From Defense to Strategic Control: An Indicator Framework and DEMATEL–ISM Analysis of Sustainable Resilience in the NEV Industry Chain
Changping Zhao, Xiaojiang Xu, Qiang Di, Bill WangAgainst the background of global green transition and industrial chain restructuring, the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry chain faces systemic challenges, including high resource dependence, technological constraints, and geopolitical risks. It is therefore necessary to build a sustainable resilience framework that reflects security, controllability, green development, and long-term transformation. Drawing on the resource-based view, dynamic capability theory, institutional theory, and national innovation system theory, this study constructs an integrated indicator framework based on four-dimensional capabilities and a three-level structure. The framework includes four dimensions, namely resistance, adaptive recovery, autonomous controllability, and sustainable innovation, and three structural levels, namely the node, chain, and network levels. A total of 23 secondary indicators are developed. Using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory–Interpretive Structural Modeling (DEMATEL–ISM) method and scoring data from 15 industry experts, this study systematically examines the influence relationships and hierarchical structural relationships among the indicators. The results show that sustainable resilience in the NEV industry chain is not shaped by a single capability, but by the structural coordination among basic protection, adaptive recovery, autonomous controllability, and sustainable innovation. Autonomous controllability occupies a core linkage position in the framework, while network-level indicators provide important foundational support across different dimensions. This study further suggests that resilience improvement should move beyond short-term emergency response and place greater emphasis on long-term capability building, including supply security, coordinated recovery, technological autonomy, and green innovation governance. The findings provide theoretical insights and practical references for strengthening the security, controllability, and sustainability of the NEV industry chain.