Health Education as a Mediator Between Social Participation and Migrant Health

The health benefits of social participation are well-documented in the general population, yet its relevance for internal migrants, a growing global demographic, remains less understood. Guided by the framework of migration as a social determinant of health, this cross-sectional study examines the relationship between social participation and self-rated health (SRH) among migrants, focusing on the mediating role of health education. Using nationally representative data from the 2017 China Migrants Dynamic Survey ( N = 126,717), we conducted path analysis among internal migrants. We distinguished two forms of social participation: social membership and voluntary activities. Social membership was positively associated with SRH (β = 0.025, p < .001), both directly and indirectly through higher exposure to health education (β = 0.012, p < .001). Voluntary activities showed a small positive indirect effect through health education (β = 0.006, p < .001) but an overall negative association with SRH (β = −0.052, p < .001), suggesting that the demands or stress of volunteering may offset its informational benefits. These results reveal the unequal health returns of different forms of social participation among internal migrants and highlight the need for culturally tailored health education embedded within migrants’ workplace and community networks.