Life Course Spatial Mobility: Micro-trajectories and Patterns of Rural Migrants and Returnees

Abstract

Since the 1980s, migration from rural to urban areas has become the main trend of population mobility in China. Existing quantitative studies often reduce population migration to cross-sectional aggregate data, thereby neglecting micro-level subjectivity, identity transformations, and the complex humanistic significance of the life course. To bridge this gap, this study adopts a micro-level life course perspective. Using the life history survey method, the research examines 33 rural migrants and returnees from Shuangfeng County, China. By employing a "triple biography" framework—encompassing socio-familial, migration, and occupational trajectories—this study reconstructs the participants' complete spatial mobility trajectories from their initial departure to their current residence. The findings reveal that rural migration is a highly dynamic and complex process. Individual migration trajectories are deeply intertwined with critical life events such as pursuing higher education, employment, and family formation. Based on the crossing of geographical and administrative boundaries, this study conceptualizes the spatial mobility trajectories into a fourfold typology: "Move up," "Move down," "Drift out," and "Shuttle". Specifically, "Move up" characterizes an upward regional shift driven by rational pursuits of better education and career prospects, predominantly among permanent migrants. "Move down" is primarily observed among returnees, representing a rational choice to relocate to smaller cities or hometowns after weighing life's pros and cons and securing a solid life foundation. "Drift out" reflects a pattern of multiple relocations across intra- and inter-provincial cities, characterized by a resolute determination to stay away from the hometown. Finally, "Shuttle" describes a fragmented, temporary mobility state in which individuals with unstable employment or income repeatedly move back and forth between their hometown and various cities. Through detailed qualitative cases, this research highlights the profound subjective nuances of population mobility. It provides micro-empirical evidence for understanding the spatial migration patterns of Chinese rural populations across different life stages and establishes a foundation for future inquiries into how emotional ties to places influence subsequent migration behaviors. A limitation of this study is that the sample consists of 33 respondents from a single village; covering more rural areas with population outflows would provide better micro-empirical evidence for spatial migration.