社会信任与家庭消费结构升级

Social Trust and the Upgrading of Household Consumption Structure

摘要: 在当前国内有效需求不足成为经济发展主要矛盾的背景下，消费作为拉动经济增长的“主引擎”，其结构升级对构建新发展格局至关重要。本文基于中国家庭追踪调查(CFPS)2022年微观数据，深入探究社会信任对居民消费结构的影响。研究发现，社会信任对居民消费结构升级具有显著促进作用，且这种影响存在城乡和收入异质性。从机制上看，社会信任通过社会网络支持与身份认同路径影响居民消费结构。本研究为理解社会心理因素对消费行为的作用提供了新视角，也为制定扩大内需政策提供了理论依据和实证支持。

Abstract: Against the backdrop where insufficient effective domestic demand has become the principal contradiction restricting China’s economic development, consumption, as the “primary engine” driving economic growth, plays a crucial role in building the new development pattern through its structural upgrading. Based on the 2022 microdata from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this paper conducts an in-depth exploration of the impact of social trust on residents’ consumption structure. The study finds that social trust significantly promotes the upgrading of residents’ consumption structure, and this impact exhibits urban-rural and income heterogeneity. Mechanistically, social trust affects residents’ consumption structure through the pathways of social network support and identity recognition. This research not only provides a new perspective for understanding the role of social psychological factors in consumption behavior but also offers a theoretical basis and empirical support for formulating policies to expand domestic demand.