Hidden agency: ethnic economies and life courses of new immigrant Vietnamese women in Taiwan

The post-partum period is a stressful time of change, particularly for immigrant women, but, to the best of the present authors' knowledge, the subject has not been explored. This study aimed to examine immigrant women's post-partum stress, depression, and levels of social support, and to determine the predictors of post-partum stress for Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan. A cross-sectional design was used. In this descriptive survey, 208 Vietnamese immigrant women were telephone interviewed by a trained Vietnamese research assistant during one of their 6 weeks post-partum. Data were collected through telephone interviews using three questionnaires, including the Hung Postpartum Stress Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, and Social Support Scale. The result shows that Vietnamese women had low level post-partum stress scores. Participants' family support rated higher than friend support. The incidence of depression was 0.5%. Social support, number of post-partum days, and family income were found to be predictors for post-partum stress, accounting for 26.6% of the variance. The Vietnamese immigrant women experienced significant stress regarding their maternal roles and received most of their support from their families rather than from friends. Nurses caring for this cohort should therefore consider these factors in order to help them cope with their post-partum stress. Healthcare providers should offer available resources to these immigrant women and their spouses during this critical period in their lives. For instance, antenatal education classes could be provided to help immigrant women manage and overcome post-partum issues.

BackgroundInternational marriages between Vietnamese women and Korean men have increased rapidly in Korea. Successful adaptation of these women is challenging, and concerns on the issue have been raised. Most existing studies have surveyed Vietnamese immigrant women in urban Korea; less is known about women residing in rural areas of Korea. Uncovering the experiences and perspectives of these women can inform the design of community support resources. The purpose of this study was to identify a typology to effectively describe the subjective perspectives of Vietnamese women residing in rural Korea on adaptation to Korean culture and society.Methods and resultsA Q-methodological study was conducted with five steps: construction of the concourse, Q sample, selection of participants, Q-sorting, and data analysis. Twenty-six Vietnamese women married to Korean men who attended local public health centers were surveyed and asked to rank-order 39 Q-statements using a 9-point scale. Principal component factor analysis using a pc-QUANL program was performed to identify adaptation sub-types. Four types of adaptation were identified and labeled: positive adaptation (35.54%), passive adaptation with reservations (8.33%), adaptation with frustration (6.20%), and adaptation and involvement (5.33%). These four types explained 55.40% of the total variance in the women’s experience of adaptation to Korean culture and society.ConclusionsThis study provides data that may be helpful in understanding the challenges immigrant women in rural areas of Korea face, and in planning family-sensitive adaptation support programs for these women and their families.

To identify needs for pregnancy and postpartum adaptation of Chinese immigrant women and Vietnamese immigrant women in South Korea. A descriptive research design was employed. Data were collected from 244 Chinese immigrant women and Vietnamese immigrant women from 3 provinces, 20 health care centers, and multi-cultural family support centers. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, t-test and ANOVA. An average score for needs perceived by Chinese immigrant women was significantly higher than that perceived by Vietnamese immigrant women. There were significantly differences in physical and emotional adaptation after childbirth, nutrition during pregnancy, cross cultural understanding and personal respect, and adaptation daily activity during pregnancy between the 2 groups. The highest score of needs in Chinese immigrant women was for nutrition during pregnancy and that in Vietnamese immigrant women was for baby rearing and family support. Based on needs of pregnancy and postpartum adaption, nursing intervention program in consideration of cultural characteristics of Chinese immigrant women and Vietnam immigrant women need to be developed for their pregnancy and postpartum health care.

Background: Taiwan recently has been faced with the migration of numbers of women from Southeast Asian (SEA) countries, from Vietnam particularly. The group of immigrant women is highly susceptible to many health problems, due to the barriers of language, culture, financial hardship, and lack of support systems. Consequently, those factors effect on their health-related quality of life and health needs. Purpose: to explore the levels of health-related quality of life and health needs and examine the associations among social demographic variables, health-related quality of life and health needs of Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan. Research method: A cross-sectional study was used in this study by using instruments including the demographic inventory; the structured health needs questionnaires; and the short form SF-36 health survey to measure the health-related quality of life. The now-ball sampling methods were utilized to recruit study participants who living in Taipei. Data was analyzed by using the SPSS 18.0. Results: Health needs negatively associated with spouse’s age, religion, and employment status, household income, Chinese confidence, and providing care (p < .05). Health related quality of life components have positive relationship with spouse’s employment status, spouse’s disease or disability, household income, daily Chinese speaking, and Chinese confidence (p < .05). Mental and social health needs significantly negatively related to all components of HRQOL (p < .01). Conclussion: Vietnamese women with higher level of social demographic status and Chinese proficiency have less health needs and better health related quality of life; women with less health needs have better health related quality of life. Multidisciplinary involvement is necessary to reduce health needs and improve health related quality of life among Vietnamese immigrant in Taiwan.

