Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
Home> Volumes> Volume CHR Vol.82> Article
Research Article

Social Identity and Settlement Intentions in Urban China: Evidence from CFPS 2014–2020

Linxi Ji Hong Kong Lingnan University*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

Based on micro-survey data from China, this paper systematically examines how social identity characteristics influence individuals' long-term and settlement intentions, focusing on the mechanisms of institutional and economic identities such as the hukou system and occupational structure. This paper considers housing assets as a proxy variable for long-term settlement capacity and uses a two-way fixed effects model to assess the impact of three core identity variables—urban hukou, full-time employment, and agricultural employment—on housing wealth. The results show that urban hukou significantly promotes housing asset accumulation, while agricultural occupations significantly inhibit this capacity. The effect of full-time employment status is unstable, possibly influenced by mobility factors. Further analysis of short-term settlement intentions reveals that both urban hukou and agricultural work positively influence individuals' residential choices, while the direction of the impact of full-time employment is heterogeneous. Furthermore, by introducing a moderation model for urban hukou and non-agricultural occupations, this paper reveals a complementary effect between identity characteristics, indicating that housing wealth accumulation capacity significantly increases and exhibits a complementary amplifying effect only when both are present. This paper expands the theoretical understanding of social identity and settlement behavior, emphasizing the nested relationship between institutional resources and occupational structure as one of the important mechanisms explaining social mobility and spatial governance in China.

Keywords: social identity; settlement intention; hukou system; occupational structure.
Published: September 24, 2025
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2025.NE27061
Volume: CHR Vol.82
pp. 28-40
Download PDF

References

  1. O. Stark and D. E. Bloom, "The new economics of labor migration, " The American Economic Review, vol. 75, no. 2, pp. 173-178, May 1985.
  2. Y. Sato, "Economic geography, fertility and migration, " Journal of Urban Economics, vol. 61, no. 2, pp. 372-387, Mar. 2007.
  3. R. A. Easterlin, "Effects of population growth on the economic development of developing countries, " The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, vol. 369, no. 1, pp. 98-108, Jan. 1967.
  4. National Institute of Urban Affairs, "Population agglomeration patterns in developing countries, " Technical Report, NIUA, New Delhi, India, 2023.
  5. E. B. Isaias, "Social effects of group migration between developing countries, " International Migration, vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 225-231, Jun. 1989.
  6. M. Davis, "Planet of slums, " New Perspectives Quarterly, vol. 30, no. 4, pp. 11-12, Fall 2013.
  7. A. Bertaud, "Order without design: How markets shape cities, " Town and Regional Planning, vol. 79, pp. 2-5, 2021.
  8. T. P. Caldeira, City of Walls: Crime, Segregation, and Citizenship in São Paulo. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2000.
  9. J. Holston, The Modernist City: An Anthropological Critique of Brasilia. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1989.
  10. V. Dupont, "Conflicting stakes and governance in the peripheries of large Indian metropolises—An introduction, " Cities, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 89-94, Apr. 2007.
  11. W. Zhai et al., "Examining supply-demand imbalances and social inequalities of regulating ecosystem services in high-density cities: A case study of Wuhan, China, " Ecological Indicators, vol. 146, 109810, Feb. 2023.
  12. J. R. Harris and M. P. Todaro, "Migration, unemployment and development: A two-sector analysis, " The American Economic Review, vol. 60, no. 1, pp. 126-142, Mar. 1970.
  13. D. Haim-Litevsky, R. Komemi, and L. Lipskaya-Velikovsky, "Sense of belonging, meaningful daily life participation, and well-being: Integrated investigation, " International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 20, no. 5, 4121, Mar. 2023.
  14. D. Abrams, "Social identity, psychology of, " in International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, N. J. Smelser and P. B. Baltes, Eds. Oxford: Pergamon, 2001, pp. 14306-14309.
  15. J. Shen, "Population migration, floating population, and urbanization in China: Reality, theory, and strategies, " Geographical Research, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 33-44, Jan. 2019.
  16. Y. Cui, "Urban identity and migrant workers' settlement intention: Evidence from China, " Social Sciences Research, vol. 41, no. 3, pp. 42-58, 2012.
  17. C. Liu, F. Ren, and Z. Fan, "The effect of urban experience on the settlement intention of rural migrants: Evidence from China, " Cities, vol. 135, 104124, Apr. 2024.
  18. T. Cheng and M. Selden, "The origins and social consequences of China's hukou system, " The China Quarterly, vol. 139, pp. 644-668, Sep. 1994.
  19. Y. Song, "What should economists know about the current Chinese hukou system?" China Economic Review, vol. 29, pp. 200-212, Jun. 2014.
  20. F. Afridi, S. X. Li, and Y. Ren, "Social identity and inequality: The impact of China's hukou system, " Journal of Public Economics, vol. 123, pp. 17-29, Mar. 2015.
  21. K. W. Chan and L. Zhang, "The hukou system and rural-urban migration in China: Processes and changes, " The China Quarterly, vol. 160, pp. 818-855, Dec. 1999.
  22. J. Pi and P. Zhang, "Hukou system reforms and skilled-unskilled wage inequality in China, " China Economic Review, vol. 41, pp. 90-103, Dec. 2016.
  23. A. Tyner and Y. Ren, "The hukou system, rural institutions, and migrant integration in China, " Journal of East Asian Studies, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 331-348, Nov. 2016.
  24. D. Laliberte-Rudman, "Linking occupation and identity: Lessons learned through qualitative exploration, " Journal of Occupational Science, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 12-19, Mar. 2002.
  25. Y. Ulfsdotter Eriksson and M. Linde, "'Being' or 'Doing' a profession: Work as a matter of social identity, " The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 33-43, 2014.
  26. S. Huot and D. L. Rudman, "The performances and places of identity: Conceptualizing intersections of occupation, identity and place in the process of migration, " Journal of Occupational Science, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 68-77, Jun. 2010.
  27. T. Hill, P. Kusev, and P. Van Schaik, "Choice under risk: How occupation influences preferences, " Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 10, 2003, Aug. 2019.
  28. J. P. Burns and W. Xiaoqi, "Civil service reform in China: Impacts on civil servants' behaviour, " The China Quarterly, vol. 201, pp. 58-78, Mar. 2010.
  29. S. He, Y. Liu, F. Wu, and C. Webster, "Social groups and housing differentiation in China's urban villages: An institutional interpretation, " Housing Studies, vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 671-691, Sep. 2010.
  30. X. Zhao, "Migrants and urban wage: Evidence from China's internal migration, " China Economic Review, vol. 61, 101287, Jun. 2020.
  31. B. E. Ashforth and F. Mael, "Social identity theory and the organization, " Academy of Management Review, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 20-39, Jan. 1989.
  32. M. S. Granovetter, "The strength of weak ties, " American Journal of Sociology, vol. 78, no. 6, pp. 1360-1380, May 1973.
  33. N. Lin, Social Capital: A Theory of Social Structure and Action, vol. 19. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002.