MIAMI UNIVERSITY The Graduate School Certificate for Approving the Dissertation We hereby ...

200 Pages·2015·1.7 MB·English

MIAMI UNIVERSITY
The Graduate School

Certificate for Approving the Dissertation

We hereby approve the Dissertation

of

Karel Joyce Daba Kalaw

Candidate for the Degree:

Doctor of Philosophy

______________________________________
Director
Kate B. de Medeiros, PhD

______________________________________
Reader
Jennifer M. Kinney, PhD

______________________________________
Reader
Suzanne R. Kunkel, PhD

______________________________________
Reader
Kathryn B. McGrew, PhD

______________________________________
Graduate School Representative
Carl T. Dahlman, PhD
ABSTRACT

“HOME FOR GOOD:” THE EXPERIENCE OF RETURN
AMONG OVERSEAS MALE FILIPINO WORKERS (OMFW)

by Karel Joyce Daba Kalaw

This study examines the intersection between transnational migration, as one of the
distinguishing features of Philippine society, and aging studies. The return experience among
Overseas Male Filipino Workers (OMFW) is explored. Specifically, this study aims to answer
the following questions: What is the return experience among OMFW?; What is the response of
their family members upon the OMFW return?; and how do OMFW view their lives in older
age? Interviews with OMFW returnees, and comparative non-OMFW with their family members
(wife/child) were conducted in Tagalog in the Philippines. The life course perspective, life story
narratives, and the inclusion of Filipino indigenous methodologies (FIM) served as the
conceptual frameworks. The results revealed that return is expressed in different ways; has
dimensions, challenges, impacts; and is related to overseas life and Filipino culture. Return
transnational migration was integrated in the life course of the OMFW returnee and his family.
The study describes the humanness of return experience and the returnees’ change in self-
perception, familism, and final exit from work. In addition, familism is an important factor to
describe return and later life, and informs the life course of the returnees and their families.
Moreover, the use of FIM facilitated layers of rapport-building that are important in eliciting
quality data from the participants. FIM also emerged as a method that was in many ways in
contrast to Western research approaches. In FIM, the researcher learned by being a fully
integrated part of the community of interest (OMFW) rather than as an outside observer, which is
more typical in traditional qualitative research. The study is relevant to Philippine society for
several reasons: it adds insight into existing transnational migration programs; it informs life
course studies and cross-cultural gerontology; it demonstrates use of a culturally sensitive
methodology (FIM); and it provides a voice to a previously overlooked yet important population.
“HOME FOR GOOD:” THE EXPERIENCE OF RETURN
AMONG OVERSEAS MALE FILIPINO WORKERS (OMFW)

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to the Faculty of

Miami University in partial

fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of

Doctor of Philosophy

Department of Sociology and Gerontology

by

Karel Joyce Daba Kalaw

Miami University

Oxford, Ohio

2015

Dissertation Director: Kate B. de Medeiros, PhD
©

Karel Joyce Daba Kalaw
2015
Table of Contents

List of Appendices ......................................................................................................................... vi
List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………………….vii
List of Figures…………………………………………………………………………………...viii
Dedication ...................................................................................................................................... ix
Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... x

Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Background of the Problem.............................................................................................. 1
1.2 Brief Theoretical and Conceptual Framework ................................................................ 3
1.3 Potential Original Contribution ........................................................................................ 4
Familism and definition of development within the household. ...................................... 4
Extending indigenous methodologies. .............................................................................. 5
1.4 Dissertation Structure ....................................................................................................... 5

Chapter 2: Review of Literature ............................................................................................. 7
2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 7
2.2 What is Return Migration? ............................................................................................... 7
Typologies of return migrants. ......................................................................................... 8
Motives for return. ............................................................................................................ 9
Effects of return migration to individual, family, and community. ................................ 10
2.3 Trends in Philippine Labor Migration: The Research Context ..................................... 11
Asian labor migration: Male exodus to oil-rich Gulf regions. ...................................... 11
Understanding the Filipino culture. ................................................................................ 12
Kapwa and Filipino cultural values. ............................................................................... 13
2.4 The Life Course Perspective .......................................................................................... 15
Life course as a construct. .............................................................................................. 17
Life course as an explanatory theory. ............................................................................. 17
Life course and the return experience. ........................................................................... 18
2.5 Filipino Elders ................................................................................................................ 18
Profile of the Filipino elders ........................................................................................... 18
2.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 19

