Chinese Migrants Research Articles

Transnational mobility and precarity in the shadow of pandemics: Chinese migrants in Africa

ABSTRACT Through the lens of the Covid-19 pandemic, this paper examines the conditions of and responses to (im)mobilities and precarity among Chinese migrants in Africa. It emphasizes a relational and relative understanding of mobility–immobility as well as precarity–agency within the broader context of transnational migration. The empirical findings are based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Chinese migrants living in Ethiopia, Zambia, Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone during the pandemic. The analysis reveals a reconfiguration of (im)mobilities, not only between China and African host countries but also across different African destinations. This interplay between mobility and immobility exposes the dilemmas Chinese migrants faced during the pandemic while shedding light on the precarious life-worlds they navigate even in normal times. Although the pandemic exacerbated the precarity of their already unstable lives, it has also created spaces for community support, entrepreneurial ventures, and critical reflections on their businesses practices and life plans.

Migration and linguistic integration: an investigation of Chinese immigrants’ language learning experience before moving to Africa

ABSTRACT The current study investigates the linguistic integration of Chinese immigrants, with a particular focus on their language learning experiences before migrating to Africa. As China’s presence in Africa grows, understanding how Chinese migrants prepare linguistically for their new environments becomes crucial. Through a mixed-methods approach, which include surveys and interviews conducted primarily in Cameroon, the research highlights the value of language skills for successful integration and examines the potential consequences of inadequate language proficiency. The study suggests that both Chinese and African governments should collaborate to encourage Chinese immigrants to learn destination languages even before migrating to Africa. This could be achieved by promoting proactive language acquisition initiatives, reevaluating language policies, and implementing standardised language testing. Emphasising the language learning experience is crucial not only for effective communication but also for reducing stereotypes and fostering deeper understanding and integration between the Chinese expatriate community and local populations. Providing language resources and support can greatly enhance crosscultural interactions and promote the harmonious coexistence of diverse Chinese communities across Africa.

Regulated Temporariness Reconsidered: Chinese Migrants in Japan and the Confluence of Policy, Infrastructure, and Transnational Factors

This paper examines how Japan’s immigration policies, the role of migration infrastructure, and pressures and expectations from the home country shape the regulated temporariness of Chinese migrants in Japan. It analyzes the regulated temporariness inherent in Japan’s visa system and considers how the uncertainty faced by temporary migrants intensifies their connections with China. The findings indicate that the migration infrastructure between China and Japan not only enhances migrants’ mobility but also restricts their freedom of choice. Furthermore, globalized social media and migrants’ connections to China transmit “pressure from China,” stemming from the two countries’ war history and the resultant political discourse, to Chinese migrants in Japan. The study reveals that migrant temporariness is not solely driven by migration entry and residence policies, as emphasized in existing migration research theories. Instead, migration infrastructure, historical relations between the two countries, and expectations for future development also shape migrants’ regulated temporariness. Migrants voluntarily enter into regulated temporariness, paradoxically achieving greater flexibility within this regulated state. This phenomenon demonstrates a blurred area between flexible temporariness and regulated temporariness, where both coexist rather than transitioning from one to the other. Consequently, it is necessary to expand our understanding of regulated temporariness, taking into account broader transnational factors and informal influences.

Unsettling Exiles: Chinese Migrants in Hong Kong and the Southern Periphery During the Cold War By Angelina Y. Chin. New York: Columbia University Press, 2023. xiii + 302 pp. $35.00 (paper)

Unsettling Exiles: Chinese Migrants in Hong Kong and the Southern Periphery During the Cold War By Angelina Y. Chin. New York: Columbia University Press, 2023. xiii + 302 pp. $35.00 (paper)

Prevalence of mental health conditions among government-relocated migrants in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Prevalence of mental health conditions among government-relocated migrants in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Double jeopardy? China’s minority migrant children in comparative perspective

ABSTRACT China has 125 million ethnic minority group members and an increasing number of minority children move to cities for better opportunities. Using data from the 2016 China Migrants Dynamic Survey and drawing on the theories of family migration, push-pull forces, and social capital, we compare migration patterns of minority and Han children in China. Results show minority children have a higher probability of joining migrant parents than Han children. However, this may not necessarily lead to more desirable outcomes. Due to limited urban educational resources and their special needs, many school-age minority migrant children work instead of attending school. They also tend to move to areas with higher minority concentrations, potentially reducing socioeconomic mobility. Compared to Han migrant children, who are already disadvantaged in many ways in urban China, ethnic minority children face additional challenges. This warrants increased attention from scholars and policymakers. While our measurement of ethnic networks has limitations and requires further research, our key conclusions about ethnic minority migrants are robust and well-supported.

