Regional differences in household composition and family formation patterns in Vietnam

Abstract

The article studies household composition in Vietnam from a regional perspective. The article explores the regional variations in household composition by focusing on the living arrangements of young couples. The main question addressed by this article is whether or not part of the regional differences observed in household structure can be explained by different patterns of postnuptial coresidence among parents and young married children. The theoretical link between household composition and coresidence patterns between generations relies on analyses of stylized versions of family systems, namely the conjugal, stem and joint systems. Postnuptial coresidence, for example, is associated with the joint family system in which all sons join the parental home with their spouse. The necessity to set up a new household after marriage, in turn, is an aspect of the conjugal family system. In the stem family system, postnuptial coresidence may occur for one child only or for all of them, although usually as a prelude to the set up of a new household.