Should I stay or should I go? Job demands' push and entrepreneurial resources' pull in Chinese migrant workers' return-home entrepreneurial intention

Abstract

This study explores how the push factor of job demands and the pull factor of entrepreneurial resources influence the intention of Chinese migrant workers to return to their hometown and engage in entrepreneurial activities. Data were collected from 302 Chinese migrant workers. The main findings are as follows: a) job demands can increase the return-home entrepreneurial intention of migrant workers through the mediation of job burnout; b) entrepreneurial resources can positively influence the return-home entrepreneurial intention of migrant workers through the mediation of entrepreneurial conviction; c) generation positively moderates the job demands – job burnout – entrepreneurial intention relationship and negatively moderates the entrepreneurial resources – entrepreneurial conviction – entrepreneurial intention relationship. This study reveals the importance of examining push and pull factors concurrently, and emphasizes the intergenerational differences in explaining the return-home entrepreneurial intention of Chinese migrant workers.