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

Rachel Connelly and Margaret Maurer-Fazio

No 9213, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: 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.

Keywords: left behind; elderly; rural; China; aging; living arrangements; at risk; migration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J12 J14 J21 J26 O53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 26 pages
Date: 2015-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-age, nep-cna and nep-mig
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Published - published in: China Economic Review, 2016, 37, 140 - 153

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