Are There Thresholds for the Empowerment of Rural Revitalization by the Digital Economy?Based on Human Capital and Industrial Scale Perspectives

The digital economy has become an important force driving rural revitalization. This paper first analyzes the role and threshold conditions of digital economy driving rural revitalization from a theoretical perspective, and then conducts empirical testing using a panel model based on provincial data. The research result indicates that the digital economy can significantly promote rural revitalization, primarily achieved through digital infrastructure and digital e-commerce. The digital economy plays a more prominent role in driving rural revitalization in southern regions, areas with lower urbanization rates, and areas with high human capital, and this empowering effect becomes even more evident after the implementation of rural revitalization policies. The empowering effect of the digital economy on rural revitalization is not a simple linear relationship. Instead, it exhibits a dual-threshold effect based on human capital and a single-threshold effect based on industrial scale. When human capital is situated between the first and second threshold and industrial scale is below the first threshold, the effect of the digital economy is more significant. Based on this, efforts should be made to accelerate the construction of rural digital infrastructure, improve the digital inclusive finance system, cultivate talent for the digital economy, promote the integration and coordinated development between industry and agriculture, and introduce and implement relevant policies tailored to local conditions.