Beyond Place Attachment: Land Attachment of Resettled Farmers in Jiangsu, China

Guoliang Xu, Yi Li, Iain Hay, Xiuqing Zou, Xiaosong Tu and Baoqiang Wang
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Guoliang Xu: School of Tourism and Urban Management, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Yi Li: School of Public Administration, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
Iain Hay: College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide SA 5001, Australia
Xiuqing Zou: School of Tourism and Urban Management, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Xiaosong Tu: School of Tourism and Urban Management, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Baoqiang Wang: School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-12

Abstract: This paper examines the concept of land attachment—a positive emotional relationship between a resettled farmer and his or her rural land—in the context of China’s rapid urbanization and the resultant huge number of resettled and landless farmers. It explores the nature of resettled farmers’ emotional relationships to rural land to reveal the kinds of land that are meaningful to famers’ lives, and the differences among different groups. The study’s conceptual framework was based on place attachment theory. Grounded theory was applied to analyze qualitative data obtained from in-depth interviews. The results show that land attachment can be divided into seven categories: landscape, lifestyle, land income, land rights, land rootedness, land culture, and villagers’ relationships. We also observed three categories of emotional relationships between resettled farmers and rural land: “reluctant to give up rural land and with land attachment”, “willing to give up rural land but with land attachment”, and “willing to give up rural land and without land attachment”. This study’s exploration of the concept of land attachment revealed that rural land is not merely an objective asset but that it also has a multidimensional existence, and may be the focus of subjective loss. The study also observed that it would be helpful to deepen understandings of the subjective loss experienced by resettled farmers as a result of land-requisition policies. Drawing from its findings, the paper concludes with suggestions supportive of the sustainable development of future policies and communities.

Keywords: place attachment; land attachment; resettled farmer; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:2:p:420-:d:197827

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