The Impact Of Urban Population Density On Consumption Vibrancy

Consumption is a lasting driving force of economic growth,and expanding consumption demand is an important focus point for promoting economic transformation and upgrading,safeguarding and improving people’s livelihood,while cities,as the main spatial carriers of population and economic vitality,are crucial for expanding consumption demand.From the existing literature,although exploring urban consumption vibrancy from density has been the focus of attention in foreign urban economics,few studies have been conducted in this regard in China.In view of this,this paper aims to study the economic effects and driving mechanisms of consumption vibrancy from the perspective of population spatial agglomeration,which is an important reference value for enhancing the level of consumption vibrancy in China’s cities,expanding consumption demand,and building a new development pattern mainly based on the domestic general circulation.Initially,this paper first combed through the relevant literature on urban population density,urban consumption vitality and the relationship between them.On this basis,the mechanism of population density affecting consumption vibrancy is analyzed based on theories related to agglomeration economy theory and new economic geography theory,and four research hypotheses are proposed:(1)the concentration of population and goods in geographical locations helps producers and consumers search and match each other,which in turn promotes consumption vibrancy.(2)there is heterogeneity in the influence of population density on consumption vibrancy,and small cities with lower population size and peripheral regions can obtain stronger development potential by increasing population density.(3)the effect of population density on consumption vibrancy is affected by the moderating effect of mixed urban land use as well as road network density.(4)there are spatial correlations and spatial heterogeneity in the effects of population density on consumption vibrancy.Next,this paper introduces the reasons for selecting Jiangsu province as the research object,and presents the model setting,relevant variables measurement and data description of this paper.Subsequently,four research hypotheses on the impact of urban population density on consumption vibrancy are tested using multi-source big data at the neighborhood level in Jiangsu province,and the impact of urban population density on consumption vibrancy is further examined from the perspectives of spatial correlation and heterogeneity.The findings indicate that(1)population density has a positive effect on consumption vibrancy characterized by quantity,quality,and diversity of consumption.(2)Heterogeneity analysis shows that the contribution of population density to consumption dynamism is stronger in more densely populated large cities and central areas of cities.However,at the margin,the effect is larger in smaller cities and outlying urban areas,indicating the importance of increasing internal population density in smaller cities and outlying areas.(3)Urban road network density and mixed land use intensity play an important moderating role in the effect of population density on consumption vibrancy.The higher the road network density and the stronger the mixed land use,the more significant the promotion effect of population density on consumption vibrancy.(4)There is a significant spatial spillover effect of the effect of population density on consumption vibrancy.Encouraging a high concentration of population is conducive to the enhancement of consumption vitality in other regions and further drives the city-wide consumption vitality,forming a virtuous circle of population and consumption.Finally,based on the research findings,this paper puts forward the following policy recommendations:(1)Respect the objective law of population mobility,accelerate the reform of the household registration system in megacities and mega-cities,and give full play to the important role of population agglomeration in enhancing consumption vitality.(2)China’s megacities and mega-cities should take the construction of consumption-centered cities as a grasp to give full play to the fundamental role of consumption for economic growth.(3)We should vigorously develop intra-city transportation infrastructure construction to reduce transportation costs,and at the same time encourage and guide land development models with mixed land use to achieve coordinated development of efficiency and quality,thereby promoting the positive role of urban population density in promoting consumption vitality.