Research on the urban integration of migrant workers

A substantive sign of citizenization is the degree of urban integration of the agricultural migrant population with respect to occupation, income and psychology [7]. New-generation migrant workers are an important component of the overall agricultural migrant population. How to continuously promote their urban integration and help them to achieve citizenship is a concern of academics and governments. Previous research has mainly focused on policies of urban integration, especially at the macro level of household registration (Hukou) reform and healthcare provision. Wang argued that holistic social policy reform and innovation are needed to promote social integration [7]. Qin and Li pointed to the urban residence status, employment conditions, and urban medical insurance as important influences on the urban integration of migrant workers [8]. As difficulties in housing and employment are gradually eliminated, medical insurance is becoming increasingly important as an issue in urban integration.

In recent years, some scholars have begun to shift to a micro perspective on the new-generation migrant workers’ personal factors. Zhang [9] and Zhao [10], for example, both claimed that the level of human capital investment would affect the willingness of new-generation migrant workers to remain in a city, and that human capital is the basic condition for ensuring the integration of new-generation migrant workers. Meanwhile, Zhang and Li [11] and Liu and Wong [12] identified social capital as a foundation for the survival and development of new-generation migrant workers in cities. Most migrant workers obtain employment and other opportunities in their host cities through personal relationships. Despite these studies of the effects of human capital and social capital in the integration of new-generation migrant workers, there has been little research on the roles of different types of resources in integration.

Resource bricolage theory and its application to agricultural workers

Resource bricolage theory is mainly focused on entrepreneurship. Shane and Cable [5] and Baker and Nelson [4] found that most entrepreneurs face the problems of information asymmetry and opacity in their business operations. Therefore, it is often difficult for them to obtain external support, and the resources available for their disposal are very scarce [4,5]. With new ventures facing the reality of resource constraints, Baker and Nelson put forward the notion of resource bricolage, which involves seeking, making do, and combining those resources that are at hand but have not yet been properly valued or utilized [4]. Resource bricolage helps companies to adapt to environmental pressures, obtain human capital and ready-to-hand capabilities [13,14], improve entrepreneurial performance [15,16], and expand organizational influence and competitive advantage [17,18].

In recent years, some Chinese domestic scholars have applied resource bricolage theory to research on agricultural workers. Gao and Zhang found that selective resource bricolage strategies helped farmers to realize their entrepreneurial value [19]. Zhang et al. summarized the resource types and specific strategies of resource bricolage among farmer entrepreneurs [20]. From the perspective of migrant workers’ entrepreneurship, Luo analyzed the types of resource bricolage used by migrant workers at different stages of citizenization [21]. Li et al. found that resource bricolage promoted the performance and sense of acquisition of family farms [22]. Despite having enabled these breakthroughs in the study of agriculture, resource bricolage theory has not been applied to the process of citizenization of new-generation migrant workers. From an entrepreneurial theory point of view, new-generation migrant workers have the attributes of quasi-startups and face a resource situation similar to that theorized by resource bricolage theory. New-generation migrant workers need to realize their own urban survival, integration, and flourishing by utilizing resources in a situation of resource constraints.

New-generation migrant workers have indeed applied the strategy of resource bricolage in their daily work and lives. However, little is known about the effects of the resource bricolage of new-generation migrant workers on their citizenization and urban integration. This paper expands the theoretical application of resource bricolage theory to the effects of resource bricolage on the integration of new-generation migrant workers in cities.

The influence of resource bricolage on urban integration

Compared with the local urban labor force, new-generation migrant workers have long been in a weaker position due not only to lower levels of education but also to a severe lack of urban resources, such as interpersonal networks, housing, and financial support from family [11,23]. To cope with the pressure of resource constraints, some new-generation migrant workers take a bricolage approach to the problem of resource scarcity: “seeking” the existing resources at hand and carrying out resource “making do” and “combining.” Such resource bricolage not only plays a role in the pre-citizenization stage of new-generation migrant workers but also runs through the entire process of citizenization. This is not only related to the long-term relative shortage of urban resources for new-generation migrant workers but also to their goals of breaking through resource constraints and adapting to the needs of long-term career growth in the process of citizenization.

In the pre-citizenization stage, resource bricolage among new-generation migrant workers mainly involves the use of their original rural resources. Deng [24] and Wang and Wu [25] argued that migrant workers achieve employment mainly by combining and utilizing their rural relationship resources, and they found that this was extremely common in the manufacturing and construction industries, where most of the new-generation migrant workers in our survey were working.

