Children’s Social Interaction in the Adaptation Process Due to Parent’s Job Mobility

Abstract

The study discusses how parents' occupational mobility affects children, as they try to adjust to the new environment in terms of social relationships. Over 5.2 million people in Indonesia migrate between provinces to find work, of which 36% of them have children who are less than 18 years of age. Such a phenomenon would lead to social and cultural adaptation problems for about 2.1 million children every year. Among the negative effects include difficulty in socialisation, loneliness, low self-perception and various developmental maladies, all of which can be caused by the cultural, language and communication dissimilarities found in the new place. Results from the researcher`s preliminary survey have also confirmed barriers to initial social interaction among children. This study uses constructive qualitative phenomenology to assess social adaptation experiences of circular migrant workers' children. The data were collected through semi-structured online interviews with five informants (aged 20–22) based on specific criteria and were supplemented by observation and documentation. Data analysis followed the Miles-Huberman interactive model (collection, reduction, presentation and conclusion) with source validity triangulation testing. Research findings indicate that the social adaptation of children of circular migrant workers is mediated by the quality of parenting, which instils social values to guide adaptation; cognitive abilities, such as self-efficacy and cognitive flexibility; and active communication strategies. The children develop language and interactional adjustment patterns based on Interaction Adaptation Theory to achieve social synchrony while drawing social capital from peer networks and significant figures such as teachers and parents.