A Study on the Relationship between Chinese Proficiency and the Leisure Constraints of Vietnamese Female Immigrants in Taiwan Hsiao-wen Huang, Assistant Professor of Department of Information Management, Chang Jung Christian, University, Taiwan Hong-yu Shih, Associate Professor of Department of Leisure, Recreation and Tourism Management Southern Taiwan University of Technology, Taiwan Hengli Liao, teacher of the Shiua-Shin Elementary School, Chiayi, Taiwan ABSTRACT This study investigated the influence of Chinese proficiency on the leisure constraints experienced by Vietnamese female immigrants in Taiwan when engaging in leisure activities and provided recommendations for improving such a phenomenon. This study could assist Vietnamese female immigrants in Taiwan in achieving better leisure quality. Through statistical analysis, the research results showed that Chinese proficiency has a significant effect on Vietnamese female immigrants leisure intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints. Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese proficiency perceive a lower level of leisure constraints than those with poor Chinese proficiency. Keywords: Female Immigrant, Vietnamese spouse, Chinese proficiency, Leisure Constraint, Taiwan, East Asia INTRODUCTION In recent years, many foreigners travel a long away to study Chinese in Taiwan. In addition, increasing female immigrants from Southeast Asia have come to Taiwan for cross-cultural marriage. These female immigrants have become another important group learning Chinese. In 2008, among the foreign spouses marrying in Taiwan, 58.78% (12,772 people) were from Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau, while 41.22% were from other countries (6,009 were from Southeast Asia, accounting for 67.09% of all foreign spouses). As for nationality, most of them were from Vietnam, followed by Japan and Indonesia (National Statistical Office, 2009). Studies concerning the issues of female immigrants have mainly focused on aspects such as social policies, individual physical and psychological health, education, and life adjustment; however, there are a lack of studies on life issues such as food, clothing, living, transport, education, and entertainment in Taiwan (Chen & Wang, 2005). Chinese proficiency is the most important tool for communicating with people and also the most rapid method for helping female immigrants get exposed to and integrate into Taiwanese culture (Chen, 2008). With the constant increase in the number of female immigrants, their current leisure status and leisure constraints have gradually become issues worthy of concern, especially as leisure has become a current social phenomenon and basic need. However, female immigrants tend not to obtain and use social resources in Taiwan due to various restrictions, since they are in a strange environment and face different cultures and language. Leisure activities enable female immigrants to expand their social circles and further understand and interact with local people, rather than to restrict themselves to staying at home. However, female immigrants encounter some communication obstacles when engaging in leisure activities, which further affect their opportunities and willingness to engage in leisure activities. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between Chinese proficiency and the leisure constraints of Vietnamese female immigrants when they engage in leisure activities. Besides reinforce the literature in relevant studies, this study hopes to contribute to providing specific recommendations for and assistance in creating better Chinese proficiency and leisure quality for Vietnamese female immigrants in Taiwan.
LITERATURE REVIEW Leisure Constraint Theory The selection of or participation in leisure activities may be affected by certain factors, and these factors may result in individuals unwillingness to participate in leisure activities, reduce individuals desire for participation, decrease the satisfaction obtained during participation, and further affect the quality of life. These factors are generally called leisure constraints (Crawford & Godbey, 1987; Jackon & Dunn, 1988). Crawford, Jackson and Godbey (1991) divided leisure constraints into the three categories of intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints. The main factors of intrapersonal constraints are an individual s personal traits, attitude, and psychological barriers. Intrapersonal constraints affect people s performance and participation in leisure activities in areas such as self-esteem, pressure, lack of sense of safety. The interpersonal constraint is the lack of a leisure companion, which is the consequence of lacking interactions among people. Under the circumstance of lacking a leisure companion, individuals may feel alone and their willingness to participate in leisure activities may be affected. The structural constraints are mainly composed of time constraints, a lack of money, and health problems. Time constraints are mainly caused by a heavy workload or the feeling of having no time, as a result of maintaining family and interpersonal relationships. Financial constraints are the main constraint experienced by the unemployed or those with a low income. However, even for those with a normal income, leisure expenses are also one of the causes impeding them from participating in leisure activities. Health constraints are the main problem encountered by retired senior citizens. The deterioration of physical functions as a result of increased age also leads to leisure constraints. Jackson (1993) divided 15 leisure constraints into five categories: 1) social isolation factors; 2) accessibility factors; 3) individual factors and expense factors; 4) time factors; and 5) device factors. Lee (1997) divided leisure constraints into three categories: 1) individual restrictions, such as a lack of self-esteem, health and safety concern, and a sense of responsibility for taking care of others; 2) interpersonal restrictions, including