IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/chinae/v16y2008i2p50-65.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does Education Still Pay Off in Rural China: Revisit the Impact of Education on Off‐farm Employment and Wages

Author

Listed:
  • Haiqing Zhang
  • Linxiu Zhang
  • Renfu Luo
  • Qiang Li

Abstract

The present study considers how education affects off‐farm job participation and wages. We use a nationally representative dataset from a survey conducted in 5 provinces, 101 villages and 808 households by the authors in early 2005. The empirical results show that educational attainment, skill training and years of experience of rural residents have positive, statistically significant effects on off‐farm employment. The average return to a year of education is 7 percent, which is higher than those observed in previous studies. We also find the return to an additional year of schooling to be higher for post‐junior high schooling than for junior high and below schooling: 11.8 versus 3.2 percent. We conclude that not only does education still pays off in rural China, but also the rate of return to education is increasing over time.

Suggested Citation

  • Haiqing Zhang & Linxiu Zhang & Renfu Luo & Qiang Li, 2008. "Does Education Still Pay Off in Rural China: Revisit the Impact of Education on Off‐farm Employment and Wages," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 16(2), pages 50-65, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:chinae:v:16:y:2008:i:2:p:50-65
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-124X.2008.00106.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-124X.2008.00106.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1749-124X.2008.00106.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. William L. Parish & Xiaoye Zhe & Fang Li, "undated". "Nonfarm Work and Marketization of the Chinese Countryside," University of Chicago - Population Research Center 95-6, Chicago - Population Research Center.
    2. repec:bla:etrans:v:10:y:2002-11:i:3:p:659-688 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Zhang, Linxiu & Rozelle, Scott & Huang, Jikun, 2001. "Off-Farm Jobs and On-Farm Work in Periods of Boom and Bust in Rural China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 505-526, September.
    4. Rozelle Scott, 1994. "Rural Industrialization and Increasing Inequality: Emerging Patterns in China's Reforming Economy," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 362-391, December.
    5. Heckman, James J., 2005. "China's human capital investment," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 50-70.
    6. Zhao, Yaohui, 1999. "Labor Migration and Earnings Differences: The Case of Rural China," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 47(4), pages 767-782, July.
    7. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Introduction to "Schooling, Experience, and Earnings"," NBER Chapters, in: Schooling, Experience, and Earnings, pages 1-4, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Qiang Li & Alan de Brauw & Scott Rozelle & Linxiu Zhang, 2005. "Labor Market Emergence and Returns to Education in Rural China ," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 27(3), pages 418-424.
    9. de Brauw, Alan & Huang, Jikun & Rozelle, Scott & Zhang, Linxiu & Zhang, Yigang, 2002. "The Evolution of China's Rural Labor Markets During the Reforms," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 329-353, June.
    10. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling and Earnings," NBER Chapters, in: Schooling, Experience, and Earnings, pages 41-63, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling, Experience, and Earnings," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number minc74-1.
    12. Samuel P.S. Ho & Xiao–Yuan Dong & Paul Bowles & Fiona MacPhail, 2002. "Privatization and enterprise wage structures during transition: Evidence from rural industry in china," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 10(3), pages 659-688, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ge, Suqin & Yang, Dennis Tao, 2011. "Labor market developments in China: A neoclassical view," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 611-625.
    2. Sefa Awaworyi Churchill & Vinod Mishra, 2018. "Returns to education in China: a meta-analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(54), pages 5903-5919, November.
    3. 岩﨑, 一郎 & Iwasaki, Ichiro & 馬, 欣欣 & Ma, Xin Xin, 2019. "現代中国における男女賃金格差: メタ分析による接近," Discussion Paper Series 689, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    4. Qiuyi Huang & Xiaoping Zheng & Ruimei Wang, 2022. "The Impact of the Accessibility of Transportation Infrastructure on the Non-Farm Employment Choices of Rural Laborers: Empirical Analysis Based on China’s Micro Data," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-15, June.
    5. Hou, Linke & Wang, Xiaobing & Yu, Xiaohua, 2011. "Rational Expectation and Education Rewarding: The Case of Chinese Off-Farm Wage Employment," 2011 International Congress, August 30-September 2, 2011, Zurich, Switzerland 114530, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    6. Ichiro Iwasaki & Xinxin Ma, 2020. "Gender wage gap in China: a large meta-analysis," Journal for Labour Market Research, Springer;Institute for Employment Research/ Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), vol. 54(1), pages 1-19, December.
    7. Yunli Bai & Weidong Wang & Linxiu Zhang, 2018. "How Long Do Return Migrants Stay in Their Home Counties? Trends and Causes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-21, November.
