Sorrow under prosperity: how downtown residence influences the welfare of disabled people in China

While the welfare divergence between rural and urban disabled residents in China has attracted great scholarly attention, little to no research has examined the relevant disparities within the city. Due to the administrative-led resource allocation model in China, disabled individuals residing in the urban centre are expected to have a greater advantage in their daily lives compared to their counterparts in the suburbs. We use Tianjin, a Chinese municipality, as an example to explore the impact of disabled individuals' downtown residence on their employment, education, marriage, and access to public services. Our spatial regression discontinuity estimates reveal that compared to suburban disabled residents, downtown residents have easier access to education but face difficulties in employment and marriage. A follow-up survey indicates that disabled residents in downtown areas face employment and marriage disadvantages due to implicit exclusion of low-skilled groups and high marriage burdens in urban centres. This paper sheds light on the welfare of disabled groups in cities and the latent impact of urban development on social minorities.