Regional economic resilience in China: measurement and determinants

Resilience is system specific rather than shock specific. This study proposes a new measure of engineering resilience based on the theories of simple harmonic motion and regime switching, and it examines the determinants of resilience among China’s regional economies to the 2008 subprime crisis. Enhancing industrial diversity, human capital stock, trade openness and financial liberalization can improve economic resilience. Pre-crisis economic performance had a negative effect on regional economic resilience in China. More efforts are needed to enhance regional economic resilience in China by fostering entrepreneurship. The results provide information for policies to address external shocks and promote sustainable regional economic development.