Spatial Differentiation and Obstacle Factors of Rural Resilience at the Village Scale: Empirical Evidence from Qianshan City, Anhui Province, China

Examining the spatial differentiation and constraining factors of rural resilience at the micro-scale is essential for navigating compounded risks and unbalanced urban–rural development. The study takes 170 villages in Qianshan City, Anhui Province, as the study sample and constructs a four-dimensional resilience evaluation system encompassing economic, social, infrastructural, and ecological dimensions. The research systematically assesses rural resilience levels and obstacle factors using the entropy weight method, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and the obstacle degree model. The results indicate that: (1) The overall rural comprehensive resilience in Qianshan City is at a moderately low level, with an average value of 0.133, ranging from 0.0604 to 0.4805. Significant inter-village disparities exist, forming a distinct “central agglomeration–peripheral dispersion” spatial pattern driven by urban proximity. (2) The resilience of each subsystem also exhibits pronounced heterogeneity: economic resilience is generally low; infrastructural resilience shows the greatest variation; social resilience is relatively stable in its spatial distribution; and ecological resilience demonstrates a “high in the northwest–low in the southeast” pattern. (3) Hotspots of comprehensive resilience, as well as economic, social, and infrastructural resilience, are concentrated around the central–southern urban areas with stronger development foundations, whereas hotspots of ecological resilience are independently distributed within ecologically advantageous zones. (4) Rural resilience is primarily constrained by deficits in public service accessibility and infrastructure conditions. Notably, the primary obstacle factors exhibit high consistency across villages with different geomorphic conditions. Finally, this study proposes coordinated enhancement strategies for economic development, infrastructure improvement, ecological conservation, and social governance in Qianshan City, providing a scientific basis for rural resilience building and governance.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Sustainability
Published
2026-03-03
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/su18052440
Primary Topic
Regional resilience and development
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Spatial Differentiation and Obstacle Factors of Rural Resilience at the Village Scale: Empirical Evidence from Qianshan City, Anhui Province, China

Meng Zhu, Yong Li, Jie Chen, Yunbin Zhang et al.
Sustainability
Regional resilience and development
article

Spatial Differentiation and Obstacle Factors of Rural Resilience at the Village Scale: Empirical Evidence from Qianshan City, Anhui Province, China

Meng Zhu, Yong Li, Jie Chen, Yunbin Zhang, Zhiqiang Gan, Dan Li
article en

Abstract

Examining the spatial differentiation and constraining factors of rural resilience at the micro-scale is essential for navigating compounded risks and unbalanced urban–rural development. The study takes 170 villages in Qianshan City, Anhui Province, as the study sample and constructs a four-dimensional resilience evaluation system encompassing economic, social, infrastructural, and ecological dimensions. The research systematically assesses rural resilience levels and obstacle factors using the entropy weight method, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and the obstacle degree model. The results indicate that: (1) The overall rural comprehensive resilience in Qianshan City is at a moderately low level, with an average value of 0.133, ranging from 0.0604 to 0.4805. Significant inter-village disparities exist, forming a distinct “central agglomeration–peripheral dispersion” spatial pattern driven by urban proximity. (2) The resilience of each subsystem also exhibits pronounced heterogeneity: economic resilience is generally low; infrastructural resilience shows the greatest variation; social resilience is relatively stable in its spatial distribution; and ecological resilience demonstrates a “high in the northwest–low in the southeast” pattern. (3) Hotspots of comprehensive resilience, as well as economic, social, and infrastructural resilience, are concentrated around the central–southern urban areas with stronger development foundations, whereas hotspots of ecological resilience are independently distributed within ecologically advantageous zones. (4) Rural resilience is primarily constrained by deficits in public service accessibility and infrastructure conditions. Notably, the primary obstacle factors exhibit high consistency across villages with different geomorphic conditions. Finally, this study proposes coordinated enhancement strategies for economic development, infrastructure improvement, ecological conservation, and social governance in Qianshan City, providing a scientific basis for rural resilience building and governance.

SustainabilityVol. 18(5)
Anhui Agricultural University (CN), Hefei Urban Planning & Design Institute (CN), Guangdong Urban & Rural Planning and Design Institute (CN)
Openalex Percentile: Top 41%
Regional resilience and development
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.