Publication Type
Conference Paper
Version
submittedVersion
Publication Date
4-2017
Abstract
We analyze recent aging surveys to examine the prevalence and correlates of widowhood among elderly in Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam and investigate how widowhood is associated with intergenerational support and old-age wellbeing. Widowhood is often associated with depressive symptoms, elevated mortality risk, and social-relationship changes. How one fares after spousal loss is nevertheless contingent on individual-level attributes, dyadic characteristics, and macro-social conditions. Thus, consequences likely vary across contexts. Most studies are conducted in western developed countries. Few existing Asia-focused research is primarily based on developed East Asia or China. Little is empirically known about the situation in non-western developing countries. Comparison between Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam is compelling, given their socio-economic and cultural similarities and differences. Importantly, Southeast Asia differs significantly from East Asia regarding kinship system and gender-roles expectation within the family. The gap in the literature warrants further exploration that considers diverse socioeconomic and cultural contexts of widowhood.
Discipline
Asian Studies | Family, Life Course, and Society | Gerontology
Research Areas
Sociology
Publication
Population Association of America Annual Meeting 2017, April 27-29
City or Country
Chicago
Citation
TEERAWICHITCHAINAN, Bussarawan Puk, & KNODEL, John.(2017). Late-life widowhood in developing Southeast Asia: Comparative perspectives from Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Paper presented at the Population Association of America Annual Meeting 2017, April 27-29, Chicago.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2441
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.