IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/chinae/v24y2016i3p105-122.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effects of Parental Migration on Mental Health of Left-behind Children: Evidence from Northwestern China

Author

Listed:
  • Yaojiang Shi
  • Yu Bai
  • Yanni Shen
  • Kaleigh Kenny
  • Scott Rozelle

Abstract

China's rapid development and urbanization have induced large numbers of rural residents to migrate from their homes in the countryside to urban areas in search of higher wages. It is estimated that there are more than 60 million “left-behind children” (LBC) remaining in the countryside after their parents migrate, typically living with surrogate caregivers. Extensive research has focused on the impact of parental out-migration on children's mental health, but less attention has been paid to the effects of parental return-migration. The present paper examines the changes in mental health before and after the parents of fourth and fifth grade students out-migrate or return-migrate. We draw on a panel dataset collected by the authors of more than 19000 students from 252 rural primary schools in northwestern China. Using DID and propensity score matching approaches, our results indicate that parental out-migration has a significant negative impact on the mental health of LBC, as they tend to exhibit higher levels of anxiety and lower levels of self-esteem. However, we find that parental return-migration has no significant effect on the mental health of LBC.

Suggested Citation

  • Yaojiang Shi & Yu Bai & Yanni Shen & Kaleigh Kenny & Scott Rozelle, 2016. "Effects of Parental Migration on Mental Health of Left-behind Children: Evidence from Northwestern China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 24(3), pages 105-122, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:chinae:v:24:y:2016:i:3:p:105-122
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/cwe.12161
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wang, Xiaobing & Liu, Chengfang & Zhang, Linxiu & Yue, Ai & Shi, Yaojiang & Chu, James & Rozelle, Scott, 2013. "Does financial aid help poor students succeed in college?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 27-43.
    2. Wu, Qiaobing & Lu, Deping & Kang, Mi, 2015. "Social capital and the mental health of children in rural China with different experiences of parental migration," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 270-277.
    3. A. Smith, Jeffrey & E. Todd, Petra, 2005. "Does matching overcome LaLonde's critique of nonexperimental estimators?," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 125(1-2), pages 305-353.
    4. Di Mo & Linxiu Zhang & Renfu Luo & Qinghe Qu & Weiming Huang & Jiafu Wang & Yajie Qiao & Matthew Boswell & Scott Rozelle, 2014. "Integrating computer-assisted learning into a regular curriculum: evidence from a randomised experiment in rural schools in Shaanxi," Journal of Development Effectiveness, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(3), pages 300-323, September.
    5. Lai, Fang & Luo, Renfu & Zhang, Linxiu & Huang, Xinzhe & Rozelle, Scott, 2015. "Does computer-assisted learning improve learning outcomes? Evidence from a randomized experiment in migrant schools in Beijing," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 34-48.
    6. Hu, Hongwei & Lu, Shuang & Huang, Chien-Chung, 2014. "The psychological and behavioral outcomes of migrant and left-behind children in China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 1-10.
    7. Xuefeng Zhan & Shaoping Li & Chengfang Liu & Linxiu Zhang, 2014. "Effect of Migration on Children's Self-esteem in Rural China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 22(4), pages 83-101, July.
    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. Wang, Miao & Sokol, Rebeccah & Luan, Hui & Perron, Brian E. & Victor, Bryan G. & Wu, Shiyou, 2020. "Mental health service interventions for left-behind children in mainland China: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    2. Siebert, W. Stanley & Wei, Xiangdong & Wong, Ho Lun & Zhou, Xiang, 2018. "Student Feedback, Parent-Teacher Communication, and Academic Performance: Experimental Evidence from Rural China," IZA Discussion Papers 11347, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Liu, Mengqi & Villa, Kira M., 2020. "Solution or isolation: Is boarding school a good solution for left-behind children in rural China?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    4. Yue Zhang & Xiaodong Zheng, 2022. "Internal migration and child health: An investigation of health disparities between migrant children and left-behind children in China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(3), pages 1-15, March.
