“LET’S READ TOGETHER”: SHARED PICTURE BOOK READING, CHILDREN’S EMOTIONAL COMPREHENSION AND PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIP, A CASE STUDY WITH A GROUP OF NURSES IN MACAU

ABSTRACT

INCLUSIVENESS HAS BECOME A CRITICAL TOPIC NOWADAYS, SERVING AS A  BENCHMARK OF A NATION AND COMMUNITY’S LEVEL OF CIVILIZATION. AS A CORE COMPONENT  OF THE UNITED NATIONS' SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS), INCLUSIVENESS  UNDERSCORES ITS GLOBAL SIGNIFICANCE IN FOSTERING EQUITABLE AND JUSTICE SOCIETIES.   THE CHANGING DYNAMICS OF MACAO HOUSEHOLDS, CHARACTERIZED BY BOTH  PARENTS WORKING OR ENGAGING IN SHIFT WORK, ALONG WITH AN INCREASINGLY AGING  POPULATION, HAVE LED TO A GROWING RELIANCE ON DOMESTIC WORKERS. AS A RESULT, THESE  DOMESTIC WORKERS OFTEN DEVELOP DEEP RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE CHILDREN UNDER THEIR  CARE, BECOMING INTEGRAL MEMBERS OF THE HOUSEHOLDS. ACCORDING TO STATISTICS FROM  THE LABOUR AFFAIRS BUREAU IN MACAO (2024), FILIPINO NON-RESIDENT WORKERS  COMPRISE THE SECOND-LARGEST ETHNIC GROUP, TOTALING 30,267 INDIVIDUALS. OF THIS  GROUP, 48% (14,604 INDIVIDUALS) ARE ENGAGED IN DOMESTIC WORK, HIGHLIGHTING THEIR  SUBSTANTIAL PRESENCE IN THE SECTOR.  THIS STUDY AIMS TO INVESTIGATE THE EXPERIENCES OF THE LARGEST MIGRANT  WORKING GROUP IN THE REGION—FEMALE FILIPINO DOMESTIC WORKERS—FOCUSING ON  THEIR EXPERIENCES OF INCLUSIVENESS WITHIN BOTH THE WORKPLACE AND THE MACAO  COMMUNITY. UTILIZING A QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY, THE STUDY CONDUCTS  INTERVIEWS WITH 10 FEMALE FILIPINO DOMESTIC WORKERS IN MACAO. THESE INTERVIEWS  PROVIDE VALUABLE INSIGHTS INTO THEIR LIVED EXPERIENCES, ILLUMINATING THEIR  PERCEPTIONS OF INCLUSION WITHIN THEIR EMPLOYED FAMILIES AND SOCIETY. ADDITIONALLY,  THE RESEARCH EXAMINES WHETHER EXISTING LAWS AND REGULATIONS FACILITATE THEIR  INCLUSION IN MACAO.  THE RESULTS OF THIS STUDY REVEALED EIGHT KEY THEMES AND TWO NEW MODELS OF  PERCEIVED INCLUSIVENESS IN DOMESTIC WORKPLACE AND COMMUNITY , CONTRIBUTING TO  A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE INCLUSIVENESS EXPERIENCE OF FILIPINO DOMESTIC  WORKERS IN MACAO.