Rural tourism shapes agricultural economics resilience in China

This study empirically investigated the impact and interaction mechanisms between rural tourism development and agricultural economic resilience based on a comprehensive evaluation of both factors. Using panel data from 2010 to 2022 across 284 cities in China, the results demonstrated that rural tourism development significantly enhances agricultural economic resilience. The study’s core findings remain robust across various tests. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the promotional effect of rural tourism on agricultural economic resilience is more pronounced in Western China, small-scale farming areas, and non-grain-producing regions. Moreover, the mechanism analysis identifies the urban-rural income gap as a critical mediating channel. Spatially, rural tourism not only enhances local resilience but also generates positive spillover effects on neighbouring provinces. Additionally, threshold tests indicate that the impact exhibits diminishing marginal returns beyond specific development levels. This multi-faceted investigation elucidates the non-linear characteristics and complex inter-regional dynamics of how rural tourism fosters agricultural economic resilience.