Lifestyle mobility in China: context, perspective and prospects

Xu, Honggang; Wu, Yuefang

doi:10.1080/17450101.2016.1221027

Cited by 60 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…In these respects, one seemed to be able to generalize across Eastern and Western habitus for these groups of lifestyle migrant. This sense is reinforced by Xu Honggang and Wu Youefang's recently published study of Chinese lifestyle migrants within China (). Xu and Wu do identify some groups, characterized as working tourists or lifestyle entrepreneurs, who had moved to south‐western towns for self realization, reflecting counter‐cultural ideals.…”

Section: Distinctive Characteristics Of the East Asian Lifestyle Migrmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…But we do want to unsettle too easy an equation between this quest and the specific versions of the good life contained under the broad umbrella of Western counter‐cultural ideas. These involve various configurations from a compendium of romantic, philosophical, environmental and spiritual ideas (see, for example, Korpela, ; Hoey, ; Benson and O'Reilly, ; Benson, ; Griffiths and Maille, ; Xu and Wu, ). Whilst this can be an attractive lexicon for many, it is not the only version of ‘the good life’ available.…”

Section: The Theoretical Framing Of Migrants’ Lived Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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One world is not enough: the structured phenomenology of lifestyle migrants in East Asia

Stones

Botterill

Lee

et al. 2018

British Journal of Sociology

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The paper is based on original empirical research into the lifestyle migration of European migrants, primarily British, to Thailand and Malaysia, and of Hong Kong Chinese migrants to Mainland China. We combine strong structuration theory (SST) with Heideggerian phenomenology to develop a distinctive approach to the interplay between social structures and the lived experience of migrants. The approach enables a rich engagement with the subjectivities of migrants, an engagement that is powerfully enhanced by close attention to how these inner lives are deeply interwoven with relevant structural contexts. The approach is presented as one that could be fruitfully adopted to explore parallel issues within all types of migration. As is intrinsic to lifestyle migration, commitment to a better quality of life is central to the East Asian migrants, but they seek an uncomplicated, physically enhanced texture of life, framed more by a phenomenology of prosaic well-being than of self-realization or transcendence. In spite of possessing economic and status privileges due to their relatively elite position within global structures the reality for a good number of the lifestyle migrants falls short of their prior expectations. They are subject to particular kinds of socio-structural marginaliszation as a consequence of the character of their migration, and they find themselves relatively isolated and facing a distinct range of challenges. A comparison with research into various groups of migrants to the USA brings into relief the specificities of the socio-structural positioning of the lifestyle migrants of the study. Those East Asian migrants who express the greatest sense of ease and contentment seem to be those who have responded creatively to the specific challenges of their socio-structural situation. Often, this appears to have been achieved through understated but active involvements with their new settings and through sustaining focused transnational connections and relationships.

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Section: Distinctive Characteristics Of the East Asian Lifestyle Migrmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: The Theoretical Framing Of Migrants’ Lived Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

One world is not enough: the structured phenomenology of lifestyle migrants in East Asia

Stones

Botterill

Lee

et al. 2018

British Journal of Sociology

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“…However, some research has pointed to reasons other than the economic and financial that contribute towards Chinese citizens deciding to apply for an investment residence permit in Portugal – particularly those related to lifestyle migration (Benson and O'Reilly, ; Xu and Wu, ), the education of children, legal security, prestige and a desire for better environmental conditions (Bongardt and Santos Neves, ; Gaspar, , ; Montezuma and McGarrigle, ). In the case of the Lisbon district, the coastal area of Cascais and Estoril is extremely attractive for acquiring villas and houses on the sea front, with luxury shops and high‐quality services, and surrounded by international English‐speaking schools prepared to admit transnational students of different national backgrounds.…”

Section: Chinese Golden Visa Citizens As Prime Investorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Buying Citizenship? Chinese Golden Visa Migrants in Portugal

Gaspar

Haro

2019

International Migration

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In 2011, Portugal launched a residence permit programme to attract foreign investment from non-EU citizens, with Chinese business migrants representing those taking most advantage of this initiative. This paper analyses this policy measure and assesses its social consequences, as a new way that Chinese migrants have to enter Portugal. Firstly, we characterise this programme by identifying its principles and legal requirements, using official data from 2012 to 2018. We then describe the emergence of this type of residence permit as a response to the financial crisis of 2011, and as part of a neoliberal political rationality that has guided a governance model since this time. Next, we characterise the profile of Chinese citizens who benefit from this initiative and claim residence permits on the basis of their economic power. Finally, we discuss the social and political implications of this kind of entrance to Portugal, to provide some insights for policymakers.

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“…She was not alone. Since 2000, a number of Han Chinese from the more economically developed eastern parts of the country moved to the countryside as an escape from their work (Xu and Wu, 2016). What does such relocation mean?…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%