Long-Distance Parenting and Family Resilience Strategies of Indonesian Migrant Workers in Taiwan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25217/0020269738800Keywords:
family resilience, migrant workers, left-behind children, long-distance parenting, transnational familyAbstract
This study examines the resilience of Indonesian Migrant Worker (PMI) families in Taiwan and the strategies they apply in long-distance parenting. Using Henry’s family resilience model, it analyzes family risks, vulnerabilities, protection, adaptation, and socio-ecological factors. Data were collected through interviews with 25 PMIs in Taiwan, 25 left-behind children and 25 caregivers in Indonesia. The findings show that migration-related family risks are rooted in structural poverty, gendered labor regimes, and marital disruption, while vulnerability is shaped by low educational attainment, weak communication, and limited caregiving capacity. Religion emerges as a crucial protective resource in transnational family life. Beyond emotional coping, religious values provide moral guidance, sustain parental authority, shape caregiving practices, and support meaning-making across distance through practices such as religious instruction, pesantren-based (Islamic Boarding) care, and faith-informed role modeling. Family adaptation depends not only on individual agency but also on socio-ecological support, including faith-based organizations and migrant networks. The study extends family resilience theory by demonstrating how religion strengthens resilience processes in transnational families and highlights the importance of culturally grounded interventions for migrant family welfare.
References
Antia, K. (2020). Effects of International Labour Migration on the Mental Health and Well-Being of Left-Behind Children: A Systematic Literature Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(12), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17124335
Ayumi, M. M. (2015). Indonesian Labor Migration: Social Costs to The Left-Behinds Children. http://www.smeru.or.id/sites/default/files/events/03_the_social_cost_of_migration_-_meirina_ayumi_0.pdf
Birger, L. (2024). “Permanent Temporariness” as a Critical Lens: A Framework for Social Work with Forced Migrants. British Journal of Social Work, 54(2), 780–796. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcad260
BP2MI. (2022). BP2MI | Badan Perlindungan Pekerja Migran Indonesia. Badan Perlindungan Pekerja Migran Indonesia. https://www.bp2mi.go.id/statistik-penempatan
Bryceson, D. F. (2019). Transnational families negotiating migration and care life cycles across nation-state borders. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 45(16), 3042–3064. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2018.1547017
Gusman, Y. (2023). ‘Challenges and Social Support for Left-Behind Children of Migrant Workers in West Java’ [NCCU]. https://nccur.lib.nccu.edu.tw/handle/140.119/147148
Gusman, Y. (2024). The Endeavour of Indonesian Female Migrant Workers in Taiwan in Building Family Resilience. Journal of Social Development Studies, 5(1), 16–30. https://doi.org/10.22146/jsds.11361
Henry, C. S., Sheffield Morris, A., & Harrist, A. W. (2015). Family Resilience: Moving into the Third Wave. Family Relations, 64(1), 22–43. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12106
Höckel, L. S., Santos Silva, M., & Stöhr, T. (2018). Can parental migration reduce petty corruption in education?. The World Bank Economic Review, 32(1), 109-126. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhx005
KPAI. (2016). 11,2 Juta Anak Telantar Di Kampung Karena Ibunya Bekerja Di Luar Negeri. https://www.kpai.go.id/publikasi/asrorun-niam-sholeh-112-juta-anak-telantar-di-kampung-karena-ibunya-bekerja-di-luar-negeri
Merry, L., Kevork, M., & Hille, J. (2023). Transnationalism and Caring for Vulnerable-Status, Migrant Women and Their Families During Pregnancy and Early-childhood. Wellbeing, Space and Society, 5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wss.2023.100170
Laltoog, B. B. (2024). Support System of Transnational Families in Guizadan Bauko Mountain Province Philippines. Diversitas Journal, 9(1), 220–251.
Malamassam, M. A. (2014). Women Labor Migration in Asia: Mother Migration and Its Impacts on Left-Behind Children. Jurnal Kependudukan Indonesia, 9(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.14203/JKI.V9I1.108
Rizky, M., Lubis, S., Warda, N., Wahyu, Y. F. M., Hermanus, E., Kusumawardhani, N., Arfyanto, H., Marshan, J., & Toyamah, N. (2017). The Well-Being of Poor Children Left by Their Mothers who Become Migrant Workers: Case Study in Two Kabupaten in Indonesia. In SMERU Research Report. Google
Shih, K. Y. (2016). Transnational Families. In The Encyclopedia of Family Studies. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119085621.wbefs177
Simoni, V., & Voirol, J. (2020). Remittances and Morality: Family Obligations, Development, and the Ethical Demands of Migration. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2020.1779678
Sukamdi, & Wattie, A. M. (2013). Tobacco Use and Exposure among Children in Migrant and Non-Migrant Households in Java, Indonesia. Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, 22(3), 447–464. https://doi.org/10.1177/011719681302200307
Susilowati, E., Dewi, K., & Subardhini, M. (2017). The Implementation of Social Work Practice with Children in Indonesia. Asian Social Work Journal, 2(1), 28–38. https://doi.org/10.47405/aswj.v2i1.11
Umami, R., & Turnip, S. S. (2019). Emotional and Behavioral Problems among Left-Behind Children in Indonesia. Indian journal of psychological medicine, 41(3), 240–245. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijpsym.ijpsym_370_18
UNDESA. (2024). International Migration and Sustainable Development.
Ungar, M. (2011). The Social Ecology of Resilience: Addressing Contextual and Cultural Ambiguity of a Nascent Construct. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 81(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-0025.2010.01067.x
Walsh, F. (2016). Family Resilience: A Developmental System Framework. European Journal of Developmental Psychology. https://doi.org/17405629.2016.1154035
World Bank. (2017). Indonesia Global Workers: Juggling Opportunities Risks. https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/357131511778676366-0070022017/original/IndonesiasGlobalWorkersJugglingOpportunitiesRisks.pdf
World Population Review. (2023). World Population Review: Indonesia. World Population Review. https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/indonesia-population
Yue, Z., Liang, Z., Wang, Q., & Chen, X. (2020). The Impact of Parental Migration on Depression of Children: New Evidence from Rural China. Chinese Sociological Review, 52(4), 364–388. https://doi.org/10.1080/21620555.2020.1776601
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Muhammad Iqbal, Yuherina Gusman
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
