How does digital literacy impact household carbon emissions? Evidence from household survey in China

Abstract

In the background of rapid development of digital technology, exploring the relationship between residents' digital literacy (DL) and household carbon emissions (HCEs) is of great practical significance for China to achieve the carbon peak carbon neutral goal. Based on the three-period panel data of the China Family Panel Survey (CFPS) 2016-2020, we categorized digital literacy into digital learning, digital socialization, and digital consumption, and explored the impact of digital literacy on HCEs and its mechanisms. We find that digital literacy significantly and positively affects HCEs, while household life cycle, government governance, and ecological risk perception have a negative moderating effect on digital literacy affecting HCEs respectively. We also find that DL has the largest impact coefficient on HCEs from developmental consumption compared to survival and enjoyment consumption, and that DL has a more significant impact on HCEs from the consumption of young and middle-aged residents compared to older residents. These findings suggest that the dissemination of information and knowledge about carbon emissions through digital technologies, such as Internet platforms, can strengthen residents' awareness of environmental protection and thus promote their low-carbon consumption behavior.

Keywords

• Household carbon emissions
• Consumption behavior
• Digital literacy
• Household life cycle
• Government governance
• Ecological risk perception