IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ibn/ijefaa/v10y2018i6p36-46.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Education of Left-Behind Children and Return Decisions of Migrant Workers in China

Author

Listed:
  • Jianhua Wang
  • Jia Wu

Abstract

This paper uses a dynamic survey data of China labor force to explore the impacts of child education on their parents¡¯ return decisions by means of constructing an empirical model. The migration situation of children is the basis for us to distinguish the sample migrant workers. And those migrants who migrate with their children and those who leave their children behind in their hometowns are the two types of migrants among this model which we will analyze in urban areas. The results show that the probability for migrant workers in urban areas to return to hometowns will significantly increase when their children are left behind at home. While these parents tend to stay in the cities which they work and live in when their left-behind children enter the school age. The data we use is from the China Labor Force Dynamics Survey and we establish a model to analyze the effects of left-behind children. The empirical results show that the probability for migrants to return to their hometowns will decrease by 20.8 % when their left-behind children enter the school age. To a large extent, the emergence of such a huge contrast may be the result of the optimal decision-making of migrant workers. And the phenomenon of large-scale ¡°migrant worker shortage¡± caused by such mechanism has intensified in the labor market of coastal cities. And most of these cities have implemented relevant stringent admission policies for migrant children to receive education in urban public schools and this break the intentions of the immigrant parents who plan to take the left-behind children to the cities to receive education in local schools. And these immigrants choose to return in the case of decline of the family net income.

Suggested Citation

  • Jianhua Wang & Jia Wu, 2018. "Education of Left-Behind Children and Return Decisions of Migrant Workers in China," International Journal of Economics and Finance, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 10(6), pages 36-46, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:ibn:ijefaa:v:10:y:2018:i:6:p:36-46
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/ijef/article/view/75062
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/ijef/article/view/75062
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Oded Stark, 1996. "On the Microeconomics of Return Migration," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: V. N. Balasubramanyam & D. Greenaway (ed.), Trade and Development, chapter 3, pages 32-41, Palgrave Macmillan.
    2. Denise Hare, 1999. "'Push' versus 'pull' factors in migration outflows and returns: Determinants of migration status and spell duration among China's rural population," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(3), pages 45-72.
    3. Jia Wu & Junsen Zhang, 2017. "The Effect of Parental Absence on Child Development in Rural China," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 12(1), pages 117-134, January.
    4. Antman, Francisca M., 2011. "The intergenerational effects of paternal migration on schooling and work: What can we learn from children's time allocations?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 200-208, November.
    5. Liu, Haiyong & Mroz, Thomas A. & van der Klaauw, Wilbert, 2010. "Maternal employment, migration, and child development," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 156(1), pages 212-228, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Guangzhong Cao & Ming Li & Yan Ma & Ran Tao, 2015. "Self-employment and intention of permanent urban settlement: Evidence from a survey of migrants in China’s four major urbanising areas," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 52(4), pages 639-664, March.
    2. Caballero, María Esther & Cadena, Brian C. & Kovak, Brian K., 2023. "The international transmission of local economic shocks through migrant networks," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    3. Zhen Yang & Xiangjun Ou & Huxiao Zhu, 2023. "Population Dynamics and Its Driving Forces in China from 2000 to 2020," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-17, June.
    4. LaFave, Daniel & Thomas, Duncan, 2017. "Extended families and child well-being," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 52-65.
    5. Fatimah, Alfariany Milati & Kofol, Chiara, 2023. "Migrating for children’s better future: Intergenerational mobility of internal migrants’ children in Indonesia," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    6. Costanza Biavaschi & Corrado Giulietti & Klaus F. Zimmermann, 2015. "Sibling Influence on the Human Capital of the Left-Behind," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 9(4), pages 403-438.
    7. Jia Wu & Junsen Zhang, 2017. "The Effect of Parental Absence on Child Development in Rural China," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 12(1), pages 117-134, January.
    8. Tiwari, Smriti, 2021. "Do macroeconomic fluctuations at destination matter in determining migrants’ return decisions?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    9. Peter Simmons & Yuanyuan Xie, 2013. "Three musketeers: A dynamic model of capital inflow (FDI), the real wage rate and the net migration flow with empirical application," Discussion Papers 13/28, Department of Economics, University of York.
    10. Narcisse Cha'Ngom & Christoph Deuster & Frédéric Docquier & Joël Machado, 2023. "Selective Migration and Economic Development: A Generalized Approach," LISER Working Paper Series 2023-06, Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER).
    11. Peter Kooreman, 2007. "Time, money, peers, and parents; some data and theories on teenage behavior," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 20(1), pages 9-33, February.
    12. Chakra P. Acharya & Roberto Leon-Gonzalez, 2016. "International Remittances, Rural-Urban Migration, and the Quest for Quality Education: The Case of Nepal," GRIPS Discussion Papers 15-25, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.
    13. Sylvie Démurger & Shi Li, 2013. "Migration, Remittances, and Rural Employment Patterns: Evidence from China," Research in Labor Economics, in: Labor Market Issues in China, pages 31-63, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    14. Chuanfeng Xie & Tao Li & Heping Liao & Xinan Chen & Tingting Zhou, 2024. "Impact of Public Health Emergencies on the Willingness of Rural Migrant Workers to Return Home: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-20, August.
    15. Herbst, Chris M. & Tekin, Erdal, 2010. "Child care subsidies and child development," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 618-638, August.
    16. Ylenia Brilli, 2022. "Mother’s Time Allocation, Childcare, and Child Cognitive Development," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 16(2), pages 233-272.
    17. Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, 2014. "The Impact of Parents Migration on the Well-being of Children Left Behind: Initial Evidence from Romania," IZA Discussion Papers 8225, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. repec:hal:wpaper:halshs-00744438 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Burfisher, Mary E. & Hanson, Kenneth & Hopkins, Jeffrey & Somwaru, Agapi, 2004. "Global Agriculural Reform and U.S. Agricultural Adjustment Capacity," Conference papers 331303, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    20. Samuel Berlinski & Maria Marta Ferreyra & Luca Flabbi & Juan David Martin, 2024. "Childcare Markets, Parental Labor Supply, and Child Development," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 132(6), pages 2113-2177.
    21. Xinxin Wang & Shidan Xu & Yubo Zhuo & Julian Chun-Chung Chow, 2023. "Higher Income but Lower Happiness with Left-Behind Experience? A Study of Long-Term Effects for China’s Migrants," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 18(1), pages 411-434, February.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    left-behind children; return migration; school age; stringent admission policies;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R00 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General - - - General
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

    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:ibn:ijefaa:v:10:y:2018:i:6:p:36-46. 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: Canadian Center of Science and Education (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cepflch.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.