Abstract: In the implementation of rural revitalization projects, the self-interested rent-seeking, due to its self-interested characteristics, has attracted widespread attention from the society and become the focus of the government’s anti-corruption. Along with the continuous improvement of the anti-corruption system and the continuous improvement of the project management level, this kind of rent-seeking has been greatly reduced. While the altruistic rent-seeking has been ignored by the society and is spreading due to its altruistic characteristics, which has caused new hazards. The research based on S town in central China reveals that, compared with ordinary egoistic rent-seeking, the altruistic rent-seeking not only increases the risks of resource misallocation and inefficient use of rural vitalization projects, but also forms a demonstration effect to promote the official rank standard and the path dependence in rural development, thus damaging the credibility of the government. Its potential harm is greater and should be paid more attention by the government. Therefore, it is necessary to formulate reasonable strategies to reduce altruistic rent-seeking, effectively improve the efficiency and fairness of resource allocation in rural revitalization projects, restore government credibility, and enhance rural endogenous development capabilities according to China’s current national conditions from such aspects as establishing a people-oriented ideology and a sense of fairness, improving democracy and the rule of law, correcting the alienation of rural revitalization goals, and strengthening the supervision of rural revitalization projects, and so on.

Key words: rural revitalization, altruistic rent-seeking, demonstration effect