Off-farm employment experience triggers heterogeneity of exiting part-time farming in rural China
China Agricultural Economic Review
ISSN: 1756-137X
Article publication date: 15 February 2022
Issue publication date: 9 August 2022
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the occupational specialization in rural labor market by analyzing the nature of part-time farming in rural China and estimating the impact of off-farm experience on the individual’s persistence and exit of part-time farming as well as its heterogeneity.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the panel data collected in 100 villages and 2,000 households across five provinces in 2008, 2012 and 2016, this study provides insights on the nature of part-time farming in rural labor market and find the impact and mechanism of off-farm employment experience on exiting part-time farming by adopting event history analysis.
Findings
Part-time farming is a stable long-run occupation in rural labor market of China from 2008 to 2015. Off-farm employment experience generally has positive effects on long-term part-time farming and the probability of exiting part-time farming. It significantly promotes female to exit part-time farming.
Originality/value
Based on the two-sector model, this study builds a conceptual framework of off-farm experience and occupational specialization and sets a theoretical basis of hazard model when using event history analysis. This study contributes to identify the impact of off-farm experience on persistence and exiting part-time farming in recent years. The empirical findings support the policy of promoting off-farm employment to improve occupational specialization.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors appreciate the financial supports of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Numbers 71903185) and the Strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant Numbers XDA20010303). The authors appreciate the PhD students and research assistants of UNEP-IEMP for collecting data, and numerous local officials, village leaders and farmers in sample areas for their support to our surveys.
Citation
Bai, Y., Wang, W. and Zhang, L. (2022), "Off-farm employment experience triggers heterogeneity of exiting part-time farming in rural China", China Agricultural Economic Review, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 567-582. https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-04-2020-0069
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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