‘Anyway, you are an outsider’: Temporary migrants in urban China
通过熟悉感、依恋和身份认同三个心理过程，研究广州城中村暂居移民与城市的情感距离，发现本地村民的主导地位和制度歧视阻碍了移民的依恋与认同。
In this paper, we extend recent discussions on the relationship with the host place of ‘temporary’ or non- hukou migrants in major Chinese cities through the lens of three psychological processes: familiarity, attachment and identity. The empirical analysis is based on fieldwork conducted in selected villages-in-the-city in Guangzhou. A mixed methods approach is employed. The findings highlight the emotional distance between temporary migrants and their urban milieu: while some become familiar with the city through their prolonged stay, very few establish attachment and identity. The analysis shows that the dominance of indigenous villagers is a major obstacle for migrants to develop attachment to the given village-in-the-city; moreover, perceived institutional discriminations negatively affect migrants’ attachment to the city. The findings also corroborate a social constructionist perception of place identity: when place identity is legitimated and reproduced by the hukou system, it is difficult for migrants to challenge the hegemonic constructions of place and identity and to create their own narratives of identities.