After new-generation migrant workers achieve employment, gaps in their individual career growth and urban integration gradually open up between them [25]. The individual resources of new-generation migrant workers have the most obvious effects on their development. New-generation migrant workers who are good at resource bricolage are more adaptable to the urban working and living environment in this period, meaning that the content of their resource bricolage begins to evolve from an early reliance on rural resources to a reliance on urban resources and even a mixture of urban and rural resources [26].

In terms of the specific types of resources involved in bricolage, in addition to their traditional rural relationships and physical resources, the experience resources and technical resources formed before and after entering the city form part of the combining resources of new-generation migrant workers [24,27]. Li and Li found that new-generation migrant workers in the decorating industry who were able to seek and combine urban and rural resources had a much better urban career growth trajectory than those who relied only on rural resources [28]. These successful new-generation migrant workers were both decorators and businessmen. They drew not only on their decorating experience and skills but also on the resources of fellow villagers to form temporary decorating teams. They also had the ability to develop certain local urban resources and to combine experience resources, urban labor and customer resources, technical resources, and physical resources [25]. This resource bricolage was closely related to their successful urban integration.

Ren et al. [29] and Xu [30] stated their belief that through the combination of certain types of resources, such as relationships and technology, the gap in urban resources between new-generation migrant workers and local citizens can be continuously reduced, and the career growth and quality of urban life experienced by migrant workers can approach or even exceed that of locals. Based on the above analysis, resource bricolage by new-generation migrant workers is closely related to their career growth and urban integration. In view of this, the following hypotheses are proposed:

1. Hypothesis 1: Resource bricolage has a significant positive effect on the urban integration of new-generation migrant workers.
2. Hypothesis 2: Resource bricolage has a significant positive effect on the career growth of new-generation migrant workers.

The influence of career growth on urban integration

Career growth refers to the career progress of an individual at a specific point in time [23,31], including the development and improvement of skills, knowledge, and experience [23]. Career growth among new-generation migrant workers has certain group traits that need to be observed as part of the general process of citizenization. Career growth among new-generation migrant workers is inseparable from the development of individual citizenship and is embedded in their citizenship process. The career growth of new-generation migrant workers can be considered as the upward and positive movements in the process of citizenization related to their careers, including progress toward career goals, salary growth, vocational skills improvement, and promotion speed, in the material and psychological domains [23].

From the perspective of the logical relationship between career growth and urban integration, career growth has a fundamental role in the process of citizenization and is an important prerequisite for the substantive promotion of material and psychological integration [32]. Furthermore, if new-generation migrant workers want to integrate into cities and become new citizens, continuous and stable career growth is needed because it is difficult to maintain citizenization without the support of career success. In material terms, career growth can provide financial support to new-generation migrant workers to enable integration into the city. The level of financial support directly determines the possibility of urban integration and the level of integration that can be achieved. In psychological terms, career growth can also provide the motivation for new-generation migrant workers to integrate into the city, because career successes such as promotion or skill improvement can provide a sense of happiness and accomplishment [33], which is a necessary condition for psychological integration. In short, career growth provides the impetus for urban integration. The career growth of new-generation migrant workers is essential to their personal development and thus to their integration into the city. In view of this, the following hypothesis is proposed:

1. Hypothesis 3: Career growth has a significant positive effect on the urban integration of new-generation migrant workers.

The mediating effect of career growth

Career growth is not automatic, being the combined effect of an individual’s innate endowments and acquired investments [23]. Zuo and Sun [34] and Huang and Li [35] pointed out that new-generation migrant workers promote their own career growth through their behavior. As part of optimizing their human capital, migrant workers can accumulate and increase their own resources of skill and creativity [34,35]. This is the force driving the career growth of new migrant workers, and it ultimately promotes their realization of citizenship.

Some new-generation migrant workers perform resource making do and combination on the basis of seeking resources and maximize the efficiency of resources at hand through the structural and functional reorganization of resources. According to a case from Luo [21], one new-generation migrant worker interviewed said that a few years ago, after working in various occupations, he raised funds and invited his former colleagues to jointly open a metal processing workshop. Members of his family also joined and worked at the workshop. Interacting with customers and local workers has become his daily work, and he now earns an income incomparably higher than that he earned when he first entered the city. His career success brought continuing improvements and changes to his city life. And now he bought an apartment and a car by himself, and his achievement got the praise of locals. This is an example of how the resource bricolage of new-generation migrant workers can affect individual career growth and city integration.

