IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i17p7692-d1733247.html

The Differential Effects of Bidirectional Urban–Rural Mobility on Agricultural Economic Resilience: Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Jinjie Qiao

    (School of Economics and Management, Qiqihar University, Qiqihar 161006, China)

  • Xinrong Li

    (School of Economics and Management, Qiqihar University, Qiqihar 161006, China)

Abstract

The bidirectional flow of population between urban and rural areas, not limited to rural-to-urban migration, influences the sustainable development of agricultural economic resilience in multiple ways. This study employs panel data from 31 provincial-level regions in China spanning 2017–2022 to comprehensively examine the impact of bidirectional urban–rural mobility on diverse dimensions of agricultural economic resilience, while further investigating its underlying mechanisms. Benchmark regression shows that the bidirectional urban–rural mobility exerts a suppressive effect on the agricultural economic resilience. Mechanism analyses indicate that such mobility contributes to strengthening agricultural economic resilience by catalyzing land-scale operational efficiency and amplifying labor productivity gains and that the advancement of smart agriculture technologies effectively mitigates the inhibitory impacts of bidirectional mobility on agricultural economic resilience. Furthermore, according to heterogeneity analysis, the mobility exerts a suppressive effect on the resistance (Res.) and reconstruction (Recons.) of agricultural economic resilience, while concurrently enhancing its restoration (Rest.). Meanwhile, the bidirectional mobility has significantly impeded the agricultural economic resilience of the eastern, central, and western regions, as well as the primary grain-producing areas, production and marketing balance areas, and the primary grain-selling areas. Further investigation reveals that the reverse mobility has a positive effect on the resistance but a negative effect on its restoration and reconstruction.

Suggested Citation

  • Jinjie Qiao & Xinrong Li, 2025. "The Differential Effects of Bidirectional Urban–Rural Mobility on Agricultural Economic Resilience: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-25, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:17:p:7692-:d:1733247
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/17/7692/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/17/7692/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Todaro, Michael P, 1969. "A Model for Labor Migration and Urban Unemployment in Less Developed Countries," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 59(1), pages 138-148, March.
    2. Ling Zhu, 2011. "Food Security and Agricultural Changes in the Course of China's Urbanization," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 19(2), pages 40-59, March.
    3. Chenchen Ren & Xinyue Zhou & Chen Wang & Yaolin Guo & Yu Diao & Sisi Shen & Stefan Reis & Wanyue Li & Jianming Xu & Baojing Gu, 2023. "Ageing threatens sustainability of smallholder farming in China," Nature, Nature, vol. 616(7955), pages 96-103, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. repec:ilo:ilowps:361718 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Mohamed Amara & Hatem Jemmali, 2018. "Deciphering the Relationship Between Internal Migration and Regional Disparities in Tunisia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 135(1), pages 313-331, January.
    3. Ather Maqsood Ahmed & Ismail Sirageldin, 1993. "Socio-economic Determinants of Labour Mobility in Pakistan," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 32(2), pages 139-157.
    4. David P. Lindstrom & Silvia E. Giorguli-Saucedo, 2007. "The interrelationship of fertility, family maintenance and Mexico-U.S. Migration," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 17(28), pages 821-858.
    5. Albertini, Julien & Terriau, Anthony, 2019. "Informality over the life-cycle," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 182-202.
    6. Fidrmuc, Jan, 2001. "Migration and adjustment to shocks in transition economies," ZEI Working Papers B 23-2001, University of Bonn, ZEI - Center for European Integration Studies.
    7. Atsede Desta Tegegne & Marianne Penker, 2016. "Determinants of rural out-migration in Ethiopia: Who stays and who goes?," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 35(34), pages 1011-1044.
    8. Tineke Fokkema & Eralba Cela & Elena Ambrosetti, 2013. "Giving from the Heart or from the Ego? Motives behind Remittances of the Second Generation in Europe," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 539-572, September.
    9. Fidrmuc, Jan & Horvath, Julius & Fidrmuc, Jarko, 1999. "The Stability of Monetary Unions: Lessons from the Breakup of Czechoslovakia," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 753-781, December.
    10. Stark, Oded, 2021. "Reexamining the influence of conditional cash transfers on migration from a gendered lens: Comment," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 58(1), pages 379-381.
    11. Seksiri Niwattisaiwong & Komsan Suriya, 2018. "Margin of luck and value of information in lottery purchases in Thailand," RAIS Journal for Social Sciences, Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies, vol. 2(2), pages 1-11, December.
    12. Raymond Riezman & Ping Wang & Eric Bond, 2012. "Trade, Urbanization and Capital Accumulation in a Labor Surplus Economy," 2012 Meeting Papers 776, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    13. R. A. Dolzhenko & S. V. Lobova, 2021. "Factors of Youth Migration Behavior. Case Studies of the Siberian Federal District and Altai Krai," Regional Research of Russia, Springer, vol. 11(1), pages 40-47, January.
    14. Wei-Bin Zhang, 2008. "A Two-Sector Growth Model with Endogenous Human Capital and Amenities," Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems - scientific journal, Croatian Interdisciplinary Society Provider Homepage: http://indecs.eu, vol. 6(2), pages 95-116.
    15. Ziesemer, Thomas, 2009. "Remittances, lagged dependent variables and migration stocks as determinants of migration from developing countries," MERIT Working Papers 2009-007, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    16. Zhen Yang & Jun Lei & Jian-Gang Li, 2019. "Identifying the Determinants of Urbanization in Prefecture-Level Cities in China: A Quantitative Analysis Based on Spatial Production Theory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-18, February.
    17. Andrés Rodríguez-Pose & Tobias D. Ketterer, 2012. "Do Local Amenities Affect The Appeal Of Regions In Europe For Migrants?," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(4), pages 535-561, October.
    18. Jing Liu & Shaojun Chen, 2023. "Embedded Coexistence: Social Adaptation of Chinese Female White-Collar Workers in Japan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-17, January.
    19. Huiguang Chen & Wojciech J. Florkowski & Zhongyuan Liu, 2025. "Rural Migrant Workers in Urban China: Does Rural Land Still Matter?," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-22, April.
    20. Beth Mitchneck & David A. Plane, 1995. "Migration and the Quasi-labor Market in Russia," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 18(3), pages 267-288, July.
    21. Yamauchi, Futoshi, 2004. "Are experience and schooling complementary? Evidence from migrants' assimilation in the Bangkok labor market," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(2), pages 489-513, August.

    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:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:17:p:7692-:d:1733247. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.