Subjective Perception versus Objective Outcomes: Assessing the Impact of Smart City Pilots on Environmental Quality in China

Despite the widespread acceptance of the distinction between subjective interpretations and objective outcomes, discrepancies between subjective perceptions of environmental quality and objective environmental performance indicators remain relatively unexplored. Using rich micro-level data, we assess the impact of China’s smart city pilot projects on both objective and subjective environmental performance outcomes. Our results suggest that smart city solutions reduce environmental pollution. In addition to being significant and robust, this effect is mediated by the spread of digital technologies, as well as wider adoption of both clean energy-producing technologies and energy-saving solutions. However, smart city projects can also reinforce subjective perceptions of environmental degradation. We demonstrate that information transmission, measured using the level of educational attainment and internet use, as well as migration flows to and from smart cities play an important role in explaining the discrepancy between the objective outcomes and subjective interpretations involving environmental performance.