In summary, the resource bricolage of new-generation migrant workers can provide resources and capabilities for their career growth, which in turn promotes their urban integration. Career growth has certain connecting and transformational functions in the relationship between resource bricolage and city integration, and it is the key hub and node in this mechanism. The citizenization of new-generation migrant workers is an important part of the new urbanization in China. In the process of China’s new urbanization, career growth is the foundation and process goal of the flourishing of new-generation migrant workers in the cities. With the help of continuous career growth, the integration of these workers into the city is achievable as the fundamental goal of urban development. In view of this, the following hypothesis is proposed:

1. Hypothesis 4: Career growth has a mediation effect on the relationship between resource bricolage and urban integration among new-generation migrant workers.

The moderating effect of environmental dynamism

Environmental dynamism reflects the speed and degree of changes in the external environment [36]. It is an important variable in the behavior of economic entities. Environmental dynamism includes not only the technological dynamics of technological substitution and upgrading but also the market dynamics caused by changes in market demand and increased competition [37]. Environmental dynamism has mostly been studied by business scholars, who generally hold that environmental dynamism brings challenges but also opportunities, which are the driving force of corporate innovation [38]. In fact, new-generation migrant workers are also positioned within this dynamic environment, and it therefore has an effect on the success of their integration into the host city.

Compared with the rural environment, the urban environment is more competitive and the pace of change is more rapid. How to adapt to such a dynamic environment is the primary challenge faced by new-generation migrant workers in their urban lives [39]. More importantly, new-generation migrant workers also face long-term challenges from the dynamics of the market and technological environment. These challenges run through the entire urban careers of new-generation migrant workers. Specifically, these workers must continuously improve their ability to adapt to the environment to meet their needs for career growth and urban integration. At the same time, environmental dynamism is the rich soil in which new-generation migrant workers can grow by absorbing new technologies and new knowledge, and technological and market dynamics drive career and development opportunities.

Environmental dynamism is closely related to resource bricolage, as individuals make do and combine the resources at hand in response to environmental changes [40]. Indeed, the combination of resources in the face of environmental pressure is the central feature of resource bricolage. In a dynamic environment, the desires to obtain career opportunities and achieve urban integration motivate new-generation migrant workers to seek and re-combine resources. Although this was a response of new-generation migrant workers to their external environment using only at-hand resources, it was highly effective. The dynamic external environment provides the external conditions and opportunities for new-generation migrant workers to combine resources [41]. The current highly dynamic environment is constantly squeezing their living space and opportunities in cities [24]. To gain a foothold in the city, new-generation migrant workers need to continuously expand the scope and increase the means of resource bricolage. In view of this, the following hypothesis is proposed:

1. Hypothesis 5: Environmental dynamism has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between resource bricolage and new-generation migrant workers’ urban integration.

The impact of environmental dynamism on new-generation migrant workers is first directly reflected in the impact on their career [42,43]. One taxi driver who entered the city from the countryside told us that the taxi business had been declining in recent years [44]. They were not only facing increased competition from additional private cars but also from the arrival of online taxi services. In response, the driver had established a WeChat group with several other drivers to share the customer demand. He said that if they notice that there are orders nearby, they exchange this information through the chat group, which has improved the efficiency of receiving orders and increased their income. Their taxi network is continuing to expand, and some other taxi drivers from the same company have also joined.

This is an example of how the dynamics of the external environment encourage new-generation migrant workers to make do and combine technology and network resources. The impact of environmental dynamism on urban integration of new-generation migrant workers is in fact influenced through their career growth. That is, the more dynamic the environment, the greater the impact of resource bricolage on the career growth of new-generation migrant workers, and the correspondingly greater the impact on the urban integration.

It is clear that the impact of environmental dynamism complicates the mechanism through which resource bricolage affects urban integration. The moderating effect of environmental dynamism on the relationship between resource bricolage and urban integration works through the transformational mechanism of career growth. In view of this, the following hypothesis are proposed:

1. Hypothesis 6: The moderating effect of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism affects urban integration through the mediation effect of career growth.

In summary, the theoretical model constructed in this paper is shown in Fig 1.

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Fig 1. Theoretical model of the mechanisms of resource bricolage on urban integration.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256332.g001

Variable measurement

The scale for the survey used in this study was mainly adapted from domestic and foreign sources. A 5-point Likert scale was used for all items, ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

To improve the reliability and validity of the scale for the main study, the initial formulation of the scale was optimized through expert review and pre-testing. We first invited professors in the field to review the form and content of the scale. The invited experts made suggestions on the order of the items and the appropriateness and accuracy of the expression of the items. After making revisions based on this feedback, we invited 14 new-generation migrant workers to participate in a pre-test, which further confirmed the legibility and accuracy of the questionnaire. After these two rounds of optimization, a formal scale was formed for use in the main study. The final scale variables were as follows:

