Ageing and transnational householding: <i>Japanese retirees in Southeast Asia</i>

Abstract

The provision of elderly care in Japan has long been dependent on female family members. However,because of the rise in the number of delayed marriages, the increase in divorce and non-marriage andother effects of household restructuring, this is no longer a viable solution. This paper investigates theemerging 'transnational householding' strategies employed by Japanese elderly people as a responseto this. Combining macro-analysis of the demographic and institutional changes in Japan with micro,ethnographic study of the Japanese retirees in north Thailand, the paper teases out how ageing, togetherwith other social factors, is part of the global householding trend in the Asia Pacific.