The impact of smartphone use on rural residents’ environmental quality assessment
Evidence from micro-level survey data in China
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22090035 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Fan Chen (0009-0001-5421-3971, Ningbo University), Yuhuan Chen (0000-0001-5578-3047, Ningbo University), Sheng Shi (0009-0009-6967-2992, Ningbo University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 13 |
| Pages | 1705375-1705375 |
| Publication date | 2026-01-09 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Frontiers in Public Health (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2296-2565 • E-ISSN: 2296-2565 |
| Publisher | Frontiers Media SA (PUBLISHER • CH) |
| DOI | 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1705375 |
| PMID | 41626362 |
| OpenAlex | W7119507267 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 53 |
Background: The popularization of smartphones and the development of internet digitalization are profoundly reshaping the thinking patterns and behavioral choices of rural residents, while also exerting a significant impact on their environmental quality perception and wellbeing. However, existing studies have not fully clarified the interactive relationship between smartphone use and residents' environmental cognition, which provides an important entry point for this research. Methods: Based on micro-survey data from rural China, this study employs an empirical approach to examine the impact of smartphone use on rural residents' assessments of environmental quality, and innovatively explores its inherent mechanism of action. Conclusion and discussion: The research finds that smartphone use has a significant negative impact on rural residents' satisfaction with environmental quality, and this conclusion remains valid after multiple robustness tests. Heterogeneity analysis shows that this impact exhibits obvious regional and group differences: compared with the central region, the negative effect is more moderate in the eastern and western regions; in contrast to ordinary villagers, the impact of smartphone use on the environmental quality satisfaction of rural Party members and cadres is not significant. Mechanism analysis reveals that smartphone use affects environmental satisfaction by changing rural residents' information acquisition channels and promoting the transformation of social capital forms. This study provides empirical evidence and theoretical reference for the rational use of digital tools to guide residents' environmental perception and support the construction of ecologically livable rural areas
China · Empirical evidence · Environmental quality · Perception · Rural area · Social capital · Survey data collection · Energy, Environment, Economic Growth · Environmental Education and Sustainability · Environmental Sustainability in Business
Mobile phone addiction levels and negative emotions among Chinese young adults
Impact of Internet use on economic well‐being of rural households
Enhancing ICT for inclusive human development in Sub-Saharan Africa
Does the development of the internet contribute to air pollution control in China? Mechanism discussion and empirical test
The impact of digital governance on the health of rural residents
Development of the ICT sector and the determinants of Internet use in the Southern Caucasus
The impact of ICT on economic growth-Comparing rich and poor countries
ICT for sustainable development
ICT diffusion and economic growth
Internet Use and Lower Life Satisfaction
Does Internet Use Increase Public Perception of Environmental Pollution?-Evidence from China
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |