Mechanisms of Child-Friendly Communities Empowering the Urban Social Integration of Migrant Children: A Process-Tracing Study Based on the 'Torch Community'

In the context of the new-type urbanization strategy, facilitating the urban social integration of migrant populations has emerged as a pivotal issue requiring urgent attention. The construction of child-friendly communities, as a crucial component of urban spatial integration strategies, demonstrates significant and unique effects in empowering migrant children to achieve social integration. To delve deeply into the mechanism of this empowerment, this study selects the "Torch Community" as a typical case and employs the process-tracing method for analysis, followed by theoretical summarization and refinement based on the findings. The study found that the child-friendly community has developed a systematic theoretical framework for social integration by establishing four core mechanisms: resource integration, social network construction, psychological support, and educational equity. These mechanisms effectively facilitate the social integration process of migrant children within the community. This study provides theoretical insights and practical implications for promoting more comprehensive and effective child-friendly community development and facilitating the social integration of migrant children.