How does the rural collective economy enhance the farmers’ sense of spiritual gain—micro-level evidence from cultural and public service functions

In the process of modernization, enhancing the farmers’ well-being, in particular, their subjective well-being, has become a key policy goal for the Chinese government. The rural collective economy, characterized by public ownership and cooperative structures, plays a crucial role in fostering farmers’ sense of spiritual gain. Drawing on survey data from 44 villages in Zhejiang Province, China, this study systematically examines how the rural collective economic development influences farmers’ sense of spiritual gain. The benchmark regression results indicate that the development of the rural collective economy, as well as their cultural function and public service function, significantly improve farmers’ sense of spiritual gain. Furthermore, a series of robustness tests using alternative estimation approaches confirm the reliability and stability of these findings. Additionally, considering the heterogeneity of operation modes, the results reveal that compared with the joint operation mode, the independent operation mode of rural collective economies exhibits a significant synergistic effect with cultural functions in enhancing farmers’ sense of spiritual gain. Moreover, when accounting for differences in operation scale, the findings indicate that public service functions generate a significant synergistic effect with larger-scale collective economies. In other words, a greater scale of collective economy amplifies the positive influence of public service functions on farmers’ sense of spiritual gain.