Job changing frequency and experimental decisions: A field study of migrant workers in the manufacturing industry

• Published in: China economic review Vol. 85; p. 102162
• Main Authors: Li, Lingfang(Ivy), Wu, Yuting, Zhu, Xun, Chu, Rongwei, Hung, Iris W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 01.06.2024
• Subjects: Experiment; Job search; Job turnover; Migrant worker; Preference; Job search; J61; Preference; Experiment; C91; Migrant worker; D81; Job turnover
• ISSN: 1043-951X; 1873-7781
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2024.102162

Migrant workers form an important part of the labor force in the economic development of many countries. Their turnover decisions may affect the performance of manufacturing industries. It is therefore important to understand what kind of individual behavioral preferences affect their job changing frequency. In this study, a lab-in-the-field experiment was conducted through a large online-to-offline job-matching platform to elicit manufacturing migrant workers' preferences, such as uncertainty attitudes, intertemporal choices and social preferences, especially difference aversion. We found that subjects who were more risk seeking changed jobs more frequently. We also used job record data from the platform and conducted an empirical analysis to investigate one explanation for this result: risk-seeking subjects possess more optimistic expectations of potential job opportunities and are more likely to sample different jobs and thus generate higher job changing frequency. Our findings may help policy-makers and employers design policies or mechanisms to prevent excessive job-changing behavior. •This study explores the frequent job changes among migrant workers through a combination of lab-in-the-field experiments and online job record analysis. It compares the behaviors of migrant workers to MBA students, aiming to uncover unique patterns in migrants’ decision-making processes.•The experiments assess migrants’ attitudes towards risk, time, and social differences, revealing that risk-seeking individuals are more prone to switch jobs often. This tendency is attributed to their optimistic view of potential job prospects, leading them to explore various employment opportunities.•A suggested policy intervention is for factories to transparently share workplace and lifestyle information, potentially through videos, to help workers make informed decisions about their employment.