Migration Networks and Migration Processes: The Case of China

Zai Liang, University at Albany, State University of New York
Hideki Morooka, University at Albany, State University of New York

The main goal of our paper is to examine the role of migration networks in the case of China. Specifically, we focus on following issues that have received relatively less attention in the migration literature. One is to examine how the use of migration networks differs by individuals with different characteristics. For example, we expect highly educated individuals do not use migration networks as much as people with limited education. We examine the use of migration networks for people with different characteristics both in the context of migration departure (initiation of migration) and destination choice. We use data from the 1995 China 1% Population Sample Survey. Our results show that female migrants and migrants without hukou are more likely to rely on well-developed migration networks, whereas younger migrants and those with higher level of education are less likely to depend on migration networks.