Yao Lu

Biographical Notes

I am a Professor of Sociology and Faculty Affiliate at the Columbia Population Research Center (CPRC), the Weatherhead East Asian Institute (WEAI), the Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy (ISERP), the Data Science Institute (DSI), the Center for Pandemic Research, the China Center for Social Policy, and the Institute of Latin American Studies (ILAS) at Columbia University.

 

My research centers at the intersection of inequality, demography, and political sociology, and primarily focuses on 1) the influence of structural demographic forces on political processes, 2) the sources of inequality by gender, race/ethnicity, and nativity in the high-skilled labor markets, and 3) the phenomenon of unemployment and underemployment among college graduates and its broader social and political implications. Within these general areas, my research cuts across a number of subfields, including labor markets, race and ethnicity, gender, and immigration. My work takes a multidisciplinary approach and seeks to arrive at new insights by connecting seemingly disparate areas of research.

 

My research spans various settings, including but not limited to the United States and China. Some of my work takes a comparative approach by investigating how institutional environments shape the relationship between demography, inequality, and politics. In my research, I draw on a range of quantitative methods for causal inference and have most recently incorporated computational and experimental methods.

 

My research has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (including a K01 Career Development Award), the Russell Sage Foundation, and the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. Additionally, I have also conducted two national surveys as part of a team. The first survey focuses on migration and families in China (2012-2013). The second survey (with embedded experiments) investigates how the COVID-19 pandemic has shaped racial attitudes in the United States (2020-2022).

 

My current projects include:

1. Political Demography: Impact of Structural Demographic Processes on Politics (Cross-National)

2. Inequality in High-Skilled Labor Markets by Gender, Race/Ethnicity, and Nativity (United States)

3. Political Consequences of Youth Unemployment and Underemployment (United States, China)

 

 

Publications

Li, Xiaoguang and Yao Lu. In press. "Education-Occupation Mismatch and Nativity Inequality among Highly-educated Workers in the U.S.". Demography.

Lu, Yao, Xiaoguang Li, and Benjamin Elbers. In press. “Education-Occupation Linkage within the Highly-Educated Workforce: Patterns and Sources of Difference by Race/Ethnicity and Nativity.” Work, Employment, and Society.

Xiaoguang Li, Yao Lu, Xiaogang Wu. In press. "Vertical Mismatch and Horizontal Mismatch: Causes and Consequences of Mismatch among Highly-Educated Workers in China" [in Chinese]. Educational Research. 

Han Zhang, Yao Lu, and Rui Bai. In press. “Selection and Description Bias in Protest Reporting by Government and News Media on Weibo.” China Quarterly.

Kaushal, Neeraj, Yao Lu, Robert Y. Shapiro, and Jennifer So. 2022. "American Attitudes toward COVID-19: More Trumpism than Partisanship." American Politics Research 50(1):67-82.

Kaushal, Neeraj, Yao Lu, and Xiaoning Huang. 2022. "Workplace Prejudices during COVID-19: Evidence from Survey Experiments." PLoS ONE 17(4):e0265437.

Ruochen, Zhang, Yao Lu, and Haifeng Du. 2022. "Vulnerability and Resilience in The Wake of COVID-19: Family Resources and Children’s Well-being in China." Chinese Sociological Review 54(1):27-61.

Zhenxiang Chen, Yao Lu, and Donald J. Treiman. 2022. "Determinants and Consequences of Rural-to-urban Migration Patterns in China: Evidence from Sequence Analysis." Population, Space, and Place 28(2):e2493.

Lu, Yao, Neeraj Kaushal, Xiaoning Huang, and Michael S. Gaddis. 2021. “Priming COVID-19 Salience Increases Prejudice and Discriminatory Intent Against Asians and Hispanics.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 118(36).

Lu, Yao, and Xiaoguang Li. 2021. “Vertical Education-Occupation Mismatch and Wage Inequality by Race/Ethnicity and Nativity among Highly-Educated U.S. Workers.” Social Forces 100(2):706-737.

Lu, Yao, and Andres Villarreal. 2021. “Emigration and Electoral Outcomes in Mexico: Democratic Diffusion, Clientelism, and Disengagement.” Social Forces 100(2):477-505.

Lu, Yao, Ruochen Zhang, and Haifeng Du. 2021. "Parental Migration, Family Instability, and Psychosocial Well-being of Left-behind Children in China: Evidence from Sequence Analysis." Child Development 92(4):416-438.

Maia, Alexandre Gori, and Yao Lu. 2021. “Migration and Political Development: The Case of Electoral Participation and Competition in Brazil.” Demography 58(1):191-217.

