“加剧”抑或“减缓”:数字经济如何影响农民工收入不平等

“To Exacerbate”or“Mitigate”Income Inequality Among Migrant Workers:the Impact of Digital Economy

减缓农民工收入不平等是完善收入分配体系和实现共同富裕的重要举措。数字经济作为一种新型经济形态,对我国收入分配格局产生了深远影响。基于2012−2018年中国流动人口动态监测调查(CMDS)数据和“宽带中国”政策试点,利用多期双重差分法考察数字经济对农民工收入不平等的影响。研究发现:数字经济显著减缓了农民工收入不平等,且对低技能农民工收入不平等的减缓作用更强,对高技能农民工收入不平等的影响不显著,该结论在经过安慰剂检验等多重稳健性检验后依然成立。可见,数字经济具有包容性特征。机制分析表明,数字经济主要通过拓展农民工社会资本、提高农民工信息可得性和促进农民工就业三种渠道,减缓农民工收入不平等。异质性分析表明,数字经济对农民工收入不平等的减缓作用在年龄和区域两个维度均表现出较强的“数字鸿沟”。据此,提出在强化数字经济减缓农民工收入不平等,为实现共同富裕战略目标赋能的同时,也要注重克服数字经济在农民工收入分配中产生的“数字鸿沟”,避免加剧收入不平等的建议。

Mitigating income inequality among migrant workers is an important measure for improving the income distribution system and achieving common prosperity.As a new economic form,the digital economy has a profound impact on the income distribution pattern in China.Based on the 2012−2018 China Mobility Dynamic Monitoring Survey(CMDS)data and the“Broadband China”policy pilot,this paper examines the impact of the digital economy on income inequality among migrant workers using a multi-period difference-in-differences method.It is found that the digital economy significantly mitigates income inequality among migrant workers and has a stronger mitigating effect on income inequality among low-skilled migrant workers and an insignificant effect on income inequality among highskilled migrant workers.This finding remains robust after multiple stability checks,including placebo tests,demonstrating the inclusive nature of the digital economy.Mechanism analysis shows that the digital economy alleviates income inequality among migrant workers mainly through three channels:expanding social capital,improving information accessibility,and promoting employment for migrant workers.Heterogeneity analysis shows that the alleviation of migrant workers’income inequality by the digital economy shows a strong“digital divide”in two dimensions:age and region.Therefore,it is suggested that while strengthening the digital economy to reduce income inequality among migrant workers and empowering the strategic goal of achieving common prosperity,we should also address the“digital divide”generated by the digital economy in the income distribution of migrant workers to avoid exacerbating income inequality.