Beyond Family Connections: The Sibling Effect in Internal Migration in the 21st Century China

ABSTRACT There has been a renewed interest in the role of social networks in internal migration. Previous research has indicated potential associations between family ties and migration. However, most studies have focused on the parental impact, and few have studied the role of siblings, especially over an extended period. Utilising longitudinal data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) spanning from 2010 to 2020, this study examines the impact of siblings’ migration on one's migration behaviour in the following decade. Our study finds that; (i) having migrant siblings significantly increases the likelihood of one's migration behaviour in the following decade; (ii) migration patterns between siblings and respondents tend to be similar, with siblings' intercity migration significantly encouraging respondents' intercity migration, and siblings' interprovincial migration significantly promoting respondents’ interprovincial migration, especially to the same destination province; and (iii) the sibling effect is particularly strong when migrant siblings are close in age (< 2 years of age difference) and respondents have more migrant siblings, but negative when migrant siblings are highly educated. These findings contribute to a better understanding of internal migration from the perspective of extended family ties. The existence of the sibling effect implies that more inclusive internal migration policies that consider the extended family members, such as siblings, may be needed.