Making the Transnational Move: Development, Deliberation, and Disjunctures among U.S.-trained Chinese in China

• In Event: 485 - Section on Sociology of Development Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 04. Transnationalism, Transnational Organizations, and Their Local-Level Consequences

Abstract

An increasing number of U.S.-trained Chinese have recently returned to China. Chinese state-run media emphasize their prosperous outlook and the state’s recognition of their importance for China’s transition to a knowledge economy. As Chinese cities compete for these returnees, little is known about Chinese municipalities’ strategies to attract them, or the lived experiences of targeted returnees over transnational space. This paper examines how talent recruitment initiatives Chinese cities develop to stimulate urban development affect the migration decisions and reincorporation experiences of two types of talent: entrepreneurs with business projects in high-tech industries, and scientists/researchers leading innovation projects. Drawing upon literature on transnational migration and global cities, this paper is based on a case study of the city of Nanjing in Eastern China through interviews, observation, and secondary analysis. This paper argues U.S.-trained Chinese targeted by these initiatives make calculated choices to produce the best economic outcomes possible for themselves and their families. They return to China for short-term, opportunistic economic reasons to take advantage of the recruitment packages and supportive economic environment the Chinese state provides almost exclusively for them. Once in China, they maintain fluid and ambiguous identities and make strategic negotiations. Their short-term economic incentives, however, conflict with the long-term visions of the Chinese city. This paper demonstrates how state development policies affect the (re)location of highly skilled labor by linking up meso-level policies with micro-level individual decision-making, and enhances understanding of how flexible arrangements of time, space and labor facilitated by neoliberalism are articulated on the ground.

Author

• Yingchan Zhang, Northeastern University