On Cultural Productivity In Regional Economic Development

Cultural productivity is another significant scientific subject after the productivity from science and technology which has been globally recognized. It is another great leap over people's understanding of culture's essence and function, elements of productivity development, and the connotation of national wealth under new condition. In recent documents and academic works of the CPC, such terms as "power of culture", "cultural productivity", etc, appear very frequently, which indicate the important influence that culture has on production of spiritual and material wealth in modern society.Culture and economy are co-related and inter-acted. Economy is the material basis for culture, while culture not only reflects the economic and political condition at certain stage, but also promotes or impedes the economic development and social progress through its counteraction. Culture is not only an indispensable resource, but also an important hidden impetus for economic development. Culture itself has become a new industry-cultural industry, which are directly involved in the process of economic development. Cultural products are important parts in modem national wealth. The trends of economy culturalization, cultural economization and integration of economy and culture have together created cultural economy. To develop cultural economy is a requirement of the scientific principle of development.In the spatial system of national economy, i.e. regional economy, culture exerts great influence on regional economic development with its extensive and profound penetrability. The cultural productivity in regional economic development is revealed on the one hand by the development of regional cultural industry, and on the other hand by its penetrability of culture into regional economic activities and material products. This thesis consists of seven chapters, which begins with one general introduction and follows six specific topics which discuss the cultural productivity in regional economic development from the following aspects:Firstly, cultural productivity plays an important role among all elements of regional economic development. In modern socialized production, cultural productivity refers to the ability to produce cultural products and to provide cultural services, and the function of cultural resources in the production of non-cultural products. Among all elements, culture is regarded as an indispensable fundamental element, as well as natural resources, ecologic environment and historical basis. It also penetrates with multiplier effect into such important elements as labor force, capital, technology, which becomes a powerful driving force for regional economic development. To introduce the cultural element into the study of regional economic research is of great theoretical and practical significance in the modern regional economics.Secondly, cultural resources have become an important kind of resources influencing regional economic growth. For different regions, their respective rich cultural resources are important parts of their social wealth and important drives to boost regional economy and strengthen their competitiveness. Cultural capital is characterized by its increasing returns to scale, and is a scarce element for realization of marginal increasing returns. Cultural capital has great influence on the formation of entrepreneur spirit and enterprise innovation. The investment of cultural capital speeds up regional economic growth. We should pay attention to the protection, development and transformation of regional cultural resources.Thirdly, the development of cultural industry promotes the evolution and optimization of the structure of regional industries. The cultural industry can definitely bring about financial growth and become a new point of growth for regional economy. In western countries, the cultural industry has become a leading industry in the development of national economy and regional economy. In China, the structural conflicts are apparent in the development of regional economy, and the regional development is unbalanced, the gap between different regions keeps increasing. In the process of solving such structural conflicts and narrowing regional gaps, it has become a successful practice in some less-developed regions to develop cultural industry and other relative industries.Fourthly, regional culture is a kind of productivity, which fosters and shapes related regions' individualities. As a feature cultural resource, regional culture influences other elements in regional development. Together with such elements, regional culture helps to produce featured products, famous brands and cultivates characteristic industries, thus form the specialized departments and pillar industries. As a combination of historical experience and modern ideologies, and guided by the core value system, regional culture influences the value orientation, behavior style and management theories, which assist to form various types of regional development modes; the regional cultural resources can be transformed into cultural capital and help form local cultural industry, creativity industry, tourist industry, and entertainment industry, and influence the structural change of regional industries.Fifthly, cultural exchange and recognition play important roles in promoting harmonious regional development. The opening of regions inevitably brings about economic and cultural exchange among regions. Only through exchange can mutual recognition be achieved, and only through mutual recognition, or mutual trust, can the economic ties and complementary relationships be established, so that a harmonious market environment can be created. Cultural exchange and recognition is a lubricant for economic relationship and cooperation. They can decrease risk costs and promote regional cooperation. They are also profitable for promoting self-innovation and self-development. Especially between coastal regions and western regions in China, the imbalanced cultural development is an important reason for the imbalanced regional economic development, thus we must promote the cultural exchange between coastal regions and western regions, and use the positive elements in coastal culture to promote the cultural innovation in western regions.Sixthly, enterprises are the units and basis of regional economy and enterprise culture is a kind of productivity. The economic significance of culture is very obvious in the field of micro-economy. Enterprise culture is in essence a kind of economic culture. For the production and management of enterprises, enterprise culture can improve efficiency and change the values of employees. It is the source of enterprise vigor, and it forms consumers' loyalty, guides the modes of economic activities, and reduces the production costs, operation costs and management costs. We should realize such functions of enterprise culture as guidance, unification, encouragement, and restraint, so as to promote the core competitiveness of enterprises, thus increase the regional economic power.Seventhly, cultural construction is an important part as well as a guarantee of Socialist New Rural Construction. This new guideline, namely, development of production, well off life standard, custom and civilization in the countryside, clean and tidy environment of the villages, and democratic administration, indicates the ways for the comprehensive development of rural economy, politics, community and culture, and the cultural construction is embodied by all aspects of the construction of a new socialist rural area. We should not only pay attention to the material life of farmers, but also to their cultural life. Promoting the cultural construction in rural areas is helpful for fostering new generations of farmers, and the economic development in rural areas. To promote the cultural construction in rural areas, we should not only cultivate new ideologies, new tradition, new environment and new life, but also quicken the development of cultural industries and cultural services. The key point in developing rural cultural industry is to promote the cultural bases, cultural personnel, cultural contents and modes of cultural activities. There is a long way to go, for the industrialization of rural culture is still a complex and systematic scheme.