In recent years, a growing number of transnational marriage migration in many Asian countries reflects the phenomenon of globalization. It is the fact that Taiwan is one of the Asian countries which have a rapidly increasing of immigrant women have moved to Taiwan from Vietnam through commercially arranged marriages. With the desires of empowerment and enhancing the economic situation, Vietnamese women participate in the vocational training offered by Taiwan government in order to improve their lives. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the expectations and experiences of vocational training from the perspectives of Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan. A qualitative approach is used to collect data from twelve married Vietnamese women living in Taiwan through a semi-structured interview. These interviews were analyzed by using the grounded theory approach to develop themes to understand and interpret the data. The findings were divided into three key areas which are training expectations, training experiences of immigrant women and the impacts of vocational training on their lives. Based on the results, some suggestions for some stakeholders who are policy makers, training practitioners, immigrant women and future researchers were provided.

Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan are at increased risk of anxiety, and community-based group interventions can provide them an accessible form of assistance. Understanding and serving the counseling needs of Vietnamese immigrant women is a new challenge for Taiwan counseling professionals. This study presents the results of outreach efforts by the university counseling staff member offering counseling services for immigrant women in a rural community. A support group is used to address the anxiety among Vietnamese immigrant women. A sample of ten Vietnamese immigrant women participated in the intervention group, and their participation was subjected to quantitative study and analysis using the subscales of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS). Results indicated no significant changes for the STAI-State and the STAI-Trait, but a significant change for the SIAS, suggesting that the social interaction anxiety measures may be the more relevant outcome indicators than the measures of state and trait anxiety in supporting group intervention. Implications are considered for current group intervention practices in rural communities with the aim to help the counseling professionals better understand the practice of group intervention in the context of immigrant women suffering from anxiety.

In today’s world, global trade increasingly involves spreading the production of a final good over firms located in several countries, with each undertaking a task in the overall process. Powerful new trade opportunities have thus arisen, including for least developed countries (LDCs) in Asia. Although such countries may otherwise lack the capabilities to export goods from modern sectors, they can obtain these through engagement with global value chains (GVCs), characterized by the vertical fragmentation of production. These tend to be led by foreign direct investment (FDI) and have more hierarchical governance structures.

Divorce is as a common consequence of arranged marriages between Vietnamese women and Taiwanese men. There are many studies focus on life after marriage, but few studies focus on life after divorce. This paper aims to find out the post-divorced challenges and adjustment of Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan. The study was conducted in the Southern of Taiwan with 13 Vietnamese immigrant women with the help of semi-structured in-depth interview. The theory of cultural and social capital was applied to explain strategies in which Vietnamese women used to settle life after divorce. Research shows that divorced women are always influenced by the gender norm, they affirm their role in society more and continue to promote the image of responsible women.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Asia, and in recent years is emerging as the commonest female malignancy in the developing Asian countries, overtaking cancer of the uterine cervix. There have been no studies objectively comparing data and facts relating to breast cancer in the developed, newly developed, and developing Asian countries thus far. This multi-national collaborative study retrospectively compared the demographic, clinical, pathological and outcomes data in breast cancer patients managed at participating breast cancer centers in India, Malaysia and Hong Kong. Data, including those on the availability of breast screening, treatment facilities and outcomes from other major cancer centers and cancer registries of these countries and from other Asian countries were also reviewed. Despite an increasing trend, the incidence of breast cancer is lower, yet the cause-specific mortality is significantly higher in developing Asian countries compared with developed countries in Asia and the rest of the world. Patients are about one decade younger in developing countries than their counterparts in developed nations. The proportions of young patients (< 35 years) vary from about 10% in developed to up to 25% in developing Asian countries, which carry a poorer prognosis. In the developing countries, the majority of breast cancer patients continue to be diagnosed at a relatively late stage, and locally advanced cancers constitute over 50% of all patients managed. The stage-wise distribution of the disease is comparatively favorable in developed Asian countries. Pathology of breast cancers in young Asian women and the clinical picture are different from those of average patients managed elsewhere in the world. Owing to lack of awareness, lack of funding, lack of infrastructure, and low priority in public health schemes, breast cancer screening and early detection have not caught up in these under-privileged societies. The inadequacies of health care infrastructures and standards, sociocultural barriers, economic realities, illiteracy, and the differences in the clinical and pathological attributes of this disease in Asian women compared with the rest of the world together result in a different spectrum of the disease. Better socioeconomic conditions, health awareness, and availability of breast cancer screening in developed Asian countries seem to be the major causes of a favorable clinical picture and outcomes in these countries.

