As part of the ministerial-level focal program “Research and overall assessment of families in the period of industrialization, modernization and international integration (KX-16/19) hosted by Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, the Institute for Family and Gender Studies (IFGS) held conferences on theoretical and methodological issues of 3 ministerial-level projects hosted by IFGS under the mentioned ministerial-level program. Attending the conferences were representatives of the leadership of the KX-16/19 program, project leaders, representatives of Scientific Management Board under Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, key members involving in the component projects of the Program, researchers and lecturers from institutes and universities in Hanoi. November 9th 2016: Project “Theoretical and methodological grounds of researching marriage” The conference is part of the project “Main characteristics of marriage in Vietnam at present and influencing factors” (KHXH-G?/16-19/02) led by Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Minh. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Minh briefed participants on the objectives and contents of the project, including the formation of marriage, housing arrangement for couples after wedding, identifying marriage experience of couples, especially in the early stage of marriage, assessment of some aspects of marriage, assessment of the influence of economic, cultural and social conditions on marriage, forecasting the trend of marriage changes in the coming time in Vietnam and recommendations for policy directions regarding marriage. The project will focus on researching marriage characteristics in Vietnam at the time being, including marital status, times of getting married, consanguineous marriages, looking for and choosing partners, criteria for choosing partners, decision makers in marriage, the way to make marriage decision, marriage age and housing arrangement after wedding, average age of first marriage, age of early marriage, perceptions on couples living with or without parents, experience and quality of marriage, the way husband and wife behave to each other, couple’s emotional life, mishaps in marital life and responses, satisfaction/dissatisfaction about marriage, sharing time and activities between husband and wife. At the conference, the following presentations were delivered: (1) Some approaches to researching marriage presented by Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Minh, Director of the IFGS (2) Living arrangement after wedding under the cultural ecological perspective and implication to the research of living arrangement after wedding in Vietnam by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Tuan Anh, Faculty of Sociology, Ha Noi University of Social Sciences and Humanities; (3) Some issues relating method to measure marriage quality by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Phan Thi Mai Huong, Institute for Psychology; (4) Assessing and measuring marriage quality (from some research in the world) by Dr. Vu Thi Thanh, Institute of Human Studies; (5) Some methodological issues of researching consanguineous marriages in Vietnam by Dr. Nguyen Duc Manh, Institute for Population, Family and Children Studies. November 10th 2016: Theme “Theoretical approach and measurement scale in studying family values” The conference was part of the project “Fundamental values of Vietnamese families at present” (KHXH-G?/16-19/10) led by Dr. Tran Thi Minh Thi. The conference helps identify fundamental values of families and factors which influence fundamental values of Vietnamese families at present, thus revealing some trends in the transformation of family fundamental values in the coming time. The conference focused on clarifying theoretical and practical grounds of family fundamental values, such as significance of marriage and family, perception and individual attitude toward economic, psychological, emotional aspects, children, family relationships and influencing factors under traditional and modern dimensions of Vietnamese family values at present, therefore forecasting some stereotypes of family values in the coming time and making some policy recommendations in order to bring into full play fundamental values of Vietnamese families. The report by Dr. Tran Thi Minh Thi, project leader was followed by other presentations: (1) “Value of husband-wife, parent-children, immediate family-extended family, family-community relations at present- some initial theoretical understanding and measurement scale” by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Thi An – Head of the Scientific Management Board, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences. (2) Family values in Vietnam under theoretical and methodological perspectives – Assoc. Prof. Dr. of Sciences Luong Dinh Hai –Director of the Institute for Human Studies; (3) Economic values of families at present: concept, theory and measurement indicators – Prof. Dr Le Ngoc Hung – Vice Director of the Institute of Sociology, Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics. (4) Some methodological dimensions in researching family values by Prof. Dr. Trinh Duy Luan, Vietnam Sociological Association; (5) Theory and measurement scale of marriage and family significance – M.A. Tran Quy Long, IFGS. November 11th 2016: Theme “Some theoretical and methodological issues in studying domestic violence”. The conference was part of the project “Influences of social and economic environments on domestic violence at present” (KHXH-G?/16-19/04) led by Dr. Dang Thi Hoa In recent years, many scientists and social activists show their interest in the studies on domestic violence. Domestic violence is reported in many countries and territories, regardless of geographical locations, ethnic groups or level of social development. Forms of domestic violence are diverse and complicated. In Vietnam, domestic violence is becoming a pressing social issue. The acts of violence are obvious, but the causes of violence should be clarified. Domestic violence tends to become more severe, target more victims and become increasingly complicated. The conference aims to clarify theoretical and practical grounds of domestic violence in Vietnam, find approach and methodology to research and measure domestic violence and factors influencing domestic violence. The report by Dr. Dang Thi Hoa, project leader was followed by presentations: (1) “Issues to be dealt with when researching domestic violence in Vietnam at present” by Dr. Tran Tuyet Anh, Head of Family Department, Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism; (2) “Domestic violence under the perspective of culture, structure and social actions” by Assoc. Prof. Le Ngoc Van, IFGS; (3) “Some theories to be applied to researching domestic violence” M.A. Dang Bich Thuy – IFGS; (4) “Some approaches to researching domestic violence in the world” by Dr. Duong Kim Anh, Vietnam Women's Academy; (5) "Some notes relating to the framework for analyzing and measuring in researching domestic violence" - Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Minh - Director of IFGS. The conferences have provided a good opportunity for scientists to exchange and share experience and knowledge about theory and methodology for the 3 research themes, including marriage, fundamental family values at present and domestic violence in Vietnam and in the world. Outcomes of the conferences will help provide theoretical and methodological grounds for the research and overall assessment of Vietnamese families in the period of industrialization, modernization and international integration.

Having sex before marriage in Vietnamese young people tends to increase. In addition to the factors of environment, friends, schools, the media, the openness of Western culture, there are also other factors that influence the attitude and sexual behavior change of the youth. The study examines the impact of personal values, family values on that change and put them in relation to other factors. The result of this study shows that personal values and family values as the basic contents of traditional values and Confucianism values continues to have an impact on young people’s attitudes and their sexual behavior before marriage.

This paper aims to review recent theoretical discussions on elderly care and key subject powers and application to Vietnam, including (i) care diamond; (ii) state, market, family, and community in elderly care; (iii) attachment theory, (iv) social exchange theory; and (v) role of norms, obligations and social identities in Asian context. In a Vietnam’s transitional context, according to the author, elderly care regime is in the process of learning new experiences while building its own principles since its population has just entered to aging process. Rural-urban migration and other demographic and social changes such as more women in the labor force, higher divorce rates, decreasing birth rates, and changing family structures, have led to the increasing number of left-behind elderly in the rural villages, raising an increasing attention both from a theoretical perspective and practical research. Furthermore, it is significant in the Vietnamese society that a considerable number of old parents provide support to their children and living independently.