    5. Wang, Yajun & Shen, Zheng & Liu, Wenhe & Liu, Yang & Tang, Bin, 2024. "Will the situation of Left-Behind children improve when their parents Return? evidence from China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    6. Huajun Wu & Zhiyong Cai & Qing Yan & Yi Yu & Ning Neil Yu, 2021. "The Impact of Childhood Left-Behind Experience on the Mental Health of Late Adolescents: Evidence from Chinese College Freshmen," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-12, March.
    7. Zheng, Xiaodong & Fang, Zuyi & Wang, Yajun & Fang, Xiangming, 2022. "When left-behind children become adults and parents: The long-term human capital consequences of parental absence in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    8. Chang, Fang & Jiang, Yuxi & Loyalka, Prashant & Chu, James & Shi, Yaojiang & Osborn, Annie & Rozelle, Scott, 2019. "Parental migration, educational achievement, and mental health of junior high school students in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 337-349.
    9. Bin Tang & Yue Wang & Yujuan Gao & Shijin Wu & Haoyang Li & Yang Chen & Yaojiang Shi, 2020. "The Effect of Boarding on the Mental Health of Primary School Students in Western Rural China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-17, November.
    10. Min Wu & Mengyun Jin & Luyao Zeng & Yihao Tian, 2022. "The Effects of Parental Migrant Work Experience on Labor Market Performance of Rural-Urban Migrants: Evidence from China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-18, September.
    11. Cameron, Lisa & Meng, Xin & Zhang, Dandan, 2022. "Does being “left–behind” in childhood lead to criminality in adulthood? Evidence from data on rural-urban migrants and prison inmates in China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 675-693.
    12. Huifeng Shi & Chunxia Zhao & Yan Dou & Xiaoqian Duan & Lingyan Yang & Yufeng Du & Xiaona Huang & Xiaoli Wang & Jingxu Zhang, 2020. "How parental migration affects early social–emotional development of left-behind children in rural China: a structural equation modeling analysis," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 65(9), pages 1711-1721, December.
    13. Sipei Xu & Jia Zhang, 2022. "Do Social Pensions Affect the Physical and Mental Health of Rural Children in China? An Intergenerational Care Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(7), pages 1-25, March.
    14. Zai Liang & Feinuo Sun, 2020. "The lasting impact of parental migration on children's education and health outcomes: The case of China," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 43(9), pages 217-244.
    15. Yu, Yanying & Chen, Kevin & Liu, Chengfang & Li, Shaoping, 2021. "Parental Migration and Children’s Dietary Diversity: Evidence from Rural China," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315017, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    16. Yue Wang & Honggen Zhu & Noshaba Aziz & Yu Liu, 2023. "Does Social Capital Improve the Effectiveness of Public Service? An Insight from Rural-to-Urban Migrants in China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 431-452, January.
    17. Xiao, Han & Zheng, Xinye & Xie, Lunyu, 2022. "Promoting pro-poor growth through infrastructure investment: Evidence from the Targeted Poverty Alleviation program in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    18. Nelsensius Klau Fauk & Alfonsa Liquory Seran & Paul Aylward & Lillian Mwanri & Paul Russell Ward, 2024. "Parental Migration and the Social and Mental Well-Being Challenges among Indonesian Left-Behind Children: A Qualitative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(6), pages 1-15, June.
    19. Huan Wang & Cody Abbey & Xinshu She & Scott Rozelle & Xiaochen Ma, 2021. "Association of Child Mental Health with Child and Family Characteristics in Rural China: A Cross-Sectional Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(10), pages 1-16, May.
    20. Tan, Chang & Zhao, Chunxia & Dou, Yan & Duan, Xiaoqian & Shi, Huifeng & Wang, Xiaoli & Huang, Xiaona & Zhang, Jingxu, 2020. "Caregivers’ depressive symptoms and social–emotional development of left-behind children under 3 years old in poor rural China: The mediating role of home environment," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    21. Yunsen Li & Guochang Zhao & Yunlu Li & Liang Luo, 2023. "School Boarding and Students’ Prosocial Behaviors: Evidence from Rural China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 31(3), pages 115-139, May.
    22. Ben Westmore, 2017. "Sharing the Benefits of China’s Growth by Providing Opportunities to All," Journal of International Commerce, Economics and Policy (JICEP), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 8(03), pages 1-33, October.
    23. Chen, Jie & Zhou, Qian, 2017. "City size and urban labor productivity in China: New evidence from spatial city-level panel data analysis," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 165-178.

