Land Transfer, Rural Identity and Migrant Workers’ Migration Intentions: An Empirical Analysis Based on Rural Household Survey Data in Henan Province
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Abstract Based on the rural household survey data from “Hundred Counties and Thousand Villages” project in Henan Province, the paper constructs a Probit model to empirically examine the impact and mechanism of land transfer on migrant workers’ willingness to migrate. The results show that land transfer can significantly enhance migrant workers’ migration intentions. This conclusion remains robust after a series of robustness checks and addressing potential endogenous issues. Heterogeneous analysis indicates that the land transfer rates at the village level more positively affect the migration willingness of migrant workers and rural households transferring land. Mechanism analysis reveals that land transfer indirectly enhances migrant workers’ willingness to migrate by reducing their sense of identity with rural education and living environment, and the mediating effect of identity with rural living environment is greater. Further analysis of the choice of relocation places demonstrates that migrant workers are most inclined to migrate to the county after land transfer. The conclusions help clarify how land transfer affects migrant workers’ migration willingness, offering crucial insights for formulating more systematic and coordinated policies to promote land transfer and migrant workers’ migration.
ZHANG Jianqiu,LIU Tao,GENG Mingzhai. Land Transfer, Rural Identity and Migrant Workers’ Migration Intentions: An Empirical Analysis Based on Rural Household Survey Data in Henan Province. Economic Survey, 2025, 42(4): 032.
2025, Vol. 42 
