IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/telpol/v47y2023i10s0308596123001775.html

Digital economy and settlement intention of migrants in urban China

Author

Listed:
  • Ren, Jianyu
  • Xu, Zhitao
  • Hu, Mingzhi

Abstract

This paper utilizes data from the China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS) and the digital economy index at the city level to empirically examine the impact of the digital economy on migrants’ settlement intention. The results reveal a substantial enhancement in migrants' settlement intention due to the digital economy, and these findings remain robust when considering model misspecification, measurement error, and endogeneity of the digital economy. Furthermore, the digital economy contributes to migrants' settlement intention by fostering entrepreneurial activities and augmenting household income. Additionally, we find a significant and positive effect of the digital economy on the settlement intention of migrants with agricultural hukou, while no significant effect is observed for migrants with non-agricultural hukou. Overall, this study offers novel insights into strategies for promoting urbanization.

Suggested Citation

  • Ren, Jianyu & Xu, Zhitao & Hu, Mingzhi, 2023. "Digital economy and settlement intention of migrants in urban China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(10).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:telpol:v:47:y:2023:i:10:s0308596123001775
    DOI: 10.1016/j.telpol.2023.102666
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308596123001775
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.telpol.2023.102666?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christian Dustmann & Yoram Weiss, 2007. "Return Migration: Theory and Empirical Evidence," RFBerlin Discussion Paper Series 0702, ROCKWOOL Foundation Berlin (RFBerlin).
    2. Youqin Huang & Jianyu Ren, 2022. "Moving Toward an Inclusive Housing Policy?: Migrants’ Access to Subsidized Housing in Urban China," Housing Policy Debate, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(4-5), pages 579-606, July.
    3. Alan B. Krueger, 1993. "How Computers Have Changed the Wage Structure: Evidence from Microdata, 1984–1989," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 108(1), pages 33-60.
    4. Zhilin Liu & Yujun Wang & Ran Tao, 2013. "Social Capital and Migrant Housing Experiences in Urban China: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis," Housing Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(8), pages 1155-1174, November.
    5. Nathan Nunn & Nancy Qian, 2014. "US Food Aid and Civil Conflict," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(6), pages 1630-1666, June.
    6. Christian Dustmann & Yoram Weiss, 2007. "Return Migration: Theory and Empirical Evidence from the UK," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 45(2), pages 236-256, June.
    7. Karaivanov, Alexander, 2012. "Financial constraints and occupational choice in Thai villages," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 201-220.
    8. Zou, Jing & Deng, Xiaojun, 2022. "To inhibit or to promote: How does the digital economy affect urban migrant integration in China?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    9. Evans, David S & Jovanovic, Boyan, 1989. "An Estimated Model of Entrepreneurial Choice under Liquidity Constraints," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 97(4), pages 808-827, August.
    10. Peter Kuhn & Hani Mansour, 2014. "Is Internet Job Search Still Ineffective?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(581), pages 1213-1233, December.
    11. Roback, Jennifer, 1982. "Wages, Rents, and the Quality of Life," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 90(6), pages 1257-1278, December.
    12. Luo, Yu & Peng, Yuchao & Zeng, Lianyun, 2021. "Digital financial capability and entrepreneurial performance," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 55-74.
    13. Niu, Geng & Jin, XiaoShu & Wang, Qi & Zhou, Yang, 2022. "Broadband infrastructure and digital financial inclusion in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    14. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Lou, Runchi & Wang, Fuhao, 2023. "Digital financial inclusion and poverty alleviation: Evidence from the sustainable development of China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 418-434.
    15. Greaney, Theresa M. & Li, Yao, 2017. "Multinational enterprises and regional inequality in China," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 120-133.
    16. Wang, Weilong & Yang, Xiaodong & Cao, Jianhong & Bu, Wenchao & Dagestani, Abd Alwahed & Adebayo, Tomiwa Sunday & Dilanchiev, Azer & Ren, Siyu, 2022. "Energy internet, digital economy, and green economic growth: Evidence from China," Innovation and Green Development, Elsevier, vol. 1(2).
    17. Douglas S. Massey & Ilana Redstone Akresh, 2006. "Immigrant Intentions and Mobility in a Global Economy: The Attitudes and Behavior of Recently Arrived U.S. Immigrants," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(5), pages 954-971, December.
