Using Coupled Governance to Develop Rural Civilization in China: A Grounded Theory Study from Multiple Cases

The cultivation of civilized rural customs—a core dimension of China’s rural revitalization strategy—is crucial for revitalizing the spirit of its rural communities. This study, grounded in the strategic context of China’s rural revitalization, examines the intricate interplay between government leadership and rural self-governance in the development of rural civilization. Using grounded theory to analyze 66 national model cases of “civilized rural culture development”, selected by China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs between 2019 and 2022, the study constructs a “top-down coordination and bottom-up coupling” model, systematically articulating the practical logic and underlying mechanisms of rural civilization development. The study reveals that the practical logic of rural civilization construction is manifested through three coupled adaptation mechanisms: authoritative coupling between Party–government coordination and village-level autonomy in resource allocation; interest coupling through multi-stakeholder participation in organizational mobilization; and value coupling by reconstructing public norms through shared values. These three coupling mechanisms collectively form a “resource revitalization–stakeholder symbiosis–rule reconstruction” pathway, thereby uncovering the collaborative governance logic between government leadership and rural autonomy within rural revitalization. This study offers a new theoretical perspective for understanding the interactive relationship between government and community in China’s rural governance.