Chapter 3: Filipino Indigenous Methodologies (FIM) ..................................................... 20
3.1 Understanding Indigenous Methodologies (IM) ............................................................ 20
3.2 Sikolohiyang Pilipino (SP): Filipino Psyche ................................................................. 21
iii
Beginnings, development and impetus of SP. ................................................................ 21
Development of indigenous concepts and theories: Pagkataong Filipino (Filipino
personhood). .................................................. 23
Development of indigenous research methods. .............................................................. 28
3.3 Kapwa as a Cultural Script ............................................................................................. 30
3.4 Relevance and Urgency of FIM ..................................................................................... 31
3.5 Reflecting on FIM .......................................................................................................... 32
3.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 33

Chapter 4: Research Methodology ...................................................................................... 34
4.1 Ethnographic Interviewing as a Method ........................................................................ 34
4.2 Life Story and Narratives ............................................................................................... 35
4.3 FIM: Pagtanong-tanong and Pakikipagkwentuhan ...................................................... 35
Pagtanong-tanong. ......................................................................................................... 36
Pakikipagkwentuhan. ...................................................................................................... 36
4.4 The Research Design ...................................................................................................... 37
Phase 1: Setting the scene. ............................................................................................. 37
Phase 2: Interview. ........................................................................................................ 39
Phase 3: Analysis. .......................................................................................................... 41

Chapter 5: Results: The OMFW and Their Return Experience .................................... 43
5.1 Description of Participants ............................................................................................. 43
5.2 Major Themes ................................................................................................................ 44
Themes on the return experience. ................................................................................... 44
Themes on old age. ......................................................................................................... 59
5.3 Response of Others with Return..................................................................................... 70
The OMFW wives. ......................................................................................................... 70
The OMFW children. ..................................................................................................... 71
5.4 OMFW and non-OMFW ................................................................................................ 72
Recognizing and making sense of one’s own aging ....................................................... 72
5.5 Chapter Summary ........................................................................................................... 74

Chapter 6: Discussion ........................................................................................................... 75
6.1 Change in Self-perception .............................................................................................. 75
6.2 Filipino Values ............................................................................................................... 76
6.3 Views of Return ............................................................................................................. 76
6.4 Relevance of FIM’s Applicability .................................................................................. 78
Doing FIM. ..................................................................................................................... 79
iv
6.5 Migration and the Life Course ....................................................................................... 81
6.6 Future Research Directions ............................................................................................ 83
6.7 Reflections ...................................................................................................................... 83

References ................................................................................................................... 86
Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………… 101
Glossary ..................................................................................................................... 179
Acronyms/Abbreviations………………………………………………………………… 181

v
List of Appendices
Appendix A: Letter to the OMFW Respondent ......................................................................... 102
Appendix B: Informed Consent—OMFW returnee .................................................................. 103
Appendix C: Informed Consent Form—Wife of an OMFW Returnee ..................................... 105
Appendix D: Informed Consent Form—Child of an OMFW Returnee .................................... 107
Appendix E: Informed Consent Form—Non-OMFW Participant............................................. 109
Appendix F: Informed Consent Form—Wife of a non-OMFW Participant.............................. 111
Appendix G: Informed Consent Form—Child of a Non-OMFW Participant ............................ 113
Appendix H: OMFW Returnee’s Background Information ....................................................... 115
Appendix I: Interview Guide for OMFW Returnees ................................................................ 116
Appendix L: Interview Guide for Non-OMFW Participants ..................................................... 119
Appendix O: OMFW Returnee’s Background Information (Tagalog version)......................... 122
Appendix P: Interview Guide for OMFW Returnees (Tagalog version) ................................. 123
Appendix R: Interview Guide for OMFW’ Family Members—Child (Tagalog version) ........ 126
Appendix S: Interview Guide for Non-OMFW Participants (Tagalog version) ...................... 127
Appendix V: Codebook ............................................................................................................. 130
Appendix W: Detailed Case Presentation of OMFW Returnees ................................................ 132
Appendix X: Detailed Case Presentation of non-OMFW Returnees......................................... 154
Appendix Y: Detailed Case Presentation of OMFW Returnees’ Family Members .................. 161
Appendix Z: Detailed Case Presentation of non-OMFW Family Members.............................. 172

vi
List of Tables
Table 1. Filipino Behavior Patterns and Value Structure: Core, Surface and Societal ............. 182
Table 2. Profile of OMFW Participants ..................................................................................... 183
Table 3. Non-OMFW Participants ............................................................................................. 184
Table 4. Profile of Family Members—OMFW Wife ................................................................. 185
Table 5. Profile of Family Members—Non-OMFW Wife......................................................... 185
Table 6. Profile of Family Members—OMFW Child ................................................................ 186
Table 7. Profile of Family Members—Non-OMFW Child ........................................................ 186

vii
List of Figures
Figure 1. Conceptual model on levels of social interaction ...................................................... 187

viii