting for 28.7% of the mediation effect. Stronger effects are observed in eastern provinces with advanced digital infrastructure and in ethnic minority regions rich in cultural resources. This paper argues that through the complementary mechanisms of “economic upgrading” and “cultural revitalization,” the digital economy not only enhances rural residents’ consumption capacity but also reshapes their psychological and behavioral structures, offering new insights for inclusive and sustainable rural transformation.

Keywords

Digital Economy; Rural Consumption; Industrial Revitalization; Traditional Cultural Heritage Transmission; Synergistic Effect

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