Case Studies
Sep 7, 2022

Unraveling the Geography of Intercity Flows of Migrants’ Hukou Conversion Intentions: A Spatial Econometric Origin-Destination Flow Analysis

Publication: Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 148, Issue 4

Abstract

Using the China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS) in 2017, this study constructs a network of intercity flows of hukou conversion intentions to analyze the geographical patterns and influencing factors of intercity hukou conversion intentions. A spatial econometric origin–destination flow model (spatial OD model) is employed to examine the effects of origin cities, destination cities, individual-level factors, and network autocorrelation among flows, improving the model performance by introducing the spatial dependence among origins and destinations. It reveals that Beijing and Shanghai act as the national hukou attraction centers, and cities with high hukou attractiveness are mainly distributed in the eastern coastal region and higher administrative levels. The network autocorrelation is embodied in the origin and destination dependence, impacting the unbalanced distribution of hukou conversion intention flows. The intercity flows of hukou conversion intentions are affected by the population sizes and socioeconomic factors of origin and destination cities, together with demographic attributes, social security conditions, and migration features. The unbalanced spatial pattern and the significant network autocorrelation of intercity hukou conversion intentions provide policy implications for China’s hukou system reform.

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Acknowledgments

This paper was funded by the Beijing Social Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 21JJC028). The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Go to Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 148Issue 4December 2022

History

Received: Oct 18, 2021
Accepted: Jun 7, 2022
Published online: Sep 7, 2022
Published in print: Dec 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Feb 7, 2023

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Associate Professor, School of Economics and Management, China Univ. of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China. Email: [email protected]
Postdoctoral Fellow, Dept. of Geography and Resource Management, Chinese Univ. of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China (corresponding author). ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1174-4940. Email: [email protected]
Master of Finance, School of Software and Microelctronics, Peking Univ., Beijing 100871, China. Email: [email protected]
Master of Finance, School of Software and Microelctronics, Peking Univ., Beijing 100871, China. Email: [email protected]
Junhui Wang [email protected]
Master’s Student, School of Economics and Management, Hebei Univ. of Technology, Tianjin 300130, China. Email: [email protected]

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