The Other Side of the Mirror: An Analytic Journalistic Approach to the Subjective Well-Being of Filipino Women Migrant Workers in Japan

Abstract

In its political structural reform, the Japanese government presents the urgency to consider an increase in labor mobility that includes the issue of immigration to Japan. Women from Southeast Asia represent a large proportion of this immigration. The aim of this case study was to identify factors associated with subjective well-being (SWB) among Filipino women migrant workers in Tokyo, Japan. The study used an analytic journalistic approach. A focus group interview was conducted with three women and the data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Communication, support network, faith, and sense of identity were identified as the main factors contributing to SWB among these women. In conclusion, the feminization of migration will continue; therefore, better understanding about the factors associated to SWB is needed to ease the impact of migration on home and host countries.