Arbeitspapier

Left Behind, At Risk, and Vulnerable Elders in Rural China: What the RUMIC Data Reveal about the Extent, Causes, and Consequences of Being Left Behind

Migration of any distance separates family members for long periods of time. In China, an institutional legacy continues to privilege the migration of working-age individuals who often leave children and elders behind in the rural areas. Up to now, the literature has treated children and elders analogously, labeling each group "left-behind". We argue that analysis of elder stayers needs to be more nuanced, distinguishing among differing groups of elders. Of these groups, those living alone without any adult children in the village are most at risk of negative consequences of migration, while those living with other non-migrant children are much less affected by migration. We find evidence, when focusing on the consequences of migration on elders, that an elder-centric analysis is preferable to a migrant-child-centric analysis.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 9213

Classification
Wirtschaft
Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure; Domestic Abuse
Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-labor Market Discrimination
Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
Retirement; Retirement Policies
Economywide Country Studies: Asia including Middle East
Subject
living arrangements
aging
China
rural
elderly
left behind
at risk
migration

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Connelly, Rachel
Maurer-Fazio, Margaret
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
(where)
Bonn
(when)
2015

Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET

Data provider

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Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Connelly, Rachel
  • Maurer-Fazio, Margaret
  • Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

Time of origin

  • 2015

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