Evaluation of Rural Livability Considering Social Interactions and Implications for Rural Revitalization: A Case Study of Ezhou City, China

Rural livability is the essence of people’s well-being and rural revitalization, in which social networks in daily life play important roles. However, the role of social interactions has long been ignored. This study aims to develop an index system for rural livability evaluation considering social interactions. We chose Ezhou city as an example, and two potential social networks were constructed, and the multi-scale characteristics of social networks at the village level and patch level were used as the proxy indicator of social convenience, then together with ecological livability and economic vitality to comprehensively evaluate rural livability. The empirical results showed a heterogeneous spatial distribution in two social networks. It also presented a tendency of “poor social convenience, general economic vitality and benign ecological livability” of rural areas in each dimension, and a complex pattern of stripped and concentric distribution in the spatial distribution of the total rural livability. It further verified that the social interactions had a direct impact on rural livability by a comparison of two evaluation results. This study advances our understanding of the role of social interactions in rural livability evaluation and provide reasonable suggestions for policymakers in future construction of livable countryside.