1. Resource bricolage was measured using eight items based on the scale of Senyard et al. [45]. Representative items are “I am confident of our ability to find workable solutions to new challenges by using our existing resources,” “I gladly take on a broader range of challenges than others with our resources would be able to,” and “I use any existing resource that seems useful to responding to a new problem or opportunity.”
2. Career growth was measured using 15 items drawing on the scale of [42], with items addressing the progress of career goals and the speed of promotion and increases in compensation. Representative items are “My present job moves me closer to my career goals,” “My present job encourages me to continuously gain new job-related skills,” and “My salary is growing quickly in my present organisation.”
3. Environmental dynamism was measured using four items drawing on the scale of Li et al. [46]. Representative items are “Products or services in our industry update quickly,” “The acts of competitors are difficult to predict,” and “The technology in our industry progresses quickly.”
4. Urban integration was measured using 15 items referring to the scale of Luo et al. [47]. Representative items are “I think I am a local now,” “My current income can satisfy my needs in my local life,” and “My local circle of friends includes mostly local people.”

To enhance the completeness and interpretability of the model, we adopted the variable design suggestions of Liu [48] and Qian et al. [49] in adding the individual characteristics of gender, age, and educational background as control variables in the measurement model.

The ethical aspects of this study complied with the ethical guidelines for scientific research of Wuxi Institute of Technology, and the study was approved by the Review Board at Wuxi Institute of Technology on 22 October, 2020. Prior to the survey, an informed consent form was issued to the participants, including information on the objectives and methods of the study and the participants’ time demands and rights. All participants were required to sign this informed consent form before proceeding with the questionnaire. All questionnaires were completed anonymously. Furthermore, to improve the quality of the questionnaire answers and dispel any confidentiality concerns of the respondents, the questionnaire instructions stated “We will keep your responses confidential, and the survey results will only be used for scientific research purposes” and “There is no correct answer to any item. Please fill in the information according to your actual situation.”

Research methods and data collection

Empirical research methods were used to study the mechanisms of the effects of resource bricolage on urban integration. In the research process, the researchers used SPSS (version 19) and AMOS (version 18) to measure the reliability and validity of the model, and on this basis, tested the relationships between the variables in the model to verify the hypotheses. Research conclusions were then drawn from the statistical results.

The survey was conducted in November 2020. A stratified random sampling method was adopted, with most participants working in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai in the Yangtze River Delta region of China. In setting the criteria for new-generation migrant workers, we drew on the National Migrant Workers Monitoring Survey Report of the National Bureau of Statistics and the definitions of domestic scholars [20,48], who generally agree that migrant workers born after 1980 are to be considered part of the “new generation.”

Regarding the number of questionnaires issued, Hair suggested that to ensure quality, this number should be 5–20 times the total number of items on the scale [50]. With reference to this standard, 332 questionnaires were distributed, of which 327 were recovered. After the questionnaires were collected, the quality of the answers was checked immediately. After inspection, it was found that 18 of the questionnaires were invalid, and these were eliminated from the analysis. A total of 309 valid questionnaires were returned, yielding a valid questionnaire ratio of 94.5%.

Descriptive statistical analysis

Table 1 presents the demographic characteristics of the sample. Men and women accounted for 68.9% and 31.1% of the sample, respectively. The breakdown of age groups was as follows: 7.8%, 23.0%, 17.8%, 19.1%, 27.2%, and 5.2% of respondents were aged 16–20, 21–25, 26–30, 31–35, 36–40, and 41–42 years, respectively. One per cent had an education level of primary school and below, 23% had completed middle school, 50.2% had completed high school, 24.3% had a college education, and 1.6% had post-college education. Workers with monthly incomes of less than 2,000, 2,000–3000, 3,000–4000, 4,000–5,000, 5,000–6,000, 6,000–7,000, 7,000–8,000, 8,000–9,000, and above 9,000 yuan accounted for 3.6%, 12.0%, 23.9%, 20.4%, 20.4%, 11.7%, 4.5%, 3.6%, and 3.3% of the sample, respectively. Most of the workers (83.2%) were married, with unmarried participants accounting for 14.2% and divorced participants for 2.6% of the sample. Based on these demographics, the main indicators of gender, education level and marital status in the sample are similar to those in the National Migrant Workers Monitoring Survey Report 2019, which shows that the selected sample was strongly representative.

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Table 1. Sample characteristics (N = 309).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256332.t001

Table 2 shows the descriptive statistics and correlation coefficients for each variable in the study. Resource bricolage, career growth, environmental dynamism, and urban integration had significant correlations and warranted further analysis.

