considered appropriate for obtaining information
about parent/grandparent-child interactions as they
relate to the culture, traditional life activities and
behaviors of the participants.
Ethical considerations: Data collection was
initiated following approval to conduct the study
from the Graduate School’s Ethical Research
Committee of the primary investigator’s (PI)
academic institution, and the administrators of the
eleven organizations used to access potential subjects.
All potential participants were informed about: the
nature of the study; what study involvement entailed
(i.e. interviews, observations, audio/video recordings
and note taking by the PI); anonymity and
confidentiality issues; voluntary involvement; and,
the right to withdraw from the study at any time
without repercussions. Those who consented to
participate either signed a consent form or gave
verbal consent.
Participants and setting: Potential participants
were recruited from eight factories and three healthcare
centers in the industrial area used as a study site. The
industrial area was selected because it was on the
eastern seaboard of Thailand where numerous
migrations of people occurred for employment.
The criteria for inclusion of a family was having
at least one parent who: was at least 20 years of age;
had a 13 to 36 month old child; worked in the
industrial area; was willing and available to participate
in the study; and, was able to communicate. Members
of families who had a history of mental health illness,
chronic illness or severe health issues were excluded
from participation.
Potential participant families from the
healthcare centers were identified, via the children’s
medical records, on the day each center was
conducting vaccinations for children. Potential
participant families from the factories were identified
via circulation and return of a survey that asked if
they had a child between 13 to36 months of age.
Originally, 25 families consented to participate
in the study. However, three families withdrew during
the data gathering process because of moving
outside the area or having insufficient time to take
part in the interview process. Thus, 70 family
members from 22 families (22 children, 22
mothers, 20 fathers and 6 grandmothers) participated
in the study. Due to parents of two of the families being
separated, only 20 fathers took part in the study.
The 22 families proved sufficient for saturation of
the qualitative data.
Fifty-nine percent (n = 13) of the children
were boys and 41% (n = 9) were girls. The majority
of children were 13 to 24 months of age (n=13;
59%). Over half the fathers (n=13; 59%) were 30
to 40 years of age, while the majority of mothers
(n= 15, 68%) were 20 to 30 years of age. The
majority of parents (n=15; 75% of fathers and n=
17; 77% of mothers) were migrants. Six (30%)
fathers and 10 (45%) mothers came from the
Northeastern region of Thailand. Six (30%) fathers
and three (14%) mothers were from the Northern
region, while three (15%) fathers and four (18%)
mothers were from the Central region. Five (25%)
fathers and five (23%) mothers were from the
Eastern region, including the province where the
study was conducted. The majority of participant
families (n= 20; 91%) lived in a residential area
near the industrial study site area. Seven (32%)
families rented a house or room, while 14 (64%)
were home owners with a mortgage. The one (4%)
remaining family lived with relatives.
Seven (32%) mothers and four (20%)
fathers had worked more than 10 years, in the
industrial area, while seven (35%) fathers and
seven (32%) mothers had worked five to 10 years.
Nine (45%) fathers and eight (36%) mothers had
worked less than five years. Parents tended to work
in: electrical parts (n = 3; 15% of fathers and n = 7;
32% of mothers); household appliances (n = 4;