title: Kinship matters: long-term mortality consequences of childhood migration, historical evidence from northeast China, 1792-1909*.
abstract: Unlike previous migration studies which mainly focus on individual migration, this article examines the long-term mortality consequences of childhood migration and resettlement. Using a unique Chinese historical population database, we trace 30,517 males from childhood onwards between 1792 and 1909, 542 of whom experienced childhood migration. We apply discrete-time event-history analysis and include a fixed effect of common grandfather to account for unobservable characteristics of the extended family. We also explore the influence of social networks on early-life migration experience by including kin network at destination. Our findings suggest that migration in childhood has substantial long-term effects on survivorship in later ages. From age 16 sui to 45 sui, kin network at destination mediates the negative effects of childhood migration and lowers mortality risks. Moreover, child migrants who survive to older ages subsequently experience lower mortality. Such findings contribute to a better understanding of the implications of social behavior and social context for human health.
authors.affiliation: Division of Social Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: sohdong@ust.hk.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: School of Humanities and Social Science, HKUST, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China; Jiangxi Visiting Scholar, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: James Z
authors.initials: JZ
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004641:Emigration and Immigration / Q000266:history* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005191:Family Characteristics; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000266:history* / Q000639:trends; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014171:Transients and Migrants / Q000266:history* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Childhood; China; Historical; Kinship; Long-Term; Migration; Mortality