Post-doc: Migration & Health (Singapore)
Asia Research Institute (ARI), National University of Singapore (NUS), invites applications for TWO Postdoctoral Fellows to work on a research project entitled CHILD HEALTH AND MIGRANT PARENTS IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA (CHAMPSEA): WAVE II. Both positions will be based in Singapore.
AREA OF EXPERTISE
The successful candidate will be someone who holds a PhD degree (or is awaiting conferment) and has research interests in a relevant area of the social sciences (e.g. Migration Studies, Health Studies, Development Studies, Anthropology, Sociology or Geography). S/he should have research experience in the area of migration, family and health studies, preferably in an Asian context, and will be expected to co-ordinate the qualitative stage of field work in either Indonesia or the Philippines. The candidate will join an international team of researchers at a crucial stage of the project when the first round of data collection has been completed.
- Good project management, team-building skills and aptitude for working in a Southeast Asian context.
- The ability to speak and understand at least one of the following Southeast Asian languages – Indonesian or Tagalog – is necessary.
- A willingness to play a co-ordinating role in the collection of qualitative data from the study country.
- Some experience in using qualitative data analysis software such as NVivo
ABOUT THE RESEARCH PROJECT
For millions of families across Asia, international labour migration has become a part of a household livelihood strategy that is motivated by a desire to improve the life chances of the next generation. Yet, there has been relatively little research on transnational householding and the impacts of parental migration on children who stay behind. In this context, the research team first set out in 2008 to collect survey data from around 1,000 households in four study countries (Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam) as part of an investigation into 'Child Health and Migrant Parents in South-East Asia' (CHAMPSEA). The findings, using children in non-migrant households as a comparison group, have enhanced knowledge and understanding of the impact of parental (and increasingly mothers') absence on the health and well-being of (a) pre-school children aged 3, 4 and 5 years and (b) children in middle childhood aged 9, 10 and 11 years left in sending communities.
CHAMPSEA II will now investigate the longer-term impacts of parental absence on the CHAMPSEA children in Indonesia and the Philippines. Using a mixed-methods research design that capitalizes on the complementary strengths of quantitative and qualitative methods, this project will collect primary data using carefully designed survey instruments in order to create a unique longitudinal data set that will allow the investigation of multiple dimensions of children's health and well-being. The longitudinal data set will include anthropometric measures (height, weight, age), measures of psychological well-being (Self-Reporting Questionnaire [SRQ20]; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire), and a range of information (including parental migration histories) on selected households in Indonesia and the Philippines. The follow-up survey will interview members of the same CHAMPSEA households and the younger children in the baseline samples, who will now be 11, 12 and 13. As the older children (who were then 9, 10 and 11) will now be 17, 18 and 19, it is likely that many will have left home. A structured survey will be conducted with those still in the household and/or contactable, and a brief proxy interview with a parent or other adult on those who are uncontactable.
Anchored by an international research team with years of collaborative research experience, CHAMPSEA II will be the first mixed-method longitudinal study on the health and well-being of left-behind children in the region. Its findings will not only contribute to the academic literature but also help families, communities and government to understand better any vulnerabilities and risks that must be weighed against any material benefits of parental migration.
