Post-Migration Life-Course Choice of Indonesian Domestic Workers in Hong Kong

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K04129
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Sociology
• Research Institution: Tenri University
• Principal Investigator: Sawai Shiho 天理大学, 国際学部, 講師 (40636453)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 社会資本 / ソーシャル・アントレプレナーシップ / キャリアチェンジ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study investigated how Indonesian migrant domestic worker(IDW)s' involvement in social movements affects their values and life-course choices after returning to Indonesia for good.
Especially this study focused on the case of Hong Kong, where is the center of IDW social activism, by carrying out surveys and follow-up interviews with about a hundred respondents regarding how far they perceived useful their participation in various IDW groups was during their migration labor.
Then we conducted analyses on the survey and interview results, concluding that the respondents generally consider that they have developed social and economic capitals as well as better religious awareness by their involvement in groups, and they have also nurtured a broader sense of social and environmental justice. Moreover, many respondents were actively linking their social and economic capitals and religious and social awareness to their micro-entrepreneurship started to rebuild their careers.

Free Research Field

社会学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究により、家事労働者による社会運動グループ参加は、参加者の経済資本、社会資本の蓄積に役立つとともに、グローバルな所得格差やケア労働の連鎖など、国際移住家事労働をめぐる社会問題や、グローバルな環境問題や宗教的多様性の尊重などの広義の社会的関心を向上させることが明らかになった。加えて、これらの資本や社会的関心は、帰国後の移住労働者の起業内容にも大きく関連づいていたことから、国際移住家事労働中の社会運動参加は、帰国後の家事労働者のキャリア再建プロセスと円滑な社会再統合にも役立つと考えられる。従って本研究は、政府系機関が、国際移住家事労働者の社会運動やその他の社会参画を推進するべきだと指摘した。