Do Social Pension and Family Support Affect Farmers’ Land Transfer? Evidence from China

Abstract

The issues of farmers’ old-age security and land use have long been the focus of Chinese scholars’ and governmental attention. Land transfer plays a vital role in promoting agricultural scale operations, adjusting agricultural structures, and improving land utilization, while the old-age security function of land is one of the important factors affecting land transfer. Based on the data of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), this study uses the probit and structural equation models to explore social pension and family support mechanisms and pathways with regard to farmers’ land transfer. The results show that: (1) Social pension has a significant negative effect on farmers’ rent-out land, but a significant positive effect on rent-in land. Compared to farmers who do not participate in the New Rural Pension System (NRPS), the probability of rent-out land for farmers who participated in NRPS decreased by 2.44%, and rent-in land increased by 2.26%. (2) Family support has a significant positive effect on farmers’ rent-out land, but a negative effect on rent-in land. (3) Agricultural labor time plays a mediating role in the effect of social pension and family support on both farmers’ rent-out land and rent-in land.