Leaving the Countryside: Rural-To-Urban Migration Decisions in China

• Published in: The American economic review Vol. 89; no. 2; pp. 281 - 286
• Main Author: Zhao, Yaohui
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Menasha, Wis American Economic Association 01.05.1999
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Agriculture; China; Comparative studies; Economic models; Economic theory; Farming; Farms; Farmworkers; History's Largest Labor Flow: Understanding China's Rural Migration; Households; Hypotheses; Internal migration; Labor force; Labor migration; Labor supply; Labour mobility; Manual workers; Migrant workers; Migration; Population movements; Preschool children; Property taxes; Regression analysis; Rural areas; Rural urban migration; Statistical significance; Taxation; Urban areas; Urbanization; Wage rates; Workforce; China

This study has explored the migration decisions of households in rural China using a household survey in Sichuan province. It answers two questions. First, what determines the migration decision? Second, is migration a temporary or a permanent choice for the household? Empirical results are consiste...