Unraveling the Complexity of Rural Entrepreneurship: A Configurational Perspective of China’s County Entrepreneurial Ecosystems

The role of entrepreneurial ecosystems in promoting entrepreneurial activity in rural regions remains underexplored. This paper examines how entrepreneurial ecosystems influence entrepreneurial activity in rural regions, using a configuration perspective of entrepreneurial ecosystem theory. We apply a hybrid method of Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA) and Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) to 55 counties in Anhui Province, a representative agricultural region of China. The results reveal that: (1) none of the six ecosystem elements (government policies, development potential, financial services, human capital, technological capacity, and public services) are necessary for high entrepreneurial activity; (2) there are six configuration paths for high entrepreneurial activity, each with different core conditions and complementary factors; (3) there is a “hat paradox” phenomenon in the development of county entrepreneurial activities between national and non-national returning-to-hometown entrepreneurship demonstration counties; (4) all five configuration paths of non-high entrepreneurial activity lack the core condition of financial services; and (5) there are significant regional differences in achieving high entrepreneurial activity in the north, middle, and south Anhui. The paper provides theoretical and practical implications for enhancing county entrepreneurial ecosystems and invigorating regional entrepreneurial dynamism.