Shu Cai

Jinan University (Guangzhou, China) · Institute for Economic and Social Research

This study proposes a model of migration with liquidity constraints and empirically examines the impacts of credit access on migration using data from a randomized control trial for a village banking program in China. The program increases migration by household members in treatment villages, especially in villages with low levels of assets and hig...

Using a recent national dataset from the China Family Panel Studies, this study provides new evidence regarding the subjective well-being puzzle across multiple indicators among rural, migrant and urban populations in contemporary China. The results show that rural people on average have higher levels of life satisfaction than do migrants or urban...

This study investigates the impacts of a government-led microcredit program in China which was implemented at scale in poor rural areas with a randomized controlled trial (RCT). In contrast to recent RCT-based studies that found no evidence of significant increases in income from microcredit interventions, we find that the Chinese program significa...

This paper examines the effect of social participation on cognitive performance using data from a longitudinal survey of the elderly in China. It addresses the problem of endogenous participation by exploiting the variation in changes in social participation that are driven by changes in community service for social activities. The results show tha...

We examine the impact of export shocks proxied by destination countries’ tariffs on the postmiddle school enrollment of the rural population in China. We complement the literature by examining across-region spillover effects of export shocks through initial migration networks. We find that the reduction of export tariffs at both the local and migra...

This paper examines how the relative occupational status of parents in China shapes individuals' gender role attitudes. By leveraging the State-Owned Enterprise reform during the 1990s as a source of exogenous variation in occupational status, we employ an instrumental variable approach to identify the consequential impacts. Our findings reveal tha...

This paper examines the impact of having only one child on parental risk behaviors in a society where children serve as the bedrock for elderly support. Using variation in the One-Child Policy in China, we find that elderly parents with one child consistently show more risk avoidance behaviors in both health and finance domains. Moreover, the effec...

This paper examines the impact of children’s migration on the well-being of left-behind parents using panel data on experienced utility measured by the Day Reconstruction Method. Exploiting exogenous variation in exposure to employment shocks at migration destinations for identification, we find that left-behind parents experience lower utility whe...

This paper examines the wage differentials between local and migrant workers in the local labor markets of urban China by using unique data that survey both migrants and local residents from the same community. The results suggest that the wage differentials between the two groups can be explained entirely by differences in personal characteristics...

Over the past decades, China has witnessed a fast growth in urbanization promoted by massive flows of rural-to-urban migration. This study investigates the association between urbanization and the subjective well-being of migrant, rural, and urban populations, and also examines how urbanization affects the rural-urban difference in SWB. Using natio...

This paper examines the impact of children's migration on the well-being of left-behind parents by using panel data on experienced utility measured by the Day Reconstruction Method. Exploiting exogenous variation in exposure to employment shocks at migration destinations for identification, we find that left-behind parents experience lower utility...

This paper examines the long-term impact of early childhood conditions on cognitive function in old age. Using unique data from a longitudinal survey of Chinese elderly, we find that people with adverse childhood conditions measured by the paternal occupation, parental education, nutrition and medical conditions, not only have lower cognitive abili...

Previous research has found identity to be relevant for international migration, but has neglected internal mobility as in the case of the great Chinese migration. However, the context of the identities of migrants and their adaption in the migration process is likely to be quite different. The gap is closed by examining social assimilation and the...

Using unique longitudinal survey data that employed the Day Reconstruction Method to measure experienced utility (EU) in rural China, this study reveals striking differences in the trends for life satisfaction and EU. We find that reported life satisfaction changed little over the period from 2006 to 2009. However, EU increased significantly during...

This paper examines the effect of social participation on cognitive performance by using data from a longitudinal survey of Chinese elderly. It addresses the problem of endogenous participation by exploiting the variation in changes of social participation that are driven by change in community service for social activities. The results show that p...

This study evaluates the impact of a randomized control trial (RCT) in China that introduced externally funded village credit funds in poor, rural villages. In contrast to recent RCT-based studies that have failed to find evidence of significant increases in income from microfinance interventions, we find that the Chinese program significantly rais...

Using unique longitudinal survey data that employed the Day Reconstruction Method (DRM) to measure experienced utility in rural China, this study reveals striking differences in the trends for life satisfaction and experienced utility. Consistent with previous studies, we find that reported life satisfaction changed little over the period 2006 to 2...

We provide a new explanation for the stronger relationship between income and subjective wellbeing (SWB) found in cross-sectional versus panel studies based on the predictions of a rational expectations model of utility maximization with permanent and transitory income shocks. The model predicts that SWB is affected by unanticipated rather than ant...