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Most existing studies on shrinking cities focus on identifying and characterizing population contraction at the city scale and lack an in-depth exploration of the mechanisms of population contraction and daily life scenarios at the street scale. To fill this gap, this study employed semi-structured interviews and participant observation to analyze the street vitality and mechanisms of operation of Dongda Street in Rugao County of Jiangsu Province in China. The study found the following. First, the interspersed urban renewal has allowed residents to retain their original lifestyles and time-space routines, and they continue to enact an endogenous street ballet. Second, new residents gradually develop new lifestyles and time-space routines in the streets, showcasing an exogenous street ballet. Third, both groups jointly perform hybrid street ballets in their daily lives through close public interactions. These findings suggest that while Dongda Street is an aging neighborhood, the survival of the original street pattern and old buildings has allowed the neighborhood to retain its historical flavor. Additionally, the moving in of creative industries and merchants injects new vitality into the neighborhood. These findings examine daily street life in the context of population contraction and help break the stereotypes of population contraction. • The interspersed urban renewal has allowed local residents to retain their original endogenous street ballet. • New residents gradually develop time-space routines in the streets, showcasing an exogenous street ballet. • Both groups jointly perform hybrid street ballets in their daily lives through close public interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The rapid increase of temporary migrants in large Chinese cities has led to the need for a nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the factors contributing to the influx. However, previous investigation into this subject has been undermined by an oversimplification of the concepts and measurements related to settlement intentions and migrants' social network. This study uses a combination of data from a 2013 nationwide survey and multilevel logit regressions to investigate the settlement intentions of 12,807 rural-urban migrants across eight cities in China. It especially focuses on the ways in which social ties between migrants and people in their destination cities shaped their intention to settle there. This study makes an innovative contribution to the literature in three ways. First, it distinguishes between migrants' ties to non-residents (other migrants from the same place of origin), kin residents (local residents who are kin), and non-kin residents (local residents who are not kin). Second, it distinguishes between interactive social ties and supportive social ties. Third, it uses multiple indicators to measure the intention of migrants who decide to permanently settle, as well as hukou transfer and housing ownership. Findings from our analysis indicate that the newly formed intergroup ties of migrants and their existing intragroup ties exert different impacts on their intention to settle. Specifically, migrants' newly formed ties with non-kin residents are positively linked to their settlement intention, while their ties to non-residents are negatively associated with their settlement intention. Our findings also indicate that the social ties of migrants have different effects on the different dimensions of their settlement intention. The social ties of migrants play an important role in their permanent settlement and housing ownership intentions, but their effect on hukou transfer intentions is relatively weak. Additionally, our research discovered that supportive social ties play a more important role than do interactive social ties in shaping migrants' settlement intention. Highlights • Rural migrants who retain kin-based and home-based ties with other migrants in destination cities tend to have a weaker intention to settle in cities. • Rural migrants who maintain kin-based ties with local residents or actively construct social ties with non-kin local residents tend to have a stronger intention to settle in cities. • Compared to interactive social ties, supportive social ties play a more significant role in influencing migrants' settlement intention. • Rural migrants' social ties play different roles in different patterns with regard to settlement intention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since China's housing reform in 1998, urban redevelopment and expansion driven by various stakeholders and the urbanization process have led to the forced relocation of urban residents on a massive scale. Forced relocation in China and other countries is generally associated with negative residential outcomes, although in some situations residents may be able to employ certain strategies to cushion its effects. However, few empirical studies have unraveled the nature of forced relocation from the perspective of compensation, particularly in the context of urban China. Using data from the 2013 China Household Finance Survey (CHFS), this study examined to what extent and in what ways compensation can influence relocatees' housing situations and their satisfaction with the outcome of their forced relocation. The results indicate that the current housing situations of relocatees are not necessarily worse than those of people who have not undergone forced relocation, especially when the forced relocation occurred more than three years previously. Meanwhile, substantial amounts of compensation can increase relocatees' level of satisfaction. The results also indicate that housing situations (including the housing floor area and self-estimated commercial value) are important pathways through which compensation can have positive effects on residential satisfaction. Our findings reveal the multifaceted nature of "forced" relocation: It is not necessarily negative, depending on residents' bargaining power for compensation and their housing strategies after relocation, and its influence should be understood as a dynamic process with a time sequence. • The housing situations of involuntarily-relocated residents are not necessarily worse. • The housing situations at the post-relocation stage are better than the situations at the transitional stage. • Higher compensation plays a positive effect on resident's housing situation. • Higher compensation plays a positive effect on resident's satisfaction with forced relocation. • Housing situation inverts a mediation effect on the relation between compensation and satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although many studies have confirmed the effects of the built environment on adiposity outcomes in the general population, evidence for young adults is scarce. Furthermore, most prior studies are prone to residential self-selection bias due to the nature of cross-sectional research design, which makes the built environment–adiposity relationship spurious. In this study, we explored the associations between the built environment and three objectively measured adiposity outcomes for a large representative sample of 20,227 undergraduate students from 89 university campuses in China. The adiposity outcomes were measured by body mass index (BMI), waist circumstance (WC), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). The residential self-selection bias was largely mitigated because these students are required to live in campus dormitories. As shown by multilevel models, street connectivity, population density, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) within and around the campus environment were negatively associated with the odds of adiposity to different extents. Furthermore, the adiposity outcomes of male and low cost-of-living undergraduates were more likely to be affected by built environment characteristics compared to female and high cost-of-living undergraduates. Hence, to deliver effective environment interventions to curb the prevalence of adiposity among undergraduate students, policymakers and university managers are advised to create a more carefully conceived campus environment. • First nationwide study exploring the link between built environment and adiposity outcomes for undergraduate students. • Three adiposity outcomes were objectively measured by professionals for 20,227 undergraduate students throughout China. • The residential self-selection bias is largely mitigated because these students were required to live in campus dormitories. • Street connectivity, population density, and NDVI within and around campuses were negatively associated with adiposity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]