    18. Sun, Yang & Tang, Xinwei, 2022. "The impact of digital inclusive finance on sustainable economic growth in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    19. Emily Oster, 2019. "Unobservable Selection and Coefficient Stability: Theory and Evidence," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(2), pages 187-204, April.
    20. Afridi, Farzana & Li, Sherry Xin & Ren, Yufei, 2015. "Social identity and inequality: The impact of China's hukou system," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 17-29.
    21. Chen, Yang & Yang, Shengping & Li, Quan, 2022. "How does the development of digital financial inclusion affect the total factor productivity of listed companies? Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 47(PB).
    22. Douglas S. Massey & Ilana Redstone Akresh, 2006. "Immigrant Intentions and Mobility in a Global Economy: The Attitudes and Behavior of Recently Arrived U.S. Immigrants," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(s1), pages 954-971.
    23. Xue, Yan & Tang, Chang & Wu, Haitao & Liu, Jianmin & Hao, Yu, 2022. "The emerging driving force of energy consumption in China: Does digital economy development matter?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    24. Sa Xu & Cunyi Yang & Zhehao Huang & Pierre Failler, 2022. "Interaction between Digital Economy and Environmental Pollution: New Evidence from a Spatial Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-23, April.
    25. He, Yuan & Li, Ke & Wang, Yipan, 2022. "Crossing the digital divide: The impact of the digital economy on elderly individuals’ consumption upgrade in China," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    26. Amelie Constant & Douglas S. Massey, 2003. "Self-selection, earnings, and out-migration: A longitudinal study of immigrants to Germany," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 16(4), pages 631-653, November.
    27. Wu, Bangzheng & Yang, Weiguo, 2022. "Empirical test of the impact of the digital economy on China's employment structure," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    28. Ma, Dan & Zhu, Qing, 2022. "Innovation in emerging economies: Research on the digital economy driving high-quality green development," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 801-813.
    29. Guo, Bingnan & Wang, Yu & Zhang, Hao & Liang, Chunyan & Feng, Yu & Hu, Feng, 2023. "Impact of the digital economy on high-quality urban economic development: Evidence from Chinese cities," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    30. David Audretsch & Diana Heger & Tobias Veith, 2015. "Infrastructure and entrepreneurship," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 219-230, February.
    31. Lu, Jing & Xiao, Qinglan & Wang, Taoxuan, 2023. "Does the digital economy generate a gender dividend for female employment? Evidence from China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(6).
    32. Hu, Feng & Xu, Zhaoyuan & Chen, Yuyu, 2011. "Circular migration, or permanent stay? Evidence from China's rural-urban migration," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 64-74, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Xiaoxia Zhai & Yongmin Luo, 2025. "Can Urban Internet Development Attract Labor Force? Evidence from Chinese Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-16, January.
    2. Miao, Yongming & Li, Yaokuang & Wu, Yanrui, 2024. "Digital economy and economic competitive pressure on local governments: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    3. Qiong Zheng & Yingjuan Su & Changshuai Cao, 2026. "The Nonlinear and Spatial Effects of Digital Economy on Regional Green Development Efficiency: Empirical Evidence From 30 Provinces in China," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(1), pages 350-367, January.
    4. Wei Wang & Gai Luo & Xinzhi Gong & Yifan Lv, 2025. "Short-Term Pain but Long-Term Gain: Urban Financial Digitization and Rural Migrants’ Living Quality in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-21, September.
    5. Yongming Miao & Yaokuang Li & Yanrui Wu, 2024. "Digital economy and economic competitive pressure on local governments: Evidence from China," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 24-06, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    6. Yunxiao Dang & Dongsheng Zhan & Li Chen & Wenzhong Zhang, 2025. "Impact of urban satisfaction on settlement intention: Differences in household registration and city size," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 52(7), pages 1567-1584, September.
    7. Yu, Lingzheng & Wang, Jiannan & Lou, Shiyan & Wei, Xiahai, 2024. "To leave or to stay: Digital economy development and migrant workers’ location," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    8. Xu, Jingru & Yang, Baochen & Yuan, Chunlai, 2024. "Enhancing natural resource efficiency through digital government: Evidence from the utilization of energy, water, and land resources," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zhilin Liu & Yujun Wang & Shaowei Chen, 2017. "Does formal housing encourage settlement intention of rural migrants in Chinese cities? A structural equation model analysis," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 54(8), pages 1834-1850, June.
