Divide or bridge? The heterogeneous effects of digital village participation on rural residents’ happiness

Abstract

Introduction Enhancing rural residents’ happiness is a key objective of China’s rural revitalization strategy. Methods Using data from the China Rural Revitalization Survey (CRRS), this study empirically examines the relationship between digital village participation on rural residents’ happiness. Results The results show that digital village participation is positively associated with rural residents’ happiness. Dimensional-specific analyses further reveals that digital infrastructure, digital governance, and the digitalization of daily life exert significant positive effects on rural residents’ happiness, whereas the effect of rural economic digitalization is statistically insignificant. The mechanism analysis indicates that digital village participation improves rural residents’ happiness by alleviating credit constraints and increasing social interaction. The heterogeneity analysis reveals that rural residents with higher digital literacy are better able to translate digital participation into gains in happiness, whereas the effect is insignificant among those with lower levels of digital literacy. Discussion This study provides empirical evidence for narrowing the rural digital divide and offers policy implications for promoting targeted and differentiated digital village development.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Frontiers in Psychology, 2026 · DOI ↗