The localistic enclave is a special kind of enclave in urban China, which is characterized by high concentration of rural migrants from the same place of origin. Prior research has documented that rural migrants work in these localistic enclaves, but the significance of participation in them for labor market outcomes among migrant workers has yet to be determined. In this article, we argue that localistic economic enclaves may improve the labor force outcomes of rural-to-urban migrants. We report results from a study of the social determinants and consequences of working in localistic enclaves, based on data from a 2010 survey of migrant workers in the Pearl River and the Yangzi River Deltas. The results provide limited support for our hypothesis: Localistic enclaves enable migrant workers to earn higher earnings overall, but the earnings returns to human capital in an enclave are limited.
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