Migration trends have been largely unexamined in China, due to restrictive
government policies and lack of data. This article presents the results of two
surveys on emigrants from Shanghai, the largest source of emigrants and
the only province with official migration records since 1958. Using
information from the 1990 census, passport applications, and a survey of
emigrant families in one city ward, the study concludes that migration
policies, structural economic and social factors, and individual characteristics
and needs shape migration patterns in Shanghai.