The Effect of Livelihood Capital on Rural Resident Participation in Human Settlement Environmental Governance: The Mediating Role of Policy Perception

The active participation of rural residents is crucial to the effectiveness of rural human settlement environmental governance. However, existing studies have rarely explored the connections between rural residents’ livelihood capital, policy perception, and their participation behavior. This study aims to reveal the relationship between rural residents’ livelihood capital and their participation in human settlement environmental governance, and clarify the mediating role of policy perception in this relationship. This study adopted the random sampling method. Using questionnaires as the data collection tool, we conducted a cross-sectional survey on rural residents’ participation in rural human settlement environmental governance among 2,460 rural residents from 25 provinces in Chinese mainland, with 2,362 questionnaires validly returned. Data were analyzed through a binary logistic regression model to explore the direct impact of livelihood capital on participation behavior, while the mediating effect of policy perception was evaluated through a mediation effect test. The results show that livelihood capital has a significant positive impact on rural residents’ participation in human settlement environmental governance, and policy perception partially mediates the relationship between livelihood capital and participation. The study indicates that improving rural residents’ livelihood capital and policy perception can effectively promote their participation in human settlement environmental governance. Accordingly, participation efficiency can be enhanced by optimizing livelihood capital and strengthening the perception of environmental policies. In the future, the research area can be further expanded to verify the universality of the conclusions, and panel data can be used to explore the dynamic evolutionary relationship among the three factors.