Child: Care, Health and Development
Volume 42, Issue 5, 2016, Pages 750-758

Subjective well-being amongst migrant children in China: unravelling the roles of social support and identity integration (Article)

Ni S. , Chui C.H.-K.* , Ji X. , Jordan L. , Chan C.L.-W.
  • a Center for Social Work and Mental Health, Tsinghua University Graduate School at Shenzhen, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
  • b Department of Social Work and Social Administration, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  • c Department of Social Work and Social Administration, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  • d Department of Social Work and Social Administration, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  • e Department of Social Work and Social Administration, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Abstract

Background: Migrant children refer to rural children who accompany one or both parents to urban area. Empirical evidence showed that compared with their urban counterparts, migrant children had poorer developmental, emotional and psychological health. Method: A sample of 1306 migrant children were recruited to examine the characteristics of migrant children and investigate the effects of identity integration, support and socioeconomic factors (e.g. age, gender, type of school, family socioeconomic status, city type) on their subjective wellbeing. Results: Children with higher levels of identity integration, social support, family socioeconomic status, who attended public school and who lived in the third-tiered city of Weihai demonstrated better subjective wellbeing. Social support remained a strong predictor for subjective wellbeing, despite a significant mediating effect of identity integration. Conclusions: These results highlight the need for policymakers and practitioners alike to address individual factors pertaining to psychological adjustments, as well as social determinants of subjective wellbeing in the context of migration. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Author Keywords

Social support Identity Integration Rural-to-urban migrant children Subjective well-being

Index Keywords

[No Keywords available]
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84983003951&doi=10.1111%2fcch.12370&partnerID=40&md5=f9144e476da0b9af95105445b01a9cf4
DOI: 10.1111/cch.12370
ISSN: 03051862
Cited by: 12
Original Language: English