Sittitrai W

Family size and the education of children in the context of rapid fertility decline

Family planning programs have caused a substantial decline in fertility in Thailand in the last 20 years. At the same time a steady increase in the educational level of children has occurred. Recent surveys were taken to gain information on family size in relation to the educational level of the children focussing on attendance of lower and upper secondary schools. Results show that males were more likely to continue to secondary schools which is in agreement with the educational desires of the parents. The strongest factors determining the educational level of children is the socioeconomic and educational status of the parents. The surveys show that as family size increases especially over 5 children the likelihood of the children staying is school drops dramatically. Parents educational level seems to be the next most important factor with a positive correlation to the childs educational level. The cost of education is the responsibility of the parents which is why family size is important; while most parents surveyed feel advanced education is necessary for the children to make a better living they may not be in an economic situation to provide it. The data shows that the number of children continuing from lower secondary school to upper secondary school is in agreement with the number expected to continue by the parents. About 33% were expected to continue and 35% actually did continue to lower secondary school from primary school; 17% were expected to go on to upper secondary school and 24% did continue.

Living arrangements of the elderly in Thailand: Views of the populace

Qualitative data collected in Thailand through a series of 26 focus groups held separately with elderly individuals and adults with elderly parents provides insights into Thai views on a variety of issues related to the living arrangements of the elderly. These include the benefits and problems associated with coresidence, the choice of the coresident caregiver, mechanisms encouraging co-residence, alternatives to living with children, and the impact of social changes on living arrangements. The normative expectation that adult children should care for and support their elderly parents remains deeply ingrained in Thai culture and includes a strong sense of obligation to have at least one child coreside with or live in close proximity to elderly parents is clearly borne out in the focus group discussions.

The Impact of Family Size on Wealth Accumulation in Rural Thailand

Findings from a study of the effect of family size on household wealth in the northern province of Lamphun and central Suphanburi Thailand are presented. Fertility decline was rapid and early in Lamphun and later and slower in Suphanburi. 612 couples who completed childbearing were surveyed with equal numbers in each province and in small and large families. The household economists perspective that there is simultaneous determination of fertility and standard of living is rejected. Preferences on the number of children are considered as emerging during the family building process. Wealth is measured as the amount of consumer goods and savings the household possesses the quality of the dwelling unit and the amount of agricultural land belonging to a household from inheritance. At the time of the survey households both large and small had a large number of household goods and electrical appliances which reflected an increase from a period 5 years after marriage. Improvements in the size of the house (number of stories) and distance between them the building materials (walls and roof) and basic facilities (toilet running water and electricity) were also noted for both family sizes. A composite score was constructed by adding the 2 indices and is verified by community leaders views on the households relative economic status. Economic background was determined at 3 periods: 1) when growing up (couples parents) 2) during the 1st 5 years after marriage and 3) at the time of the survey. The economic background of households is provided. Multiple classification analysis was used to control for confounding influences (family size and occupational status) in the multivariate analysis. Other explanatory variables were educational attainment and year of marriage. Predictor variables explained 30% of the variation in consumer goods/savings 24% in the housing quality index and 32% of total wealth. Occupational status had the strongest impact followed by family size. There is an inverse relationship of all 3 indices with family size before and after adjustment for other variables i.e. the more children the lower the mean value of each index. The adjusted mean score of the total wealth index shows that a landless couple with 1-2 children would be better off than large landholding families with 6 or more children. Perception of family size effects reveal that 80% of couples with small families believed an economic deterioration would occur with additional children. Focus group results showed that most agreed that couples with small families enjoyed a higher standard of living which reaffirmed the study results. Results also show that small families contributed to improvements in childrens education and wealth.