The impact of entrepreneurship of farmers on agriculture and rural economic growth: Innovation-driven perspective

Abstract

This research delves into the underlying impacts of farmers' innovative entrepreneurship on agricultural and rural economic development in China, adopting a dynamic and spatio-temporal perspective. The study utilizes panel data encompassing 30 provinces (cities and autonomous regions) from 2015 to 2020, with a systematic consideration of diversified spatial weight matrices. The empirical findings reveal that the spatial distribution of rural innovative entrepreneurship demonstrates a characteristic of low-low agglomeration, accompanied by evident positive spatial spillover effects and radiation-driving effects, especially in regions with similar urbanization levels. Additionally, the study identifies heterogeneous effects across regions with different grain production patterns and household income levels. Ultimately, the research underscores the significance of deeply integrating farmers' innovation and entrepreneurship and provides empirical evidence to support the necessity of adopting differentiated and specialized incentive measures for rural entrepreneurship amid the context of the new economic normal.