Chinese Migrations to Australia and Their Economic Activity 1851-1900

Chinese Migrations to Australia and Their Economic Activity 1851-1900

Tracking the Trajectory and Predictors of Peritraumatic Distress among Chinese Migrants in Canada across the Three Years of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tracking the Trajectory and Predictors of Peritraumatic Distress among Chinese Migrants in Canada across the Three Years of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Research on the impact of land transfer out on the citizenship identity of migrant workers: evidence from China

Enhancing the citizenship identity (CI) of migrant workers (MW) is a crucial avenue for fostering the development of new urbanization. This paper, based on data from the China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS), examines the impact and mechanisms of land transfer out (LTO) on the CI of MW. The study finds that LTO significantly promotes the CI of MW. After addressing endogeneity issues and performing robustness checks, the conclusions remain significantly valid. Mechanism tests reveal that LTO can notably increase the degree of family reunification and boost total household income, both of which substantially elevate the CI of MW.

Linguistic racism and micro-aggressions in everyday encounters of African migrants in China: A challenge to the nation’s strategic vision for Africa?

Linguistic racism and microaggressions have their origins in the Western world, but their foci and methods are certainly applicable to any society in the age of global mobility. Drawing upon semi-structured interviews, observations and fieldnotes data informed by African migrants in China, this study expands these two notions in China – a country outside the centre and Anglosphere. I illustrate how linguistic racism manifested through shunning and social exclusion, as well as microaggressions practiced explicitly or implicitly in verbal interpersonal interactions. These verbal expressions often appeared subtle, innocuous, or even complimentary, yet they carried negative connotations, reminding the participants that they were linguistically and racially inferior to the Chinese. It is worth noting that the unequal and inequitable realities were perpetuated not only by those who were structurally privileged, but also by the victims’ acceptance, tolerance and complicity. This study, therefore, allows us to see an important, ongoing and often unnoticed social problem in China’s recent interactions with the world, highlighting the limitations of the Sino-African friendship rhetoric in addressing the challenges arising from the recent influx of African migrants to China. Implications for multicultural education and a society that honours diversity are discussed at the end of the article.

Spatial variations in health service utilization among migrant population: a perspective on health equity.

As health equity becomes a prioritized goal in global health policy, extensive research has revealed that socio-economic and geographical factors jointly exacerbate barriers to medical service access for both internal and international migrant populations, further accelerating existing health disparities. This study explores healthcare service utilization disparities among internal migrants in China, a population profoundly affected by the country's economic reforms and urbanization since the late 1970s. These transformations have led to significant migratory movements and subsequent healthcare challenges for these populations. Leveraging data from the 2017 China Migrant Dynamic Survey, comprising 169,989 samples across 28 provinces, we introduce a novel metric-the "No Treatment ratio" (NT-ratio). This ratio quantifies the proportion of migrants who, after falling ill, choose not to seek treatment relative to the total migrant population in a given province or region, serving as a critical measure of health risk. Building upon Anderson's Behavioral Model of Health Services Use, we adapted the model to better reflect the unique circumstances of migrant populations. The study employs spatial autocorrelation, hotspot analysis, and geodetector techniques to dissect the multifaceted factors influencing healthcare disparities. Our Findings reveal that the NT-ratio is significantly higher in eastern and northeastern China. Key factors influencing the NT-ratio include age, left-behind experiences, health education, and per capita medical resources. In response to these disparities, we recommend optimizing the distribution of medical resource, strengthening tiered diagnosis and treatment systems, and integrating health, education, and social security resources. These measures aim to improve healthcare utilization among migrant populations and reduce health inequities, aligning with global health objectives.

