Understanding return migration's decisions in rural tourism destinations from a family perspective: Evidence from Guzhu Village in China

Developing rural tourism has become a significant pathway to facilitate the return migration of rural labor. As China's rural tourism sector has rapidly expanded, an increasing number of rural workers who previously migrated to cities for employment are now returning to their hometowns. While numerous studies have examined rural return migration, limited attention has been paid to the strategies and processes through which family norms in traditional Chinese culture influence return decisions. This study proposes an analytical framework for return migration decisions from a family perspective within rural tourism destinations. Based on face-to-face interviews with returnees in Guzhu Village, a typical tourism-oriented village in Zhejiang Province, we explore how evolving yet enduring family norms, particularly intergenerational and gender norms, shape the decision-making processes of rural laborers returning from urban to rural employment in the context of tourism development. By examining three distinct groups – younger generation without children, younger generation with dependent children, and older generation with children in adulthood – we identify how individuals at different stages of the family life cycle assume varying familial roles and adhere to different normative expectations. These distinctions significantly influence both their decisions to return and their roles in the development of rural tourism. We argue that family norms embedded in traditional Chinese culture must be considered in understanding individual return decisions, as they affect not only personal and family development dynamics but also have broader implications for rural communities through post-return employment choices.