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Table 2. Means, standard deviations, and correlation matrix.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256332.t002

Test for common method bias

Hair et al. believed that a large number of highly correlated variables is an initial indicator of potential common method bias [51]. However, they also pointed out that individual correlation coefficients below 0.8 are within an acceptable range [51]. In a further analysis of the correlation coefficients, it was found that the correlation coefficient of each variable in this study was far below this upper limit. Therefore, the problem of common method bias was preliminarily ruled out.

Considering that all of the questionnaire items in this study were answered by new-generation migrant workers themselves, there is still the possibility of common method bias. Therefore, to test more thoroughly for common method bias, this study adopted the suggestion of Podsakoff et al. in using Harman’s single factor test [52]. The basic assumption of this test method is that in the presence of homologous bias, there will be a single factor explaining most of the variance. We found that the first factor variance contribution rate in exploratory factor analysis was only 35.654%, which is well below the 50% standard threshold. This indicates that common method bias was not a major concern in this study.

Reliability and validity analysis

A reliability analysis is used to measure the stability and credibility of measurement tools. As shown in Table 3, the Cronbach’s α values of the main variables in this study were 0.943, 0.956, 0.776, and 0.865, all of which are above the prescribed standard value. The corresponding combined reliability (CR) values were 0.943, 0.976, 0.798, and 0.947, respectively, all of which exceed the standard threshold of Fornell and Larcker [53]. This indicates that the reliability of the questionnaire is relatively high, and the items can explain the research variables consistently.

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Table 3. Reliability and validity results.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256332.t003

A validity analysis is used to verify that the measurement tool can accurately measure the correctness of the required variables. It is generally measured by the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) test and Bartlett’s test. As shown in Table 3, the KMO value of each variable was above the prescribed standard, and the concomitant probability of Bartlett’s sphericity test is 0.000, which indicates that the scale and its factors have high construct validity. Furthermore, the correlation coefficients of the main variables, as presented in Table 2, are all less than the arithmetic square root of their AVE values, indicating that the variables in this study have good discriminative validity.

Test of main and mediation effects

This study followed the steps proposed by Baron and Kenny to conduct the main effect and mediation effect tests in sequence [54]. First, we carried out the main effect test of the independent variable (resource bricolage) on the dependent variable (urban integration). Model 1 in Table 4 shows the influences of control variables such as gender, age, and educational background on urban integration, and Model 2 shows that resource bricolage had a positive effect on urban integration (β = 0.397, p < 0.001). These findings support Hypothesis 1.

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Table 4. Regression analysis results.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256332.t004

Second, we tested the relationship between the independent variable (resource bricolage) and the mediation variable (career growth). Model 3 shows that resource bricolage had a positive effect on career growth (β = 0.602, p < 0.001), thus supporting Hypothesis 2. Third, we tested the relationship between career growth and urban integration. Model 4 shows that the β value of career growth in urban integration was 0.453 and significant at the level of p < 0.001, indicating support for Hypothesis 3.

Fourth, we tested the mediating effect of career growth on resource bricolage and urban integration. Model 5 shows that the effects of resource bricolage on career growth (β = 0.343, p < 0.001) and urban integration (β = 0.191, p = 0.002) were significant. The latter result was lower than the coefficient in Model 2, which shows that career growth had a partial mediation effect on the relationship between resource bricolage and urban integration. Hypothesis 4 was therefore supported.

Mediated moderation effect test

We conducted the mediated moderation effect test according to the steps proposed by Wen and Hou [55]. Model 6 in Table 4 adds environmental dynamism as a moderating variable to Model 5 to test the effects of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism on urban integration. The results show that environmental dynamism was significantly related to urban integration (β = 0.225, p < 0.001).

On this basis, Model 7 tested the effects on urban integration of resource bricolage, environmental dynamism, and the interaction term of environmental dynamism and resource bricolage. The results show that the interaction term of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism had a significant effect on urban integration (β = 0.139, p = 0.008), supporting Hypothesis 5.

We subsequently tested the effects on career growth of resource bricolage, environmental dynamism, and the interaction term of environmental dynamism and resource bricolage in Model 8. The interaction term of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism had a significant effect on career growth (β = 0.155, p = 0.001), thus warranting the further Model 9.

On the basis of Model 8, Model 9 adds potential moderators to career growth. The results show that career growth had a significant effect on urban integration (β = 0.272, p < 0.001), and that the moderating effect of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism (β = 0.097, p = 0.062) was significant. This indicates a moderating effect of resource bricolage and environmental dynamism on urban integration through career growth, thus supporting Hypothesis 6.