The concept of family resilience from the perspective of Vietnamese parents

• Main Author: Tran, Thi Nu
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2009
• Subjects: Resilience (Personality trait) > Vietnam; Families > Vietnam; Counseling Psychology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_doctoral/278
• Institution: De La Salle University

This study explored the concept of family resilience from the perspective of twelve sets of Vietnamese parents, and discusses the concept of family resilience, family risk factors, family protective factors, and coping strategies which parents use to develop and maintain family resilience. The twelve fathers and twelve mothers who participated in this study were married from 5 to 40 years (M=21). The fathers ages ranged from 30 to 64 (M=46.8), and the mothers, between 28 and 61 (M=44.6). These couples settled in the urban districts Ho Chi Minh City, south of Vietnam. The researcher used a qualitative research design with in-depth interviews and case study methods for data collection. The responses that were content analyzed indicate that the parents described their experiences of family resilience as the familys inner strength and their conscious efforts to maintain family values and rules. The main crises which families faced were physical illness, unexpected financial crises, government regulation, damaged family values, and loss of a family member. They also coped with areas of family life affected such as finances, family dynamics, emotions, work, and study. These families protective factors consisted of family and social resources. They employed eight coping strategies: promoting a positive outlook, maintaining family traditional values, strengthening family cohesion, building communication competence, enhancing financial management abilities, practicing a spiritual life, seeking support from significant others, and promoting social relatedness. The researcher outlined the implications for counseling and family therapy of this study.