This study aims to start from the macroscale of the megacity, explore a top-down operational technical path from the identification of community regeneration units as the evaluation objects to the BID priority intervention evaluation, and then propose differentiated community regeneration strategies based on the BID model. In the post-epidemic era, it is necessary for global megacities to take new measures in urban regeneration to respond to worldwide changes and challenges. As an innovative tool to promote central city revitalization, the BID model has played an important role in community transformation. In the context of the continuous decentralization of population and industry in China’s megacities, it is urgent to explore the technical path to apply the BID model to local community regeneration. Given the shortcomings of existing studies in the method to identify the scope of BID implementation and evaluate intervention priorities, this study takes Tianjin, a megacity in China, as an example and uses DBSCAN (density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise) and service area analysis to define the community regeneration units with commercial agglomeration characteristics as the objects. Then, the BID priority intervention evaluation system is constructed from the two measurement aspects of the intervention potential and the necessity of community regeneration to classify the BID intervention priorities of community regeneration units. The main conclusions are as follows: 1. When the DBSCAN analysis parameters take the minimum number of elements as 30 and the search distance as 120 m, the result is most suitable for identifying community units with commercial agglomeration of the study area; 2. Population vitality, especially working and residential population density, is the key factor affecting BID intervention potential, while road network density is an important indicator for determining the necessity of community regeneration; 3. Community regeneration units with high BID priority levels need to develop differentiated regeneration strategies combining their BID intervention potential, regeneration necessity characteristics, and location attributes. These conclusions can provide references for the governments of megacities to screen and establish BIDs.

As a neighborhood-scale derivative of the Business Improvement District (BID) model, the Neighborhood Business Improvement District (NBID) represents a collaborative governance framework aimed at fostering spontaneous urban regeneration. Its successful establishment critically depends on building consensus among diverse stakeholders during the preparatory phase. This study addresses a significant gap by investigating the psychological mechanisms that shape stakeholders’ willingness to engage in NBIDs prior to their formation. Employing an exploratory sequential mixed-methods approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews in the Tiyuan North Community (Tianjin) and the Yulin East Road Community (Chengdu). Insights from the qualitative phase informed a subsequent quantitative survey administered to 215 stakeholders in Tianjin. Data were analyzed using regression analysis and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results reveal that stakeholders’ performance expectations and collaborative willingness are significantly influenced by three core confidence factors: “Confidence in Authority Support (AS)” (particularly “Confidence in Council Representation”), “Confidence in Organization Capability (OC)” (especially “Confidence in Coordination Ability”), and “Confidence in Multi-party Collaboration.” Crucially, “Confidence in Enabling collaboration (MC_3)” itself acts as a key mediator, translating institutional trust into performance expectations. This study contributes a novel “Confidence–Expectation” framework to the literature on collective action and offers practical, context-sensitive insights for designing collaborative community governance structures aimed at sustainable urban regeneration in China and beyond.

Digital technologies are increasingly embedded in participatory urban design (PUD), reshaping how people communicate, visualize proposals, and negotiate decisions. These digitally mediated processes can influence participants’ subjective well-being (SWB) by shaping emotional experiences (e.g., satisfaction or frustration), social relations (e.g., belonging or conflict), and perceived agency during engagement. However, research on their implications for SWB remains fragmented and conceptually underdeveloped. This systematic review synthesizes 63 empirical studies published between 2010 and 2025 to examine what SWB-related outcomes have been reported, through which mechanisms digitally assisted PUD affects participants’ SWB, and under what conditions these effects occur. The analysis identifies four pathways linking digitally assisted PUD to SWB: (1) psychological and emotional change, (2) social capital building, (3) engagement through participation, and (4) agency and skill development. Reported outcomes (e.g., positive emotions, relationship building, collective learning, sense of agency, and place attachment) are mapped across five families of digital tools and three PUD process characteristics: degree of participation, participant group, and design-cycle stage. Findings show that digital tools can enhance SWB through multiple pathways, but may also introduce risks related to affordance, cognitive load, accessibility, and digital literacy. Outcomes are pathway-specific, uneven across groups, and shaped by contextual and methodological conditions. The paper proposes a conceptual framework to guide SWB-oriented PUD research, practice, and policy, and highlights the need for comparative, longitudinal, interdisciplinary, equity-focused, and mechanism-driven approaches.