Migrants, urban villages, and community sentiments: a case of Guangzhou, China

The hundreds of millions of migrant workers from China's vast rural hinterlands today constitute a significant part of the urban labour force. Residence in urban villages, to them, is a preferred and in most cases the only affordable choice. This study provides a systematic account of the profiles of migrants in urban villages and explores their sentiments towards the community as revealed by the levels of community satisfaction and community attachment. The results show that, while the urban villages offer no more than a shelter, migrants in such villages are integrated into the city in a certain manner. Community sentiments are mainly built upon the perceptions of neighbourhood quality and neighbourly relations, in addition to the effects of local involvement as well as migrants' social networks within the community.