    8. Wang, W., 2018. "Wage premium, functioning labor markets, and the role of education: Evidence from rural China," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 276942, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    9. Iwasaki, Ichiro & Ma, Xinxin, 2020. "Gender Wage Gap in China: A Large Meta-Analysis," CEI Research Paper Series 2020-5, Center for Economic Institutions, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    10. Weidong Wang & Yongqing Dong & Yunli Bai & Renfu Luo & Linxiu Zhang & Chengfang Liu & Spencer Hagist, 2020. "Returns to Education in Different Job Locations for Off-Farm Wage Employment: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-14, January.
    11. Qi Sun & Chao Fu & Yunli Bai & Ayub M. O. Oduor & Baodong Cheng, 2023. "Livelihood Diversification and Residents’ Welfare: Evidence from Maasai Mara National Reserve," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-21, February.
    12. Fangbin Qiao & Scott Rozelle & Linxiu Zhang & Yi Yao & Jian Zhang, 2015. "Impact of Childcare and Eldercare on Off-farm Activities in Rural China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 23(2), pages 100-120, March.
    13. Qi Sun & Yunli Bai & Chao Fu & Xiangbo Xu & Mingxing Sun & Baodong Cheng & Linxiu Zhang, 2022. "Heterogeneous Effects of Skill Training on Rural Livelihoods around Four Biosphere Reserves in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-22, September.
    14. Braga, Cicero & Neves, Mateus & Costa, Lorena, 2021. "Off-Farm Work and Income Inequality in Rural Brazil," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 314994, International Association of Agricultural Economists.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. C. Duvivier & S. Li & M.-F. Renard, 2013. "Are workers close to cities paid higher nonagricultural wages in rural China?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(30), pages 4308-4322, October.
    2. Chloé Duvivier Duvivier & Mary-Françoise Renard & Shi Li, 2012. "Are workers close to cities paid higher non-agricultural wages in rural China?," CERDI Working papers halshs-00673698, HAL.
    3. de Brauw, Alan & Rozelle, Scott, 2008. "Migration and household investment in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 320-335, June.
    4. Rizov, Marian & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2004. "Human capital, market imperfections, and labor reallocation in transition," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(4), pages 745-774, December.
    5. Schultz, T. Paul, 2003. "Human Resources in China: The Birth Quota, Returns to Schooling, and Migration," Center Discussion Papers 28437, Yale University, Economic Growth Center.
    6. Alan De Brauw & Scott Rozelle, 2008. "Reconciling the Returns to Education in Off‐Farm Wage Employment in Rural China," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(1), pages 57-71, February.
    7. Chunbing Xing, 2006. "Human Capital and Wage Determination in Different Ownerships, 1989-97," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2006-121, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    8. Chengfang Liu & Ye Li & Shaoping Li & Renfu Luo & Linxiu Zhang & Scott Rozelle & Spencer Hagist & Jack Hou, 2020. "The returns to education in rural China: Some new estimates," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 64(1), pages 189-208, January.
    9. Liu, C., 2018. "Reconciling Returns to Education in Off-Farm Wage Employment among Women in Rural China," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 276941, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    10. Dong, Xiao-yuan & Bowles, Paul, 2002. "Segmentation and discrimination in China's emerging industrial labor market," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 13(2-3), pages 170-196.
    11. Du, Yuxin & Teixeira, Aurora A.C., 2012. "A bibliometric account of Chinese economics research through the lens of the China Economic Review," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 743-762.
    12. Qiang Li & Alan de Brauw & Scott Rozelle & Linxiu Zhang, 2005. "Labor Market Emergence and Returns to Education in Rural China," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 27(3), pages 418-424.
    13. Hou, Linke & Wang, Xiaobing & Yu, Xiaohua, 2011. "Rational Expectation and Education Rewarding: The Case of Chinese Off-Farm Wage Employment," 2011 International Congress, August 30-September 2, 2011, Zurich, Switzerland 114530, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    14. Paul W. Miller & Barry R. Chiswick, 2002. "Immigrant earnings: Language skills, linguistic concentrations and the business cycle," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 15(1), pages 31-57.
    15. Katarzyna Growiec & Jakub Growiec, 2016. "Bridging Social Capital and Individual Earnings: Evidence for an Inverted U," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 127(2), pages 601-631, June.
    16. Kaspar W thrich, 2013. "Set Identification of Generalized Linear Predictors in the Presence of Non-Classical Measurement Errors," Diskussionsschriften dp1304, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    17. Schultz, T. Paul, 2009. "The Gender and Generational Consequences of the Demographic Transition and Population Policy: An Assessment of the Micro and Macro Linkages," Working Papers 71, Yale University, Department of Economics.
    18. Emanuela di Gropello, 2006. "Meeting the Challenges of Secondary Education in Latin America and East Asia : Improving Efficiency and Resource Mobilization," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7173.
    19. Aidis, Ruta & van Praag, Mirjam, 2007. "Illegal entrepreneurship experience: Does it make a difference for business performance and motivation?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 283-310, March.
    20. Benoit Dostie & Pierre Thomas Léger, 2014. "Firm-Sponsored Classroom Training: Is It Worth It for Older Workers?," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 40(4), pages 377-390, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:chinae:v:16:y:2008:i:2:p:50-65. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/iwepacn.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.