    2. Els Bekaert & Amelie F. Constant & Killian Foubert & Ilse Ruyssen, 2021. "Longing for Which Home: Evidence from Global Aspirations to Stay, Return or Migrate Onwards," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 21/1028, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    3. Amelie F. Constant, 2020. "Time-Space Dynamics of Return and Circular Migration: Theories and Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 8053, CESifo.
    4. Philippe Wanner, 2021. "Can Migrants’ Emigration Intentions Predict Their Actual Behaviors? Evidence from a Swiss Survey," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 1151-1179, September.
    5. Tao Xu, 2022. "The Effect of Health Change on Long-Term Settlement Intentions of International Immigrants in New Destination Countries: Evidence from Yiwu City in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(13), pages 1-18, June.
    6. Aurelian-Petruş PLOPEANU & Daniel HOMOCIANU, 2020. "Why would Romanian migrants from Western Europe return to their country of origin? Abstract: After conducting a survey among Romanian individuals left abroad, we analyze the particular influences relating to their intentions to return to their countr," Eastern Journal of European Studies, Centre for European Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, vol. 11, pages 211-235, June.
    7. Xuna Zhang & Jianluan Wu & Shijing Nan, 2025. "How does the digital economy reshape the geographical patterns of manufacturing enterprises? Empirical evidence from China," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-14, December.
    8. Yuqu Wang & Zehong Wang & Chunshan Zhou & Ying Liu & Song Liu, 2020. "On the Settlement of the Floating Population in the Pearl River Delta: Understanding the Factors of Permanent Settlement Intention versus Housing Purchase Actions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-20, November.
    9. Guo, Bingnan & Wang, Yu & Zhang, Hao & Liang, Chunyan & Feng, Yu & Hu, Feng, 2023. "Impact of the digital economy on high-quality urban economic development: Evidence from Chinese cities," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    10. Andreas Ette & Barbara Heß & Lenore Sauer, 2016. "Tackling Germany’s Demographic Skills Shortage: Permanent Settlement Intentions of the Recent Wave of Labour Migrants from Non-European Countries," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 429-448, May.
    11. Fan, Xiaoyan & Ding, Guoxuan & Long, Shuting & Dong, Yiran & Yan, Jiajun, 2025. "Digital divide or dividend? Exploring the impact of digital economy on regional gaps of high-quality economic development in China using relational data model," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    12. Tian, Lichuan & Sun, Kai & Yang, Jie & Zhao, Yang, 2024. "Does digital economy affect corporate ESG performance? New insights from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(PB), pages 964-980.
    13. Xiaoli Lu & Jingmin Zhu & Meng Zhou & Yilu Zhang, 2025. "Is digital economy the driving force for improving the tourism economic resilience? Evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(12), pages 30249-30286, December.
    14. Qu, Yingzi & Fan, Sha, 2024. "Is there a "Machine Substitution"? How does the digital economy reshape the employment structure in emerging market countries," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 48(4).
    15. Miao, Yongming & Li, Yaokuang & Wu, Yanrui, 2024. "Digital economy and economic competitive pressure on local governments: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    16. Cao, Yuqiang & Hu, Yong & Liu, Qian & Lu, Meiting & Shan, Yaowen, 2023. "Job creation or disruption? Unraveling the effects of smart city construction on corporate employment in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    17. Hongyang Yu & Jinchao Wang & Jiajun Xu & Binghao Ding, 2025. "Does digital economy agglomeration promote green economy efficiency? A spatial spillover and spatial heterogeneity perspective," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(3), pages 7379-7406, March.
    18. Shen, Hongshan & Qin, Mengyao & Li, Tianyi & Zhang, Xuan & Zhao, Yang, 2024. "Digital finance and industrial structure upgrading: Evidence from Chinese counties," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PB).
    19. Xue, Qihang & Wang, Huimin & Wei, Jian & Bai, Caiquan, 2024. "Does the digital economy improve female autonomy?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 193-207.
    20. Ezgi Kaya, 2025. "Differences in labour market outcomes between immigrant and UK‐born employees: evidence from linked data," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 127(4), pages 765-808, October.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:telpol:v:47:y:2023:i:10:s0308596123001775. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/30471/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.