抄録
Rural transformation reflects the transition of rural areas from production-oriented spaces to multifunctional systems shaped by economic, social, ecological, and cultural interactions. This review synthesizes the theoretical evolution of rural transformation research and critically evaluates major analytical paradigms, including urban–rural restructuring, multifunctional development, sustainable livelihoods, spatial production, and social–ecological systems. Current research has advanced understanding of rural functional change, industrial restructuring, social reorganization, and spatial transformation, yet persistent divergences in conceptualization, mechanism explanation, and empirical approaches continue to hinder theoretical integration and comparative analysis across regions and scales. Particular attention is given to the interactions among globalization, institutional change, technological innovation, and urban–rural factor flows as key drivers of rural transformation. The review further highlights major challenges related to cross-scale integration, causal inference, social equity, and system resilience in the context of global change. By developing an integrated framework linking theoretical evolution, multidimensional dynamics, and driving mechanisms, this study identifies common patterns and explanatory pathways of rural transformation and advances a more coherent foundation for comparative and theory-building research.
https://ror.org/02n96ep67 
