The Impact of the Digital Economy on Population Dividends in China: Based on the Dual Perspective of Quantity and Quality

The demographic dividend plays an important role in promoting sustainable development in China. Here, we ask the question of how to use the digital economy to coordinate the “one body and two sides” of the demographic dividend. This study empirically examines the impact of digital economic development on the demographic dividend in a multidimensional way based on the panel data from 30 provincial-level administrative regions in China from 2011 to 2020. The study results show that (1) the digital economy significantly promotes the demographic quality dividend but exhibits a suppressive effect on the demographic quantity dividend; (2) the digital economy can indirectly influence the demographic quality and quantity dividends through urbanization; (3) when examining the threshold effects, the study uncovers noteworthy dynamics, whereby the urbanization levels serve as significant thresholds, showcasing “diminishing marginal effects” in the digital economy’s influence on both population quantity and quality dividends; (4) digital economic development has a positive spillover effect on the demographic quantity dividend in adjacent areas. By clarifying these dynamics, the research results provide valuable insights into China’s sustainable use of the digital economy to create a demographic dividend.