Flowing sense of place: Perceptions of host city impacting on city attachment of rural-urban migrants in China

The increasing population mobility in the context of globalization has greatly reshaped people’s cognition and sentiment toward their places of residence. China has witnessed an unprecedented surge in internal migration from rural to urban areas since the mid-1980 s. However, limited by multiple barriers, rural-urban migrants in China face predicaments in establishing a psychological bond with their host cities. This study develops a conceptual framework that links rural-urban migrants’ urban experiences and attitudes toward both original and urban lifestyles to their city attachment. Using a nationwide survey and structural equation modeling, this study finds that (1) while willingness of social interaction with urban locals has a positive effect on the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants, perceived social exclusion depresses the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants. (2) Loyalty to one’s original lifestyle is not significantly associated with the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants, whereas preference for the urban lifestyle is positively associated with the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants. (3) Willingness of social interaction with urban locals and perceived social exclusion can affect the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants by influencing their attitudes toward the urban lifestyle. (4) perceived social exclusion is positively related to loyalty to the original lifestyle for rural-urban migrants from cities located in northern area of China, while it is negatively related to loyalty to the original lifestyle for rural-urban migrants from cities located in the central and southern areas. Our study broadens the research on the urban attachment of rural-urban migrants and suggests that migrants’ experiences in the host society and attitudes toward the lifestyle of the host society are significant in shaping their place attachment to the host society. Furthermore, the process by which rural-urban migrants form meaningful relations with the city can occur through the influence of urban experiences on attitudes toward the urban lifestyle.