The Static and Dynamic Effects of Capital Factors on the Social Adaptation of Chinese Migrant Workers

Date01 December 2018
Published date01 December 2018
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12510
The Static and Dynamic Effects of Capital
Factors on the Social Adaptation of Chinese
Migrant Workers
Suyan Shen* , Mengying Xue*, Zhe Chen* and Fang Li*
ABSTRACT
The large inf‌lux of migrant workers from rural to urban areas indicates that their social adapta-
tion is an important issue in understanding Chinas urbanization. This article uses Colemans
capital theory to analyse data from the 2012 and 2014 China Labour Force Dynamic Survey
(CLDS), conducting a multiple linear regression model to study migrantseconomic, living
and cultural adaptations. The results are determined through analysis of the static and dynamic
effects of different capital factors. The static analysis results show that social adaptation can
be improved by increasing the accumulation of various types of capital, while the dynamic
analysis results show that social adaptation is a dynamic process. Optimizing the allocation of
the corresponding capital elements can speed up migrant workerssocial adaptation. Therefore,
the government must prioritize measures to improve and optimize migrant workerscapital
factors and promote their social adaptation, which will in turn accelerate urbanization in
China.
INTRODUCTION
Since the 1980s, both an imbalance in regional development and the deregulation of migration
policies have caused an inf‌lux of migration into China (Tao et al., 2014), and the movement of
migrating rural residents from less developed to more developed regions of China in search of job
opportunities. According to The 2016 Survey Report of Migrant Workers (National Bureau of
Statistics, 2016), the total number of migrant workers reached 282 million in 2016. This is an
increase of 4.24 million compared to 2015, or a growth rate of 1.5 per cent, 0.2 per cent higher
than that of previous years.
This unprecedented internal migration, driven by economic development (Gan et al., 2016),
has caused an increase in social conf‌lict and inequality (Lin et al., 2015). Migrant workers
must adapt to changing jobs and their new urban environments (Zhou and Yang, 2014). In
terms of institutional environment, Chinas household registration system (hukou), which
assigns rural or urban status to citizens, is a stratifying tool that shapes peoplessocial
rights (Lui, 2017). Under the restrictions of the hukou system, migrant workers cannot
obtain the same basic public services as urban residents, including social security, medical
services, and childrens education (Chan and Buckingham, 2008). Some scholars believe that
the hukou system has created an institutional boundary for the social integration of migrants
College of Public Administration, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing,
doi: 10.1111/imig.12510
©2018 The Authors
International Migration ©2018 IOM
International Migration Vol. 56 (6) 2018
ISS N 00 20- 7985 Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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