Consequences of urban migration of adult children for the elderly left-behind in rural Vietnam

Abstract

Since the subsidised economy was substituted by privatisation in 1986, familybecame the main source of support for the majority of Vietnamese elderly.Traditionally, old aged parents live under the same roof with their adult children, sothat they can be looked after.Recently, the process of modernisation of its economy with the focus on urban areasin Vietnam has pushed young rural generations away from home and torn ruralfamilies apart. Scholars and experts have tried to understand if that movement ishaving any impact on the left-behind parents. However, the majority of the existingstudies used secondary data, and quantitatively tested only the economic aspects.Other aspects of life of the left-behind elders attracted a limited amount of research.The voice of those left-behind elderly parents was also underestimated, and oftennot heard.This study utilised a qualitative approach and drew on the voice of those insiders,whose children had migrated to urban areas for employment. It explores the wellbeingof rural elderly individuals, not only the material aspects, but also emotionaland physical care.