Sex-Role Specialization in a Transforming Market: Empirical Evidence from Vietnamese Middle-Class Households

Abstract

Vietnam is undergoing a rapid transformation to a more prosperous society. This article analyzes household decision making in a transforming economy that has undergone modification of the traditional view of the family, from being an autonomous unit to an object of state policy. This is relevant because policy interventions shape household consumption through gender equality programs and thus have an impact on sex-role specialization. The aim of this study is to advance understanding of Vietnamese household consumption decisions and spouses’ current influence patterns by investigating sex-role specialization in Vietnamese middle-class families’ decision making. Overall, no significant sex-role changes were observed. It seems that traditional Vietnamese sex-role specialization does not (yet) differ among age groups. Instead, traditional sex-role segmentation remains predominant across all investigated age groups. While economic and consumption habits change rapidly, middle-class families appear to preserve their traditional influence patterns in purchase decisions.

Assessing the challenges and opportunities for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Vietnamese apparel retail market

“…Vietnamese consumers, particularly younger segments, spent around 70 percent of their monthly income on consumer goods (e.g., personal care and household products) and services (e.g., personal leisure and travel) in 2008. This phenomenon indicates that consumer spending as an important part of Vietnam's current economy (Penz & Kirchler, 2012).…”

“…The increasing household income supported brand perception for the Vietnamese consumers with purchasing power and discretionary tastes in consumer values (Nilan, 1999;Binh & Terry, 2011). Therefore, changes in Vietnam's economic conditions contributed to increasing apparel consumption levels (Maruyama & Trung, 2012;Penz & Kirchler, 2012;Shultz, Pecotich, & Le, 1994). However, the global economic recession in 2008 heavily impacted Vietnam's economy.…”

“…Increasing household income and economic changes have also attributed to changes in consumption levels in Vietnam (Shultz, Pecotich, & Le, 1994;Maruyama & Trung, 2012;Penz & Kirchler, 2012). In recent years, Vietnam has ranked third in the world in terms of its consumption ratio ("Vietnamese people changing their consumption habits: Research," 2007).…”

“…Consumer expenditures in Vietnam are growing rapidly, more than four percent during the period from 2000 to 2009, due to increased purchasing power and large market size (Penz & Kirchler, 2012;Syamananda, 2013). Vietnamese consumers, particularly younger segments, spent around 70 percent of their monthly income on consumer goods (e.g., personal care and household products) and services (e.g., personal leisure and travel) in 2008.…”

“…Vietnamese consumers have a desire for better quality of services and reliable products (Maruyama & Trung, 2012). In addition, Vietnamese consumers are able to easily access ample products from extended domestic and global retail networks since the country initiated its open door policy in 1986 (Penz & Kirchler, 2012). Taken together, the growing awareness of global brands by the Vietnamese consumer has stimulated the development of the retail environment and structures in the Vietnamese retail markets (Euromonitor International, 2011).…”