%0 Journal Article
%T Assimilation of China¡¯s rural
%A Kayuet Liu
%A Zhenxiang Chen
%J Chinese Journal of Sociology
%@ 2057-1518
%D 2018
%R 10.1177/2057150X18764232
%X This study explores the multidimensional process of assimilation in rural-to-urban migration in China. We distinguish between (a) intrinsic acculturation¡ªthe adoption of values; (b) extrinsic acculturation¡ªthe adoption of observable traits such as language; and (c) structural assimilation¡ªthe achievement of socio-economic status comparable to that of locals. Cross-provincial analysis shows that there are substantial variations in the social and economic distances faced by migrants across provinces. Our novel acculturation/assimilation measures take into account the different cultural and socioeconomic distances faced by migrants with heterogeneous places of origin and destinations. Hypothetical measurement errors are used in a robust hierarchical regression analysis to assess the potential effect of self-selection. Analyses of the Chinese General Social Survey 2012¨C2013 show that extrinsic acculturation typically takes place later than structural assimilation, while intrinsic acculturation can fail to happen despite a long stay. Assimilation is not guaranteed; only some rural-to-urban migrants, particularly those with high levels of education, from families of high socio-economic status, and interacting with friends and neighbors, manage to assimilate across all three dimensions
%K Assimilation
%K acculturation
%K migration
%K rural-to-urban migrants
%K multidimensional process
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2057150X18764232