Older Chinese migrants’ social connectedness in Aotearoa New Zealand during Covid-19

INTRODUCTION: The Covid-19 pandemic potentially increased loneliness among older Chinese migrants. There is a paucity of literature on the use of digital technology by this older population in Aotearoa New Zealand. Computer-mediated communication may assist in ameliorating loneliness through maintaining connections. METHOD: Using semi-structured interviews, two groups of participants were recruited from a social work agency serving older adults in a small study conducted in Aotearoa New Zealand. Three community social workers who work with this population were interviewed along with five older Chinese migrants. FINDINGS: Community social workers recognised the potential for digital technology to enhance connectedness for older migrants, although they were concerned by the barriers posed by skills, confidence, and language. The older migrants did not report loneliness and reported good social connections. Having time available to learn new skills, most older participants embraced digital technology, with some concerns about the possible risks of using digital platforms, a concern shared by social workers. IMPLICATIONS: The impact of Covid-19 globally changed how people could interact with one another and carry out daily routines. This small study confirms the potential for enhanced connections for older migrants, particularly under pandemic conditions utilising communications technology.

Aging With Emerging Social Welfare and Disappearing Filial Piety: Chinese Migrant Workers' Pathways Toward Financial Retirement Planning.

This study examines the pathways and mechanisms linking Chinese migrant workers' migration experiences and their financial retirement planning. Using a mixed-methods approach with 1083 surveys and 32 interviews, this study finds that having a good financial status and social support system and maintaining a hopeful attitude toward retirement are direct pathways toward good financial retirement planning. Good health and hope for retirement are further enhanced by a good financial status and social support. Conversely, poor health and negative employment experiences are linked to poor financial retirement planning. The qualitative findings provide a contextual understanding of the pathways identified in the quantitative analyses. Migrant workers often face a dilemma between self-reliance for retirement and relying on filial piety. These findings apply not only to Chinese migrant workers but also to all migrant workers with limited access to healthcare and public pensions for retirement.

Unravelling National Time: Chinese Voices and the Re-ordering of Australian History

Where are Chinese Australians in Australian history? Australia’s Chinese past is persistently framed as ‘forgotten’ in public debate, a perpetual newness which ignores forty years of scholarship in the field. Contemporary works on Sino-Australian relations proliferate, resurrecting Cold War mentalities but avoiding Australia’s colonial history of Chinese migration and settlement. This article accounts for this forgetfulness while also drawing attention to a spate of recently unearthed Chinese-language sources written by Chinese Australians. These sources, newly translated, invite us to see Australia’s past in a Chinese context, revealing a propensity in Australia to organise historical time along European lines, obscuring ties of causality between events in Asia and Australia. Multilingual archives challenge the primacy of English-language sources in the narration of Australia’s past, humanising Chinese Australians and destabilising China as the proxy for Australian security fears.

The impact of China's residence permit system on the floating population's willingness to settle in cities

China's residence permit system is the focus of the nation's household registration system reform and a crucial aspect of promoting the new people-centered urbanization. Based on the China Migrants Dynamic Survey, this study uses the probit regression model to investigate the impact of the residence permit system on the floating population's willingness to settle in cities and examines the moderating effect of local government's financial resources. The results show that the residence permit system has a significant promoting effect on the migrants’ willingness to settle. And local government financial resources can strengthen the effect of the residence permit system on the willingness to settle. Additional exploration shows that the residence permit system can enhance the willingness of floating populations to settle in urban areas by increasing their income and consumption levels. Heterogeneity analysis shows that for non-agricultural household registration, high-education, high-income, and interprovincial migrating groups, the incentive effect of the residence permit system is more stronger. Based on the findings, while improving the residence permit system and expanding its coverage groups, transfer payments from the central government to local governments should be increased to effectively improve the value of residence permits, promote the floating population's settlement in cities, and advance China's new urbanization.