Wu, Xiaogang, Xiaoguang Li, Yao Lu, and Michael Hout. 2021. "Two Tales of One City: Health Disparities by Socioeconomic Status During COVID-19 in Wuhan, China." Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 72:1-8.

Hou, Feng, Yao Lu, and Christoph Schimmele. 2021. "Recent Trends in Overeducation by Immigration Status: The Impact of Demographics, Supply, and Demand." International Migration 59(3):192-212.

Lu, Yao, and Feng Hou. 2020. “Immigration System, Labor Market Structures, and Overeducation of High-Skilled Immigrants in the United States and Canada.” International Migration Review 54(4):1072-1103.

Lu, Yao, Qian He, and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn. 2020. “Diverse Experience of Immigrant Children: How Do Separation and Reunification Shape Their Development?” Child Development 91(1):146-163.

Lu, Yao, and Xiaoguang Li. 2020. "Documentation Status, Gender, and Health Selection of Immigrants: Evidence from Mexican-US Migration." Population, Space and Place 26(7): e2333.

Lu, Yao, Jean Wei-Jun Yeung, and Donald J. Treiman. 2020. "Parental Migration and Children's Psychological and Cognitive Development in China: Understanding Mediating Mechanisms." Chinese Sociological Review 52(4): 337-363.

Lu, Yao. 2019. “Empowerment or Disintegration? Migration, Social Institutions, and Collective Action in Rural China.” American Journal of Sociology 125(3):683-729.

– Distinguished Contribution to Scholarship Article Award, Political Sociology Section, American Sociological Association

– Distinguished Contribution to Scholarship Article Award, Collective Behavior and Social Movements Section, American Sociological Association

– Louis Wirth Best Article Award, Honorable Mention, International Migration Section, American Sociological Association

– Faculty Article Award, Honorable Mention, Section on Sociology of Development, American Sociological Association

 

Lu, Yao, Jean Wei-Jun Yeung, Jingming Liu, and Donald J. Treiman. 2019. “Health of Left-behind Children in China: Evidence from Mediation Analysis.” Chinese Journal of Sociology 5(4):431-452.

Lu, Yao, Jean Wei-Jun Yeung, Jingming Liu, and Donald J. Treiman. 2019. “Migration and Children's Psychosocial Development in China: When and Why Migration Matters.” Social Science Research 77:130-147.

Qin, Lijian, Wei Wang, and Yao Lu. 2018. “The Working and Living Conditions of College-educated Rural Migrants in China.” Asian Population Studies 14(2):172-193.

Lu, Yao, and Ran Tao. 2017. “Organizational Structure and Collective Action: Lineage Networks, Semi-autonomous Civic Associations, and Collective Resistance in Rural China.” American Journal of Sociology 122(6): 1726-74.

– Distinguished Contribution to Scholarship Article Award, Section on Collective Behavior and Social Movements, American Sociological Association

 

Lu, Yao, Julia Wang, and Wen-Jui Han. 2017. “Women’s Short-Term Employment Trajectories Following Birth: Patterns, Determinants, and Variations by Race/Ethnicity and Nativity.” Demography 54(1):93-118.

– Finalist, Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research

 

Lu, Yao, Wenjuan Zheng, and Wei Wang. 2017. “Migration and Popular Resistance in Rural China: Wukan and Beyond.” The China Quarterly 229:1-22.

Lu, Yao, Nicole Denier, Julia Shu-Huah Wang, and Neeraj Kaushal. 2017. “Unhealthy Assimilation or Persistent Health Advantage? A Longitudinal Analysis of Immigrant Health in the United States.” Social Science & Medicine 195:105-114.

Lu, Yao, Neeraj Kaushal, Nicole Denier, and Julia Shu-Huah Wang. 2017. “Health of Newly Arrived Immigrants in Canada and the United States: Differential Selection on Health.” Health & Place 48:1-10.

Kaushal, Neeraj, Yao Lu, Nicole Denier, Julia Shu-Huah Wang, and Stephen Trejo. 2016. “Immigrant Employment and Earnings Growth in Canada and the U.S.: Evidence from Longitudinal Data.” Journal of Population Economics 29:1249-1277.

Lu, Yao, and Ran Tao. 2015. “Female Migration, Cultural Context, and Son Preference in Rural China.” Population Research and Policy Review 34(5):665-686.

Lu, Yao. 2015. “Internal Migration, International Migration, and Physical Growth of Left-Behind Children: A Study of Two Settings.” Health & Place 36:118-126.

Kaushal, Neeraj, and Yao Lu. 2015. “Recent Immigration to Canada and the United States: A Mixed Tale of Relative Selection.” International Migration Review 49(2):279-522.

