Digital Economy and Regional Tourism Development: The Mediating Role of Information Search from a Spatial Spillover Perspective

Although studies have confirmed the positive nexus between the growth of the digital economy and regional tourism development, little light has been shed on the mechanism in between. This research made the first attempt to identify the mechanism through which the digital economy affects regional tourism development with consideration of spatial spillover effects using China’s prefecture-level city multisource panel data from 2011 to 2019. The findings reveal that information search is a mediating channel through which the digital economy affects regional tourism development, with significant spillover effects. The spatial spillover effects of the digital economy on regional tourism development become stronger as the distance between cities increases. However, because of competition effects, the information search in neighboring regions may restrict tourism development in the focal region. Results from this study deepen our understanding of the relationship between the digital economy and regional tourism development, thus providing insights for policymakers on regional cooperation in the context of digitalization.