Abstract
Quality of life (QoL) is an important factor which influences local economic development (LED). The study aims to evaluate the quality of life in large Chinese cities and explore the relationship between life quality and local economic development. By constructing the index system of QoL of large cities, this study analyses the spatial pattern of QoL in 39 largest cities across China and then introduces the spatial mismatch method to analyse the relationship between QoL and LED. The results point to the significant differences in QoL among large Chinese cities and unlock the spatial mismatch between QoL and LED in these cities. The quality of life is generally better than local economic development in large cities across Western China and different cities display various spatial mismatch features. This study also shows that local economic development can promote quality of life, though they do not merely stand in a quantitative relation. Quality of life is related more to the economic structure. It is suggested that future urban development focus on high value-added and environmental-friendly industries, which can improve both local economic development and quality of life.
Highlights
With the acceleration of globalization, the new reconstruction of areal division of labour, and the transformation of urban governance from managerialism to entrepreneurialism (Harvey 1989; Sassen 2013), how to achieve sustainable urban growth and maintain urban competitiveness are key issues facing state and local governments
The results of this research prove that there is a spatial mismatch between quality of life and local economic development
This paper analyses the quality of life in 39 largest Chinese cities based on a constructed evaluation system, and the results indicate that these cities differ significantly in terms of life quality
Summary
With the acceleration of globalization, the new reconstruction of areal division of labour, and the transformation of urban governance from managerialism to entrepreneurialism (Harvey 1989; Sassen 2013), how to achieve sustainable urban growth and maintain urban competitiveness are key issues facing state and local governments. Many local governments have taken quality of life as an important method of city marketing in the urban development practice (Hall 1995). This is the case for China, which is in the late stage of accelerated industrialization and urbanization. To improve urban life quality is a new agenda in China’s urbanization
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