Young Women's Migration in Modern China: From Rural Villages to Factories in Urban Cities

The experiences of emerging adulthood may vary in different historical and cultural contexts. Little research has been dedicated to how non college students experience emerging adulthood in developing countries. Currently, millions of young people are migrating from rural villages to industrial cities in China. The goal of the present dissertation was to understand the migrant experiences of the women workers as they move from a rural to urban setting, and examine the ways in which they make the decision to migrate, develop their conceptions of adulthood, and envision their future lives. Mixed methods design was used for this research.;Two hundred and thirty-eight women workers (aged 18-29) from a factory in China took part in the research. First, all the participants filled out a set of measures. Then, thirty two women workers, randomly chosen, were scheduled at a later date for an individual interview. The first portion of the study examined the conceptions of adulthood held by the women workers. Findings revealed that the majority of the young women workers believed they had reached adulthood in some ways but not others. Married women and women with children were more likely to perceive themselves as adults, even controlling for age. "Learn to care for parents," "settled into a long-term career" and "become capable of caring for children" were ranked as the most important markers for adulthood. Participants were least likely to feel adult when they were with their parents.;The second part of the study focused on their leaving home decision. It was found that the women workers had gained a balance between their growing autonomy and continuing obligations to family. On one hand, a good daughter was portrayed as they wanted to make money to help the family, which was poor in the village. On the other hand, an ambitious young woman was manifest as they took the initiative to realize their personal aspirations in the city, where there were more opportunities for their development.;The third study investigated the women workers' identity from a personal perspective in the area of work, love and worldviews. The results demonstrated that the women workers took on active explorations in great breadth and depth. The domains of identity developed unequally. They were engaged most intensively in identity explorations in work, moderately in worldviews and least in love. Their living situation was constantly changing, as they kept trying out different types of jobs. Their life would never be the same as their parents', when they started to work in the city and became likely to marry someone outside of their village. The youthful spirits they had made them believe that they would have a successful and happy life in the future.;Findings showed that the living experiences of the women workers was shaped both by the Chinese cultural tradition of differential mode of association and individualistic values. Family obligations were highly prized, and the women workers brought these traditional Chinese values with them when they migrated from the villages to the cities. Meanwhile, working in the city has exposed them to an individualistic lifestyle.