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Complex transformation of divorce in Vietnam under the forces of modernization and individualism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 March 2021

Tran Thi Minh Thi
Tran Thi Minh Thi*
Affiliation:
Institute for Family and Gender Studies, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, Hanoi, Viet Nam
*
*Corresponding author. Email: thichuong@gmail.com
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Abstract

After more than four decades since its reunification since 1975, Vietnam has achieved remarkable results in social and economic development. With the rapid speed of recent modernization, society has loosened numerous old values related to the family and promoted individual freedoms. Marriage and family affairs, including divorce, have modernized with liberal characteristics. The paper examines the trends of divorce and reasons for divorce using statistical data from the Vietnam People's Supreme Court and from the government's annual population statistics. The analysis compiled and analysed a database of every divorce case at six urban and rural districts in Can Tho province. The analysis highlights changes in the reasons for divorce in the South in comparison with previous divorce studies in the North of Vietnam, discussed in relation to modernization, individualism and gender equality. The analysis is supported by interview data with thirty male and female divorcees.

Keywords

Divorce prevalenceindividualismmodernizationreasons for divorcesouth Vietnam
Type
Individual Articles
Information
International Journal of Asian Studies , Volume 18 , Issue 2 , July 2021 , pp. 225 - 245
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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