The peculiar features of China's socialist transitional economy, including the coexistence of “plan” and “nonplan” mechanisms, the hukou institution, uneven spatial development, and gendered constraints and opportunities, have brought about a high degree of heterogeneity among population movements. Using the 1990 Census data on reasons for migration, and an empirical analysis of both national patterns and migration in Guangdong, I document the socioeconomic characteristics and spatial patterns of major types of migration, focusing on migration for employment in industry and business, male migration due to job transfer, and female marriage migration. I argue that the multitude of migration types, and the contrasts among them, are products of the combination of state-planning and market mechanisms. The findings highlight institutional explanations for migration, and show that the “plan”-“nonplan” dichotomy is more meaningful than the economic-social dichotomy for understanding population movements in China.
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