To assess and understand the barriers faced by Vietnamese marital immigrant women who do not regularly undergo cervical screenings in Southeast Taiwan. Studies have shown a low uptake rate of preventive medical services among immigrants. As immigrant women may not be aware of the healthcare delivery system in their host country, their uptake of and access to healthcare services might be limited. A qualitative, descriptive inquiry design was adopted. This qualitative study employed semi-structured, individual, in-depth interviews of 17 Vietnamese immigrant women. Data were collected from February-July 2011 and analysed using content analysis. The barriers to receiving cervical screening were lack of health literacy, lack of female healthcare providers, negative perceptions of cervical screening and personal reasons. The results might serve as a reference for government entities and healthcare providers in Taiwan to improve cervical screening rates; this should help enhance the effectiveness of healthcare services for Vietnamese immigrant women. The findings can also provide a reference for making appropriate healthcare policies for immigrant women in other countries.

This article examines whether recent immigrant women in the Israeli labor market are at a “double disadvantage”—first as immigrants and second as women—and whether and to what extent such disadvantages differ across ethnic and geocultural groups. Data were obtained from the last available population census (1983). The analysis focuses on gender differences in employment opportunities among men and women who immigrated to Israel between 1979 and 1983. Data reveal that the double disadvantage of immigrant women is evident with regard to both labor force participation and occupational attainment. Immigrant women are less likely than immigrant men to join the Israeli labor market, and they face much greater occupational loss. Data also reveal an interaction effect between gender and ethnicity. Immigrant women from the less developed countries in Asia and Africa constitute the most disadvantaged group. This group of women appears to be at a “triple disadvantage.”

Promoting the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is an important aim of nursing care for immigrant women. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of HRQOL and its relationships with social support, acculturative stress, and depression among Vietnamese immigrant women. A total of 216 Vietnamese immigrant women residing in South Korea participated in the study. Participants completed a series of questionnaires, including measures of social support, acculturative stress, depression, and HRQOL. For statistical analyses, a path analysis was applied. Social support, acculturative stress, depression, and HRQOL were interrelated. Acculturative stress and depression directly influenced the mental health component of HRQOL, whereas social support indirectly influenced HRQOL through acculturative stress and depression. Only depression directly influenced the physical health component of HRQOL. Results suggest that social support and acculturative stress are related factors in preventing depression and promoting HRQOL, especially mental health, among Vietnamese immigrant women.

Introduction: Marital violence is a global women's health issue. This study aimed to examine the factors influencing marital violence among Vietnamese immigrant women in Taiwan. Method: A cross-sectional research design was used. Snowball sampling was applied to recruit 250 Vietnamese women in southeast Taiwan. Data were collected through a survey from August 2015 to January 2016. The data were analyzed using a regression analysis. Results: This study found that 70.4% of Vietnamese women had experienced marital violence in the past year. Participants who did not depend on their husband's income and held stronger views objecting to marital violence experienced a higher frequency of violence inflicted by their spouses. Conclusions/Implications: The study findings provide preliminary insight for nurses and a better understanding of the situation. They can be used not only to address the factors of marital violence affecting Vietnamese women in Taiwan but also to design marital violence-related interventions within a male-dominated culture.

Acculturation and Health in Vietnamese Women

Objectives The purpose of this study is to examine the changes in graduate students' multicultural awareness through the reading experience of a novel embodying Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage, and to ex plore whether the reading experience of a novel embodying Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage is effective in fostering and improving multicultural awareness in adults. Methods Six graduate students majoring in multicultural education at a university in the metropolitan area were selected as research participants. For the reading experience of the research participants, book selection criteria were established, and four books were selected according to the selection criteria. The four novels were read in four sessions, and focus group interviews (FGIs) were conducted. The interview data were analyzed by subdivid ing each subcategory into the changes before and during the reading experience, and the multicultural awareness after the reading experience. Results Before the reading experience, the research participants’ thoughts on Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage had a stereotype of young brides with strong vitality, and their understanding of the difficulties experienced by Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage was also superficial. However, as the reading experience continued, the research participants discovered the problems embodying in the novel, and their multi cultural awareness began to change. After the reading experience, the research participants recognized Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage as members of our society, and viewed them as active actors rather than simple victims. They also came to prepare alternatives out of concern about the negative image that was being fixed when embodying Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage. In addition, the research par ticipants’ multicultural awareness expanded not only to Vietnamese immigrant women through marriage, but also to low-income poor classes, socially disadvantaged people, and migrant workers. The research participants fos tered multicultural awareness through sharing various perspectives and meta-reflection, and it was confirmed that the reading experience was effective in improving multicultural awareness. Conclusions This study showed that the reading experience through a novel embodying Vietnamese immigrant women brought about positive changes in graduate students' multicultural awareness, and the reading experience conducted in this study has the meaning of social reading. If this social reading is utilized in education for adults, it will contribute to fostering and improving adults' multicultural awareness.