TITLE:
Expectation-Reality Gaps and Talent Re-Mobility: An Adaptive Cycle in Shaoxing’s Regional Talent Ecosystem
AUTHORS:
Tao Zhai
KEYWORDS:
High-Level Talents, Talent Agglomeration, Mobility Paths, Constructivist Grounded Theory
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.14 No.8,
August
27,
2026
ABSTRACT: Focusing on high-level talents with doctoral degrees in Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province as the research subjects, this study adopts the analytical approach of Constructivist Grounded Theory to examine the semi-structured interview data collected from seven respondents, including lecturers, associate professors, and professors holding doctoral degrees. Through open coding, axial coding, selective coding and theoretical construction, this research reveals the core influencing factors and mobility paths of talent agglomeration in Shaoxing City. The findings indicate that the geographic mobility of high-level talents presents a phased, dynamic and cyclical process: it originates from the initial endowment shaped by individuals’ early growth and educational experiences, proceeds through multi-dimensional trade-off decision-making as well as constraints and interventions from relational networks, and finally shapes career paths and geographic mobility, forming a closed loop of dynamic feedback through post-decision evaluation. Furthermore, non-economic factors constitute the core differentiated competitive advantage of Shaoxing in attracting high-level talents, the influence of significant others acts as an important implicit channel for talent introduction, and the gap between expectations and reality is the primary factor driving talent attrition.