Harnessing government digital attention: Reducing carbon emissions through the pathways of digitalization

Identifying the digital pathway is important for promoting regional green development and attracting diverse market entities. Existing studies predominantly conceptualized digitalization as a static state rather than a dynamic process, and failed to explore how government digital initiatives influence green development through facilitating digital economy growth. The paper employs instrumental variable analysis, threshold regression, and causal mediation analysis to investigate impacts of government digital attention on green development, with a focus on the mediating role of digital economy. It finds digital attention can lower carbon emissions by stimulating digital economy growth, and robustness tests support these findings. The results reveal that the digitalization process, from digital attention to a digital economy, enhances green development. Therefore, governments should take a more proactive approach to engaging market players in the digital sector.