This thesis examines the migration selectivity of individuals in China in the late 1990s during the transition period from being a centrally planned economy to becoming a market-oriented one. It employs the micro data of China's fifth census conducted in 2000. In general, migration selectivity is determined by not only personal factors but also ecological attributes. Most notably, the institutional factors of the hukou system have led to a division of permanent migration versus temporary migration in China....[ Read more ]

This thesis examines the migration selectivity of individuals in China in the late 1990s during the transition period from being a centrally planned economy to becoming a market-oriented one. It employs the micro data of China's fifth census conducted in 2000. In general, migration selectivity is determined by not only personal factors but also ecological attributes. Most notably, the institutional factors of the hukou system have led to a division of permanent migration versus temporary migration in China.

This study integrates the economic theories of migration and the institutional approaches in a Chinese transitional context. At the individual level, the study reveals that Chinese migration remains a highly positive selection in terms of age and education due to the hukou division, contrary to the prediction of social capital theory and dual market theory for a less positive selective pattern. However, more females join the migration stream lending partial support to the latter two theories.

At the macro level, the risk factor exerts a significantly strong and positive effect on migration propensity for rural laborers, though the regional differences in economic opportunities also have a positive effect. In addition, migration stocks, the social network proxy, also have a significantly positive effect strong enough to weed out any potential migrants.