A geography of e-commerce in China

In recent years, e-commerce has become a phenomenal symbol for the ongoing socioeconomic transformation in China. Driven by the growth of the Internet and cyberspace, e-commerce changes both the traditional patterns of economic transactions and the social relations embedded in social activities. E-commerce is a new catalyst for economic growth in China as it reduces restrictions to market access and the costs of transaction. This research examines the geography of e-commerce in China within a theoretical framework grounded by social theory and neoclassical economics. After presenting a background of the development of e-commerce in China, a multiscale approach was applied to examine the multiplicity and heterogeneity of its social impacts. The spatiality of e-commerce is examined at the provincial, prefecture and city levels. A mixed method approach including cartographic analysis, regression modeling, cluster analysis, interviews, and an online questionnaire-based survey was applied to offer a comprehensive image of the development and socioeconomic influence of e-commerce in China. The quantitative and geovisualization analyses reaffirm the role of e-commerce as a catalyst of economic growth, and an industrial agent in urban space. The qualitative analysis expresses people’s concerns with how the current market structure and government involvement may challenge the future development of e-commerce in China. Results of this research address the following issues. First, the growth of e-commerce in China presents a nationwide inequality constrained by local economic, politic, and infrastructure conditions. Second, the growth of e-commerce in China faces institutional challenges from business operators, customers, and government. Third, the growth of e-commerce in China presents a hybrid feature in terms of spatiality, which relies on structures in both cyberspace and physical space. Policy implications and suggestions for future research were suggested based on these empirical results. A discussion of limitations associated with this research and a concluding note close the research.

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Kansas

Year dc:date.issued

2018

Author dc:creator

• Zhang, Xiang

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Warf, Barney

• Geography
• china
• cyberspace
• e-commerce
• geography of e-commerce
• internet
• multiscalar analysis

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright held by the author.

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

http://dissertations.umi.com/ku:16120

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:kuscholarworks.ku.edu:1808/37260