Multiple Paths of Influencing Factors of College Students' Intention of Returning Home for Employment from the Perspective of Configuration: A <scp>fsQCA</scp> Approach^☆

Abstract Rural areas in China are undergoing significant transformations and development phases. This study employs fuzzy‐set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) on quantitative data from a survey of 168 college students to investigate the configurations of factors leading to a high willingness to return to their hometowns for employment. The study focuses on their intentions to return as the dependent variable, with independent variables including rural sentiment, social compatibility, risk tolerance, family support, and life satisfaction. The findings reveal nine distinct pathways that meet the criteria of perfect consistency (1.0) and demonstrate high explanatory power (coverage of 89.19%). These pathways are categorized into four types based on underlying motivations: emotion‐oriented, value‐oriented, responsibility‐oriented, and social‐oriented. The results offer theoretical and practical insights into encouraging talent return in rural China, emphasizing the importance of a multifaceted approach that incorporates emotional, social, and familial considerations. The study's findings are contextualized within the Chinese socioeconomic environment, offering valuable insights into rural–urban dynamics in China. These findings could also be applied to other countries and regions with similar urban–rural dynamics and immigration patterns.