    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. Yu Bai & Linxiu Zhang & Chengfang Liu & Yaojiang Shi & Di Mo & Scott Rozelle, 2018. "Effect of Parental Migration on the Academic Performance of Left Behind Children in North Western China," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 54(7), pages 1154-1170, July.
    2. Yue Ma & Robert W. Fairlie & Prashant Loyalka & Scott Rozelle, 2020. "Isolating the “Tech” from EdTech: Experimental Evidence on Computer Assisted Learning in China," NBER Working Papers 26953, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Cardim, Joana & Molina-Millán, Teresa & Vicente, Pedro C., 2023. "Can technology improve the classroom experience in primary education? An African experiment on a worldwide program," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    4. Eric Bettinger & Robert Fairlie & Anastasia Kapuza & Elena Kardanova & Prashant Loyalka & Andrey Zakharov, 2023. "Diminishing Marginal Returns to Computer‐Assisted Learning," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 42(2), pages 552-570, March.
    5. Karthik Muralidharan & Abhijeet Singh & Alejandro J. Ganimian, 2019. "Disrupting Education? Experimental Evidence on Technology-Aided Instruction in India," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(4), pages 1426-1460, April.
    6. Hong, Junjie & Liu, Wanlin & Zhang, Qing, 2024. "Closing the digital divide: The impact of teachers’ ICT use on student achievement in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(3), pages 697-713.
    7. Xiaochen He & Ruochen Zhang & Bin Zhu, 2022. "A Prospective Study on Resilience Among Children with Different Migrant and Left-behind Trajectories," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 15(6), pages 2065-2091, December.
    8. Bin Tang & Te-Tien Ting & Chyi-In Wu & Yue Ma & Di Mo & Wei-Ting Hung & Scott Rozelle, 2020. "The Impact of Online Computer Assisted Learning at Home for Disadvantaged Children in Taiwan: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-16, December.
    9. Mi Zhou & Xiaotong Sun & Li Huang & Guangsheng Zhang & Kaleigh Kenny & Hao Xue & Emma Auden & Scott Rozelle, 2018. "Parental Migration and Left-Behind Children’s Depressive Symptoms: Estimation Based on a Nationally-Representative Panel Dataset," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-13, May.
    10. Tan, Chang & Zhao, Chunxia & Dou, Yan & Duan, Xiaoqian & Shi, Huifeng & Wang, Xiaoli & Huang, Xiaona & Zhang, Jingxu, 2020. "Caregivers’ depressive symptoms and social–emotional development of left-behind children under 3 years old in poor rural China: The mediating role of home environment," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    11. Cui, Kunjie & To, Siu-ming, 2019. "Migrant status, social support, and bullying perpetration of children in mainland China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    12. Xiao Yu Zhuang & Daniel Fu Keung Wong, 2017. "Differential impacts of social support on mental health: A comparison study of Chinese rural-to-urban migrant adolescents and their urban counterparts in Beijing, China," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 63(1), pages 48-56, February.
    13. Wang, Jianxin & Yuan, Caiyun & Zhang, Qian & Houser, Daniel, 2023. "Parents’ absence harms norm obedience of girls more than boys," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 214(C), pages 17-29.
    14. James J. Heckman & Petra E. Todd, 2009. "A note on adapting propensity score matching and selection models to choice based samples," Econometrics Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 12(s1), pages 230-234, January.
    15. van de Walle, Dominique & Mu, Ren, 2007. "Fungibility and the flypaper effect of project aid: Micro-evidence for Vietnam," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(2), pages 667-685, November.
    16. Andrea Pufahl & Christoph R. Weiss, 2009. "Evaluating the effects of farm programmes: results from propensity score matching," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 36(1), pages 79-101, March.
    17. Robertson, Raymond, 2019. "Working Conditions, Transparency, and Compliance in Global Value Chains: Evidence from Better Work Jordan," IZA Discussion Papers 12794, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Yasuyuki Todo & Tomohiko Inui & Yuan Yuan, 2014. "Effects of Privatization on Exporting Decisions: Firm-level Evidence from Chinese State-owned Enterprises," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 56(4), pages 536-555, December.
    19. Do, Manh Hung & Nguyen, Trung Thanh & Grote, Ulrike, 2023. "Land consolidation, rice production, and agricultural transformation: Evidence from household panel data for Vietnam," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 157-173.
    20. Marcus Linder & Joakim Björkdahl & Daniel Ljungberg, 2014. "Environmental Orientation and Economic Performance: a Quasi‐experimental Study of Small Swedish Firms," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(5), pages 333-348, July.

    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:24:y:2016:i:3:p:105-122. 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.