Lu, Yao. 2014. “Parental Migration and Education of Left-behind Children: A Comparison of Two Settings.” Journal of Marriage and Family 76:1082-1098.

Lu, Yao, and Lijian Qin. 2014. “Healthy Migrant and Salmon Bias Hypotheses: A Study of Health and Internal Migration in China.” Social Science & Medicine 102:41-48.

Lu, Yao, Zai Liang, and Miao Chunyu. 2013. “Emigration from China in Comparative Perspective.” Social Forces 92(2):631-658.

Lu, Yao, Danching Ruan, and Gina Lai. 2013. “Social Capital and Economic Integration of Migrants in Urban China.” Social Networks 35(3):357-369.

Lu, Yao, and Feng Wang. 2013. “From General Discrimination to Segmented Inequality: Migration and Inequality in Urban China.” Social Science Research 42(6):1443-1456.

Lu, Yao, and Hao Zhou. 2013. “Academic Achievement and Loneliness of Migrant Children in China: School Segregation and Segmented Assimilation.” Comparative Education Review 57(1):85-166.

Lu, Yao. 2013. “Household Migration, Remittances, and Their Impact on Health in Indonesia.” International Migration 51: 202-215.

Treiman, Donald J., Yao Lu, and Yaqiang Qi. 2012. “New Approaches to Demographic Data Collection.” Chinese Sociological Review 44(3):56-92.

Lu, Yao. 2012. “Education of Children Left Behind in Rural China.” Journal of Marriage and Family 74(2):328-341.

Lu, Yao, Peifeng Hu, and Donald J. Treiman. 2012. “Migration and Depressive Symptoms in Migrant-Sending Areas: Findings from The Survey of Internal Migration and Health in China.” International Journal of Public Health 57(4):691-698.

Lu, Yao. 2012. “Household Migration, Social Support, and Psychosocial Health: The Perspective from Migrant-Sending Areas.” Social Science and Medicine 74:135-142.

Lu, Yao and Donald J. Treiman. 2011. “Migration, Remittances, and Educational Stratification among Blacks in Apartheid and Post-Apartheid South Africa.” Social Forces 89(4):1119-1144.

Lu, Yao. 2010. “Mental Health and Risk Behaviors of Rural-Urban Migrants: Longitudinal

Evidence from Indonesia.” Population Studies 64(2):147-163.

Lu, Yao. 2010. “Rural-urban Migration and Health: Evidence from Longitudinal Data in Indonesia.” Social Science & Medicine 70(3): 412-419.

McCarthy, William, Ritesh Mistry, Yao Lu, Minal Patel, and Hong Zheng, and Barbara Dietsch. 2009. “Could Density of Geocoded Tobacco Retailers near Schools Influence Risk of Students Smoking?” American Journal of Public Health 99(11):2006-2013.

Lu, Yao. 2009. “Sibship Size, Family Organization, and Education in South Africa: Black-White Variations.” Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 27(2):110-125.

Mistry, Ritesh, William McCarthy, Antronette Yancey, Yao Lu, and Minal Patel. 2009. “Resilience and Patterns of Health Risk Behaviors in California Adolescents.” Preventive Medicine 48(3):291-297.

Lu, Yao and Donald J. Treiman. 2008. “The Effect of Sibship Size on Educational Attainment in China: Period Variations.” American Sociological Review 73(5):813-834.

Li, Li, Zunyou Wu, Sheng Wu, Manhong Jia, Eli Lieber, and Yao Lu. 2008. “Impacts of HIV/AIDS Stigma on Family Identity and Interactions in China.” Families, Systems and Health 26(4):431-442.

Lu, Yao. 2008. “Test of the ‘Healthy Migrant Hypothesis’: A Longitudinal Analysis of Health Selectivity of Internal Migration in Indonesia.” Social Science and Medicine 67(8):1331-1339.

Lu, Yao. 2007. “Educational Status of Temporary Migrant Children in China: Determinants and Regional Variations.” Asian and Pacific Migration Journal 16(1):29-55.

Grusky, Oscar, Hongjie Liu, Xiaojing Li, Aimee-Noelle Swanson, Naihua Duan, Yibin Zhu, Erjian Ma, and Yao Lu. 2006. “Is Voluntary Counseling and Testing of Drug Users in China Feasible?” International Journal of STD and AIDS 17(5):354-355.

Treiman, Donald J., William M. Mason, Yao Lu, Yi Pan, Yaqiang Qi, and Shige Song. 2006. “Observations on the Design and Implementation of Sample Surveys in China.” Social Transformations in Chinese Societies 1(1):81-101.