Exploring residential mobility in Chinese cities: An empirical analysis of Guangzhou. (December 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Li, Si-ming; Mao, Sanqin
• Is Part Of: Urban studies. Volume 54:Number 16(2017:Dec.)
• Page Start: 3718
• Page End: 3737
• Publication Date: 2017-12
• Subjects: age cohorts -- Guangzhou -- life course -- residential mobility -- urban China; 年龄群、 -- 广州、 -- 人生、 -- 居住流动性、 -- 中国城市; Cities and towns -- Periodicals; City planning -- Periodicals; 307.1216
• DOI: 10.1177/0042098016679774
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0042-0980

Abstract

In this article we aim to extend the literature on residential decisions and relocation in Chinese cities by explicitly incorporating cohort or generation differences in an event-history analysis of residential mobility in the City of Guangzhou over the period 2000–2012, using data from a survey conducted at the end of 2012. The results reveal not only substantially higher mobility propensities for young adults than middle-aged individuals and senior citizens, but significant differential effects of major determinants such as hukou, educational attainment, membership of the Chinese Communist Party and birth of a child and child rearing, on housing consumption and residential relocation across age cohorts. We argue that such differences in mobility behaviour are attributable, to a significant extent, to the vastly different life experiences of and housing opportunities available to different age cohorts.