Thai family demography: a review and research prospects

Abstract

The field of family and household demography is in itself fairly new, especially when viewed in contrast to some of the other topics in the field such as fertility and mortality. Demographers working in this field draw together studies from several social science disciplines and formulate a basis for studying the family that is uniquely demographic. This paper attempts to give an overview of demographic knowledge on the Thai family and to suggest directions for futher research. It begins with a brief discussion on the concept of family demography and the Thai context. Then several features of demographic processes associated with the Thai families and household are discussed at some length. The paper wraps up with some suggestions for futher research in the field of family demography.