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| PATTERNS OF SPATIAL DIFFERENTIATION OF THE URBAN FLOATING POPULATION IN FUJIAN PROVINCE: AN ANALYSIS OF THE SIXTH POPULATION CENSUS DATA |
| XIAO Bao-yu, ZHU Yu |
| Geography Science School of Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China |
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Abstract Based on the data from the 2010 census, this paper analyzes patterns of spatial differentiation of the urban floating population in Fujian Province, using the methods of statistical analysis, geographic information systems and spatial autocorrelation. The result shows that on the whole, the scale of the floating population is larger and its density is higher in the coastal area than in the inland area; the inter-county floating population plays an more important role in the coastal area, while the intra-county floating population is more dominant in the inland area, suggesting the more open and active nature of the coastal area as migration destination than the inland area. However, such differences between the coastal and inland areas are not without exceptions, manifested in the fact that there are some counties in the coastal area with inactive and small scale urban floating populations. It is also found that there are differences in the scale and migration direction of the urban floating population among cities of different sizes. The paper also examines the temporal patterns of the urban floating population in Fujian Province, suggesting that while some members of the floating population have lived in their places of destination cities for long periods of time, the majority of them are still short-term migrants, and the proportion of short-term migrants in the coastal area is higher than that of the inland area. The paper further explores the mechanisms behind the formulation of the above patterns of spatial and temporal differentiation. In the final part, the paper discusses the implications of the above findings for social- economic development and urbanization in Fujian Province and relevant policy making.
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Received: 29 September 2013
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2014, Vol. 29 
