Population dynamics, reproduction and livelihood changes in small-scale communities of Laos

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25257004
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 海外学術
• Research Field: Area studies
• Research Institution: Nagoya University
• Principal Investigator: YOKOYAMA Satoshi 名古屋大学, 環境学研究科, 教授 (30363518)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 中川 聡史 埼玉大学, 人文社会科学研究科(系), 教授 (10314460) ; 佐藤 廉也 大阪大学, 文学研究科, 教授 (20293938) ; 白川 千尋 大阪大学, 人間科学研究科, 教授 (60319994) ; 高橋 眞一 新潟産業大学, 経済学部, 教授 (80030683)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): NISHIMOTO Futoshi 長崎大学, 大学院グローバルヘルス研究科, 助教 (60442539) ; JIANG Honwei 総合地球環境学研究所, 研究基盤国際センター, 特任助教 (50436573) ; TOMITA Shinsuke 名古屋大学, アジアサテライトキャンパス学院, 特任准教授 (60378966)
• Research Collaborator: NIWA Takahito 帝京大学, 経済学部, 講師 (10736268)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 小規模社会集団 / 人口動態 / 再生産 / 生業変化 / ラオス

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we analyzed the interrelationship among factors related to population dynamics, reproduction, and livelihood activities in two traditional small communities of Laos. The communities to be studied have different subsistence structure of rain-fed paddy farming and swidden farming.
As a result, residents' response to population pressure in the rain-fed paddy village was not intensification or mechanization of agriculture, but temporary migration to Thailand since the 1980s. Residents purchased paddies from neighboring villages with money earned by migrant works, and tried to balance self-sufficiency and cash income by further reducing the apparent population in the village. Meanwhile, in the swidden village, marital fertility rate was low at less than 4. From the result of examining the nutritional status of residents by diet survey, we suggested that the condition of low malnutrition may be the cause of low fertility rate.

Free Research Field

地理学