Research On Influence Mechanism Of Social Capital Affecting Environmental Governance Performance

In 2018,the State Council issued the Opinions on Comprehensively Strengthening Ecological Environmental Protection and Resolutely Fighting the Battle of Pollution Prevention and Control pointed out,that a favorable ecological environment is an inherent requirement for achieving the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and a priority area for enhancing people’s well-being so that the construction of ecological civilization should be put into practice.Therefore,environmental protection and environmental governance must be integrated into all areas and links of social development,as the vane leading the construction of ecological civilization in China.In the new era,in the process of solving the contradiction between people’s growing demand for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development,many new requirements have been put forward for environmental governance,while ecological environmental protection and governance face many difficulties and challenges.Due to the "negative externalities" of environmental pollution,there is a risk of market failure when applying market mechanisms to environmental policy.The dilemma of government failure is exacerbated by the distortion of the environmental policy when governments are faced with fiscal constraints or pressure to meet economic development targets.While the use of economic incentives or technological instruments can play an important role in preventing environmental pollution,the power of social factors to contribute to the functioning of environmental policy cannot be ignored,and its related dimensions offer new perspectives on the challenges of environmental governance and ecologically sustainable development.Social capital influences environmental governance from the perspectives of networks,trust,norms,and cooperation,avoiding the ’prisoner’s dilemma’and motivating people to follow the rules of environmental protection and governance,thus resolving conflicts of interest in environmental governance.Therefore,the social capital perspective is a new perspective,a new direction and a new tool for exploring environmental governance issues,which is important for improving environmental quality and enhancing environmental governance performance.This study constructs a conceptual model of the mechanism of social capital’s influence on environmental governance performance based on relevant theories,including the path of social capital’s influence on environmental governance performance,the moderating effect of government participation and market participation on this path,and the heterogeneity arising from differences in economic development levels.First,a measurement index system for social capital and environmental governance performance is constructed based on the literature review,and data from 30 provinces(municipalities directly under the Central Government and autonomous regions,excluding Tibet,Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan)in China from 2005 to 2020 are used to determine the final indicators for measuring social structure,social norms,social trust,social networks,and environmental governance performance using a measurement model analysis method.Second,based on the validated factor analysis model,the second-order structure of social capital was determined,i.e.,there existed first-order constructs of social structure,social norms,social trust,and social networks for social capital.Third,based on the full model passing the convergent validity test and differential validity test,structural equation modeling is used to test the path and significance of social capital influencing environmental governance performance,and further clarify the moderating role of government participation and market participation,in social capital influencing environmental governance performance.Finally,the 30 provinces in China are divided into three sections based on the level of economic development,respectively high economic development regions,medium economic development regions,and low economic development regions,as a way to analyze the heterogeneity of social capital on environmental governance performance in regions with different levels of economic development.The main findings show the following:(1)There are four dimensions of social capital: social structure,social norms,social trust,and social network.Based on the correlation coefficient method,the explanatory power of the second-order model to the first-order four-factor perfectly correlated model reaches 93.8%,indicating that the second-order model of social capital can replace the first-order perfectly correlated model,thus verifying the four dimensions of measuring social capital.(2)Social capital has a positive and significant effect on environmental governance performance.In the mechanism of social capital on environmental governance performance,social structure improves environmental governance effectiveness by motivating and constraining individual behavior,social norms regulate individual participation in environmental governance through supervision and motivation,social trust improves environmental governance performance by enhancing cooperation and constraining individual behavior,and social networks promote individual participation in environmental governance activities through communication bridges,interest regulation,and information sharing,thus improving environmental governance effectiveness.Social networks promote individuals’ participation in environmental governance activities through communication bridges,benefit regulation and information sharing,thus improving the effectiveness of environmental governance.(3)Government participation and market participation have significant moderating effects on social capital’s influence on environmental governance performance.The government’s ability to regulate the economy,the degree of allocating social resources,and the level of marketization have a reinforcing role in the process of social capital influencing environmental governance performance,and government participation and market participation have a moderating role.(4)The influence mechanism of social capital on environmental governance performance is characterized by regional heterogeneity.There is a difference in the level of influence of social capital on environmental governance performance between regions with high economic development levels and regions with medium and low development levels,and there is no difference between regions with medium economic development levels and regions with low development levels.