Understanding interlocal collaboration for service delivery for migrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from Guangdong, China

Interlocal collaboration for service delivery (ICSD) for migrant workers has grown rapidly in the postpandemic era. Nevertheless, limited research has investigated the mechanisms through which localities interact with one another in the implementation process. This study explores under what conditions a city collaborates more with one city than another in ICSD for migrant workers in Guangdong Province, China. Our results show that geographical proximity, workforce similarity, and administrative status asymmetry are positively related to partner selection. City mayors’ personal connections are associated with a higher collaboration degree. However, problem severity has negative impacts on both partner selection and collaboration degree.