Digital financial inclusion, Chinese farmers’ entrepreneurship well-being and selfconfidence: evidence from rural China

Abstract

Digital financial inclusion offers realistic possibilities to promote farmers’ entrepreneurship, although rural entrepreneurship is risky and uncertain. However, limited research has been conducted on farmers’ perceptions of subjective psychological states, and the use of digital financial inclusion and its effect on their entrepreneurship. Deriving insights from appraisal theory, this study explored the different roles of farmers’ subjective well-being and self-confidence in the influence of digital financial inclusion on their entrepreneurship. Empirical analysis based on data from 16,492 farmers showed that digital financial inclusion has a significant positive effect on farmers’ entrepreneurship and that this effect is enhanced by farmers’ selfconfidence but weakened by their subjective well-being. Our study expands the application scope of appraisal theory and enriches the research on digital financial inclusion and rural entrepreneurship