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Mobile Internet Use and Multidimensional Poverty: Evidence from A Household Survey in Rural China

Author

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  • Long Yang

    (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University)

  • Haiyang Lu

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics)

  • Sangui Wang

    (Renmin University of China)

  • Meng Li

    (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University)

Abstract

Although reducing poverty has become an important issue for rural development in China, few studies have analyzed the role of mobile Internet use in multidimensional poverty. To fill this gap, this study investigated the impact of mobile Internet use on multidimensional poverty, using data collected from a household survey in rural China. Because households generally decide whether to use mobile Internet by themselves, an endogenous switching regression model was employed to control for potential selection bias. In total, 9.63% of the households were identified as multidimensionally poor and the adjusted multidimensional poverty incidence was 5.47%. The results also showed that mobile Internet use has a significant negative impact on multidimensional poverty. Further, we provide evidence of heterogeneity in the effect of mobile Internet use across regions. These findings highlight the importance of mobile Internet use in multidimensional poverty reduction strategies for rural households.

Suggested Citation

  • Long Yang & Haiyang Lu & Sangui Wang & Meng Li, 2021. "Mobile Internet Use and Multidimensional Poverty: Evidence from A Household Survey in Rural China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 158(3), pages 1065-1086, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:158:y:2021:i:3:d:10.1007_s11205-021-02736-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-021-02736-1
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    Cited by:

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    3. Zeng, Miao & Du, Jiang & Zhu, Xiaoyu & Deng, Xin, 2023. "Does internet use drive rural household savings? Evidence from 7825 farmer households in rural China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    4. Trung Thanh Nguyen & Manh Hung Do & Dil B. Rahut & Viet Hung Nguyen & Panharoth Chhay, 2023. "Female leadership, internet use, and performance of agricultural cooperatives in Vietnam," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 94(3), pages 877-903, September.
    5. Shasha Zhang & Qian Liu & Xungang Zheng & Juan Sun, 2023. "Internet Use and the Poverty Vulnerability of Rural Households: From the Perspective of Risk Response," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-17, January.
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    9. Behice CANATAN & Gökhan ÖZBİLGE & Egemen İPEK, 2023. "A Socioeconomic Analysis in Terms of Household Digital Technology Ownership," Sosyoekonomi Journal, Sosyoekonomi Society, issue 31(56).
    10. Ablam Estel Apeti, 2022. "Household welfare in the digital age: Assessing the effect of mobile money on household consumption volatility in developing countries," Post-Print hal-03819779, HAL.
    11. Xiaofan Zuo & Zhisheng Hong, 2022. "The Impact of Internet Use on Perception of the Poor–Rich Gap: Empirical Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-18, March.
    12. Manh Hung Do, 2023. "Saving up and diversifying income for a rainy day: Implications for households' resilience strategies and poverty," TVSEP Working Papers wp-033, Leibniz Universitaet Hannover, Institute of Development and Agricultural Economics, Project TVSEP.
    13. Nguyen, Trung Thanh & Nguyen, Thanh-Tung & Grote, Ulrike, 2022. "Internet use, natural resource extraction and poverty reduction in rural Thailand," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    14. Apeti, Ablam Estel, 2023. "Household welfare in the digital age: Assessing the effect of mobile money on household consumption volatility in developing countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    15. Ling Wang & Jianqing Ruan, 2023. "The Cost and Benefit of Regional Cultural Diversity on the Income of Rural Workers: Evidence from China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 165(3), pages 759-786, February.
    16. Dzator, Janet & Acheampong, Alex O. & Appiah-Otoo, Isaac & Dzator, Michael, 2023. "Leveraging digital technology for development: Does ICT contribute to poverty reduction?," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(4).
    17. Dela Maria Ardianti & Djoni Hartono & Putu Angga Widyastaman, 2023. "Offline and hungry: the effect of internet use on the food insecurity of Indonesian agricultural households," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 11(1), pages 1-18, December.
    18. Nawab Khan & Ram L. Ray & Hazem S. Kassem & Farhat Ullah Khan & Muhammad Ihtisham & Shemei Zhang, 2022. "Does the Adoption of Mobile Internet Technology Promote Wheat Productivity? Evidence from Rural Farmers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-15, June.
    19. Xian Liang & Hui Xiao & Fangmiao Hou & Xuan Guo & Lishan Li & Longjunjiang Huang, 2024. "Breaking the chains of poverty: examining the influence of smartphone usage on multidimensional poverty in rural settings," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-17, December.
    20. Phan, Van-Phuc, 2023. "Is the internet penetration pro-poor? Evidence from a panel data analysis," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(8).
    21. Trung Thanh Nguyen & Manh Hung Do, 2022. "Female migrants and online market participation in rural Southeast Asia," TVSEP Working Papers wp-026, Leibniz Universitaet Hannover, Institute of Development and Agricultural Economics, Project TVSEP.

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