Table of Content

29 July 2021, Volume 45 Issue 4

Previous Issue    Next Issue

China's Population Governance Patterns in the Era of Governance Transformation

Hu Zhan, Peng Xizhe

2021, 45(4):  3-17. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (15798KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

Population governance is among the core themes of national and social governance. During China's contemporary governance transformation, its population governance transforms from “instrumental” to “inclusive” one. The governance tends to achieve a balance among three factors: national rationality, family discretion, and social autonomy. This tripartite model is a critical feature and a strength. Nonetheless, the governance mechanisms in China are confined to the tradition of adapting population changes to institutions. Certain inertia are hard to overcome and the efficacy is diminishing. To respond to the needs of governance transformation in the new era and adapt to the population changes, we need to adjust the understanding of the relationship between population and development, and also integrate two mechanisms—adapting population changes to institutions and adapting institutions to population changes. To maintain the strength of the tripartite model, we shall further establish a “Chinese approach” of population governance on the basis of new development opportunities.

Deviation between Fertility Desire and Fertility Behavior in China and the Effect of Family Support

Song Jian, Alimire·Alimu

2021, 45(4):  18-35. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (893KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

No consensus has been reached on the degree of deviation between fertility desire and behavior of childbearingage women and the effect of family support. Based on the data of National Population and Family Dynamic Monitoring Survey in 2019, this paper analyzes the deviation and explores the role of family support by constructing the concepts of “deviation degree” “deviation types” and “consistency level”. The results show that the deviation degree is 0.14 children on average, and the women with no deviation account for 85.45 percent in the sample. More than 40 percent of women at childbearing age have fertility desires and behaviors in accordance with the twochild policy requirements implemented at that time. All kinds of family support significantly increase the probability of having higher fertility desire than the behavior and help to fulfill their unsatisfied fertility desire for women aged over 40. Family support should be strengthened from all aspects to improve the consistency of fertility desire and behavior of childbearingage women.

The Prospect and Shape of Family Multi-generational Relationship Network in China: Based on the Analysis of Six Typical Families

Wu Fan, Wang Lin

2021, 45(4):  36-53. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (15058KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

China is at the late stage of modernization with rapid population ageing, in which multigenerational relationship family network has become normal. Multigeneration relationship family network has a richer meaning than the tradition definition of family, and is also functionally important. Based on the social network analysis, six typical families are studied. It is found that the physical space and virtual space of family network are overlapped, and the spatial dispersion does not cause the psychological separation among family members. The multigenerational relationship of family demonstrates a variety of network types including complete solidarity, double axis solidarity, basic solidarity, partial solidarity, and differentiation. The content and direction of family intergenerational support are diversified. The flow direction and amount of different resource types are dissimilar, and the center of family relationship network and the connection mode among generations are also different. The reciprocity of family intergenerational relationship does not happen immediately, and the reciprocity would be more meaningful when it spans over individual life cycle and family life cycle.

Spousal Alternative and Marriage Stability among Rural Migrant Workers in China

Li Weidong

2021, 45(4):  54-68. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (711KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

Using data from the Social Integration, Marriage and Family Survey in Guangzhou in 2016, this study investigates the influence of spouse alternative on marriage stability among rural migrant workers in China. Findings show that, first, the marriage market with more same sex than opposite sex in migration destinations would lower the level of female migrant workers' marriage stability, but does not have significant influence on male migrant workers' marriage stability. Second, the sex ratio imbalance in the migration origin places would increase the level of male migrant workers' marriage stability, but does not have significant influence on female migrant workers' marriage stability. Third, moving from mountainous areas would increase male migrant workers' marriage stability, but does not have significant influence on female migrant workers' marriage stability. The findings reveal that female migrant workers tend to dissolve their marriage, while male migrant workers tend to stay in their marriage in the context of gender imbalance and population migration.

From Separation to Reunion: An Analysis of the Familization of Migrants in China

Hu Xinqiang, Zhao Yufeng

2021, 45(4):  69-84. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (7252KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

This article analyzes the data of 2017 China Migrants Dynamic Survey, exploring the status of the familization of migrants in China. The research redefines the concept and types of the familization of migrants through three aspects, i.e., mobility mode, mobility process, and mobility result. It divides the migrant families into separate families and aggregate families according to the degree of familization. The study finds that the current Chinese migrant families are evolving from separation to reunion. The flow pattern of the Chinese migrants has shifted from singularity to diversification, presenting the characteristics of familybased mobility; the flow process follows three different sequences: “one of the spouses goes first” “husband and wife go first together”, and “other members go first”; and the flow path can be further divided as “separation” and “reunion” based on the husband and wife relationship and the parentchild relationship. These results demonstrate an overall family status of “more reunion and less separation”. An indepth investigation of the degree of familization of the migrants will help to grasp the basic status of the migrant families and provide important implications for urbanization of the migrants.

Education, Work Experience, and Job Quality of Migrant Workers

Liu Tao, Wang Dezheng

2021, 45(4):  85-99. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (13436KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

This paper examines the heterogeneous effects of education and work experience on job quality of migrant workers measured from income, working hours, and social insurance in Chinese cities. Results show that both the years of schooling and work experience are positively correlated with the overall job quality. The years of schooling affect all three dimensions of job quality, while work experience does not significantly influence working hours. The marginal returns to years of schooling are 9 times higher than those to work experience. Further, education has indirect effects on job quality through influencing occupational levels and formal/informal employment while work experience does not. Education not only fundamentally sets the starting point of job quality by influencing the attributes of migrant workers' first job, but also indirectly affects the further improvement of job quality as indicated by the significant differences between the returns to human capital (i.e. years of schooling and work experience) in jobs at different levels.

How Does Population Ageing Impact Technological Innovation in China?Evidence Based on System GMM Method and Dynamic Threshold Regression

Shen Ke, Li Yaning

2021, 45(4):  100-113. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (12164KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

Based on the dynamic panel data for 31 provinces in China between 2000 and 2018, this paper examines the heterogeneous impacts of population ageing on technological innovation. We apply the system GMM method and reveal a humpshaped relationship between population ageing and innovation. Moreover, as compared with incremental innovation, population ageing poses a more noticeable negative impact on radical innovation at an earlier stage. We further employ the dynamic threshold regression to explore the nonlinear relationship between ageing and technological innovation. The results confirm the threshold effect of urbanization. In other words, once urbanization is below 86%, population ageing inhibits innovation.Otherwise, it could promote innovation. Therefore, the urbanization process could efficiently attenuate the discouraging effect of ageing on innovation.

City Size Distribution and Economic Development:Is There a Certain Pattern?

Lu Yang

2021, 45(4):  114-128. 

Asbtract ( )   PDF (1427KB) ( )  

Related Articles | Metrics

We reexamine the relationship between the city size distribution and economic development of a country by using a new data set provided by Thomas Brinkhoff. We have made use of data on 118 countries in two census periods. The empirical results allow us to confirm that there is an invertedU shape between per capita of income and primacy index. There is a positive relationship between the primacy index and the economic development among the low income countries. However, there is a negative relationship between the two variables among high income countries. This paper also suggests that the central place theory has dominated influence on the city size distribution. Scale and agglomeration economies in production promote urban concentration while land rent and higher transport cost foster population dispersal. The results indicate that population dispersal will accompany with a countrys development and the population in primacy city of China will shrink in the future.