The Impact of Agricultural Labor Migration on the Urban–Rural Dual Economic Structure: The Case of Liaoning Province, China

Abstract

Based on the practical requirements of China’s urban–rural integrated development, it is of great theoretical and practical significance to analyze the impact of agricultural labor migration on the urban–rural dual economic structure. This paper empirically examined the impact of agricultural labor migration on the urban–rural dual economic structure by using the spatial Durbin model and the geographically and temporally weighted regression model on the basis of the panel data of 14 regions in Liaoning Province from 2005 to 2020. The results show that agricultural labor migration has an obvious optimization effect and spatial spillover effect on the urban–rural dual economic structure; in terms of space, agricultural labor migration has a stronger impact on the central and western regions and a weaker impact on the southeastern regions; in terms of time, agricultural labor migration can stably promote the integration of urban and rural economies before the second Lewis turning point. Therefore, this paper provides references with regard to increasing investment in rural education and training; improving the structure of government spending; and protecting the rights and interests of rural migrants.