Abstract: To further mitigate the degree of damage to resilient recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) columns under strong earthquakes, and to improve earthquake resistance and disaster mitigation capacity, engineered cementitious composites (ECC) were applied to their plastic hinge regions. Cyclic loading tests and numerical simulations of ECC-RAC composite columns were conducted. The influence of ECC in the plastic hinge region at the column bottom, stirrup ratio, and axial compression ratio on their hysteretic performance were analyzed. The research results show that the use of ECC in the plastic hinge region can significantly decrease the residual deformation of the columns, reduce the damage degree under large deformation conditions, and improve the peak bearing capacity and deformation capacity of the columns. When the horizontal displacement angle is less than 3.5%, both the residual displacement and crack width satisty repairable limits. Increasing the stirrup ratio and reducing the axial compression ratio can lessen the damage degree of the composite columns, and improve their repairable performance and energy dissipation capacity. Based on the results of finite element parameter analysis, it is recommended that the stirrup ratio be controlled between 1. 5% and 2.0%.