Socioeconomic Changes and Parenting: Implications for Family Education in Asia

Parenting has long been recognized as a critical bridge linking macro-level socioeconomic change to child development at the micro-level. Across many regions of Asia, rapid social and economic transformations have taken place over recent decades, accompanied by notable shifts in parenting beliefs and practices. In this chapter, major theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches used to examine the relationship between socioeconomic development and parenting are reviewed first. Then, a comprehensive review of empirical research documenting how parenting in Asian societies has changed or, in some cases, remained stable, in response to socioeconomic development is presented, highlighting both similar and unique patterns across regions. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the implications of this body of research for parenting education and child development programs.