The Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Coupling and Coordination between Digital Transformation and the Maritime Economy

Yiwen Ou

doi:10.54097/aas0pt11

Authors

Yiwen Ou School of Accounting, Hebei University of Economics and Business, Shijiazhuang, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54097/aas0pt11

Keywords:

Digital economy; marine economy; coordination; kernel density estimation.

Abstract

In the context of the global wave of digitalization, fostering the deep integration and coordinated advancement of the marine economy with digital technologies has become a strategic necessity. Such integration is essential for unlocking the potential of the blue economy, strengthening the international competitiveness of marine industries, and supporting the long-term objective of building a strong maritime nation. From the perspective of coupling and coordination, this study develops an index framework to assess the interaction between digital economy transformation and the growth of the marine industry. Employing the entropy method and kernel density estimation, it investigates the spatial and temporal dynamics of their coupling coordination in China’s coastal cities from 2013 to 2022. The results show that the average coordination degree between the two systems was 0.525 during the research period.Significant regional disparities were observed: the Yangtze River Delta emerged as the leading region, followed by the Bohai Rim in a gradient pattern, while the southern coastal area demonstrated a polarized distribution with Guangdong standing out prominently. This research represents the first attempt to enrich the theoretical framework of the coupling-coordination relationship between digitalization and the marine economy, while also providing theoretical guidance and policy insights to advance their coordinated development in China’s coastal regions.

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