Escaping from Air Pollution: Exploring the Psychological Mechanism behind the Emergence of Internal Migration Intention among Urban Residents

Abstract

Rapid urbanization with poor city planning has resulted in severe air pollution in urban areas of low- and middle-income countries. Given the adverse impacts of air pollution, citizens may develop ideation of averting behaviors, including migration to another region. The current study explores the psychological mechanism and demographic predictors of internal migration intention among urban people in Hanoi, Vietnam—one of the most polluted capital cities in the world. The Bayesian Mindsponge Framework (BMF) analytics was used to construct a model and perform Bayesian analysis on a stratified random sampling dataset of 475 urban people. We found that migration intention was negatively associated with an individual’s satisfaction with air quality. The association was moderated by the perceived availability of a nearby alternative (i.e., a nearby province/city with better air quality). The high migration cost due to geographical distance made the moderation effect of the perceived availability of a faraway alternative negligible. These results validate the proposed psychological mechanism behind the emergence of migration intention. Moreover, it was found that male and young people were more likely to migrate. While the brain drain effect did not clearly show, it is likely due to complex underlying interactions of various related factors (e.g., age and gender). The results hint that without air pollution mitigation measures, the dislocation of economic forces might occur and hinder sustainable urban development. Therefore, collaborative actions among levels of government, with the environmental semi-conducting principle at heart, are recommended to reduce air pollution.

Potential energy transition in a transitional country: Initial evidence from young Vietnamese survey and Bayesian approach

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Building eco-surplus culture among urban residents as a novel strategy to improve finance for conservation in protected areas

“…This analytical approach has been found effective in investigating various psychological phenomena, such as the attitude towards biodiversity loss preventive measures, suicidal ideation, book-reading interest, air-pollution-induced migration intention, etc. (Nguyen and Jones, 2021 ; Nguyen et al, 2021 ; Vuong et al, 2021a , 2021b , 2022a ). In this study, models were initially constructed based on the mindsponge information processing mechanism to examine how perceptions towards biodiversity loss may affect the willingness to pay for the entrance fee and conservation through the endorsement of conservation as a preventive measure (Vuong, 2023 ; Vuong and Napier, 2015 ).…”

Essential materials for Bayesian Mindsponge Framework analytics

“…• Predictors of support for biodiversity loss countermeasure and bushmeat consumption among Vietnamese urban residents [9] • Brain drain out of the blue: Pollution-induced migration in Vietnam [10] • Escaping from air pollution: Exploring the psychological mechanism behind the emergence of internal migration intention among urban residents [11] • Household-level strategies to tackle plastic waste pollution in a transitional country [12] • Improving energy literacy to facilitate energy transition and nurture environmental culture in Vietnam [13]…”