Homelessness and migration: The geography of homeless migrants in China

AbstractHomeless people have become more visible in China in recent years. However, research on Chinese homelessness in general and homeless migrants in particular is still very limited. Based on the China Migrants Dynamic Survey, this pioneering exploration of the geography of homeless migrants in China arrives at three conclusions. First, although homeless migrants are often scorned as an underclass of derelict drifters, the majority are educated, married, and employed, sometimes temporarily. Second, although most homeless migrants congregate in the most developed coastal regions, the number of homeless migrants as a proportion of total migrants is relatively high in some remote provinces, with significant numbers residing in rural areas. Third, in addition to the three established drivers: the housing market, economic opportunity, and social support, prejudice towards the homeless is shown to be an important factor in the concentration of homeless migrants and their exclusion from urban society. This paper contributes to an understanding of homeless migrants in China and the factors accounting for their spatial distribution.

Regions of Italy in Context of Italian-Chinese Relations in 21st Century

This study examines the development of transregional relations between the regions of Italy and those of China, including the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau. It highlights the interplay between centrifugal and centripetal tendencies within the framework of Italy’s ‘center — regions’ relationship system. The analysis provides insights into the normative foundations of international and foreign policy activities of Italy’s territorial communities, grounded in the national Constitution and relevant legislation. The findings demonstrate that Italian regions possess very limited capabilities for independent foreign and economic policy initiatives, a restriction stemming from the Italian Constitution, which permits regional cooperation only in the realms of economy and culture. In contrast, among the regions of China, only Hong Kong and Macau exhibit the capacity for autonomous external activities. Furthermore, it is revealed that Chinese migrants in Italy play a significant role in fostering Italian-Chinese interregional ties, maintaining connections with their homeland. The study concludes that Italian regions are notably less active internationally compared to regions in other EU countries.

Migrants from China and Vietnam in South Ural Region (1991–2014)

This article addresses the formation of Chinese and Vietnamese migrant communities in major cities of the South Ural region during the post-Soviet period. The authors focus on Chelyabinsk and Magnitogorsk, as these cities have hosted functioning Chinese (in Chelyabinsk) and Vietnamese (in Magnitogorsk) markets for an extended period. The manuscript’s source base consists of archival materials from the State Archive of the Russian Federation, the Unified State Archive of Chelyabinsk Region, as well as texts from regional periodicals. Methodologically, the authors draw upon mobility theory and the concept of the right to the city. By utilizing these sources, the study traces how migration from Southeast Asian countries to the South Ural region evolved, how migrants adapted to changes in the national context, and how they navigated new social niches, demonstrating flexibility in modernizing and reorienting their infrastructure — from predominantly marketbased trading to agriculture, among other sectors. Although Chinese and Vietnamese migrants are not numerous today, the institutions established by the first wave of post-Soviet migration continue to operate.

Get out of life on the edge: The role of urban public health services on migrants’ social integration in China

AbstractPublic health services for migrants are not only related to their health status, but also crucial to their social integration in the host cities. Using data from the 2017 China Migrants Dynamic Survey, we examine the impacts of urban public health services on migrants’ social integration. We find a positive correlation between the accessibility of public health services among migrants and their social integration. Research on the mechanisms reveals that obtaining public health services contribute to social integration by improving migrants’ health status, fostering the alignment of hygiene practices with those of local residents and promoting family migration. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the positive impact of public health services on social integration is notably pronounced among migrants engaged in informal employment, lacking social security, holding rural hukou and having a relatively brief duration of residence in the host cities. This paper presents valuable insights into migrants’ social integration which is a critical issue for policymakers. By improving the accessibility of public health services, migrants will better integrate into host cities. The findings may be instructive for promoting urbanization in China and other countries.

Impact of city size on self-employment behavior: Evidence from Chinese migrants

Self-employment is an important approach for migrants to gain a foothold in cities and improve their economic and social welfare. This study investigates the relationship between city size and migrants’ self-employment behavior using data from the 2011–2018 CMDS and macro-statistical sources. We find that in the Chinese context, larger cities correlate with an increased likelihood of migrants engaging in self-employment. These results persist under various methodological checks, including alternative estimation methods, sample screening techniques, and addressing concerns about endogeneity. Market potential and diversified agglomeration emerge as important channels through which larger cities encourage migrants’ decisions to pursue self-employment. Moreover, the positive impact of larger cities is more pronounced among rural-to-urban migrants and own-account workers compared to urban-to-urban migrants and employers. This paper provides insights into high-quality development and migrant management strategies in large cities in China.