changes in the external environment such as changing residences, the lack of a leisure companion caused by the loss of a spouse, and social control caused by whether family members agree with an individual s participation in leisure activities; and 3) structural restrictions, including a lack of time, money, activity facilities, and activity plans and the disadvantage of inconvenient transportation. Female Leisure Constraint Studies Scraton and Watson (1998) indicated that many structural factors have a negative effect on female leisure opportunities. Female leisure behaviors are usually adjusted according to their socioeconomic background and family roles. When women play numerous different roles in their families, they enjoy less leisure. Their leisure participation is mainly affected by the living habits and level of leisure participation of their original families. Such an adjustment is affected by other people s expectations and the family structure. Warner-Smith and Brown (2002) found that the daily lives of women living in rural areas are restricted by the lack of public transportation, which also affects their selection of and participation in leisure activities. Suto (2004) found that women who immigrate to Canada are responsible for dealing with most of the domestic labor involved in taking care of children. Therefore, for female immigrants, factors such as a lack of time, language barriers, reduced social support, work transition, and different domestic divisions of labor will affect their leisure awareness and their willingness to spend time engaging in leisure activities. When female immigrants first arrive in Taiwan, their initial activities are mostly restricted to those related to the family, due to language restrictions, unfamiliarity with the local environment and a lack of transportation. Moreover, owing to the influence of stereotypes, the husband s family members usually suggest that if female immigrants interact with other friends of the same nationality, it is possible to lead to adverse behaviors such as escaping from their marriages, having affairs, and stealing. Therefore, many restrictions are often imposed on the outdoor activities of female immigrants. However, for those who have lived in Taiwan for a longer period of time, the aforementioned obstacles can be gradually overcome (Lin, 2008). Hsieh, Lin, Huang, Pan, and Lee (2001) investigated the leisure activities and leisure constraints of 282 female college workers, and found that their level of agreement with structural constraints was the highest among the three major categories of leisure constraints, followed by interpersonal constraints. As for economic factors, the economic status of the husband s family will also affect female immigrants
opportunities to engage in leisure activities. The leisure behaviors and models of many female immigrants are subject to their spouses economic status. In terms of family factors, having children increases the responsibilities borne by female immigrants. Some of them still have to work outside the home to help support the husband s family, which reduces their amount of free time. As a result, more restrictions are imposed on their selection of leisure activities (Wu, 2001). Hsiao (2005) found that Filipino female labors are significantly affected by individual constraints such as shyness, friends disapproval of leisure activities, and conflict between leisure activities and religious beliefs. RESEARCH METHOD Research scope and subjects The subjects of this study were Vietnamese female immigrants living in Taiwan, including Tainan, Chiayi, and Yunlin. A total of 289 questionnaires were distributed and 246 of them were returned. After 43 invalid questionnaires were removed, 203 valid questionnaires were obtained, with a return rate of 70.2%. Data analysis The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between Chinese Proficiency and the leisure constraints of Vietnamese female immigrants. This study adopted a literature review and a questionnaire survey to collect data. The statistical software SPSS 17.0 was used to analyze and process data in order to understand the relationship among different variables. Analytical approaches included descriptive statistics including mean, frequency distribution, and standard deviation, and inferential statistics refer to one-way ANOVA. Research instruments (1) Chinese Proficiency Scale The Cronbach s α coefficient was used to test each factor and dimension to measure the internal consistency among all the questions. The Cronbach s α value of the scale was 0.92, suggesting that the correlation among questions was high, as was the internal consistency of the scale. The validity of the scale could be determined by the value of the Kaiser-Meyer Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy. The KMO value of the scale was 0.83, which was greater than 0.50, suggesting that the content validity of the scale was high and representative. The questions were developed based on the Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language, which is a foreign language proficiency test for non-native speakers of Chinese (Steering Committee for the Test of Proficiency-Huayu, 2010). This test provides assessment on various Chinese abilities, including phonetic system usage ability, listening ability, speaking skills, literacy, the ability to write Chinese characters, reading ability and composing ability. A 5-point Likert Scale, ranging from 1 meaning very poor to 5 meaning excellent", was used to measure Vietnamese female immigrant responses. The higher the point score, the higher the ability is. (2) Leisure Constraint Scale The scale was developed according to the leisure constraint scale compiled by Crawford, Jackson and Godbey (1991). Leisure constraints were divided into the three categories of intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints, respectively. A number of revisions were made to modify the scale for this study. The scale included 25 items in total (Table 1). The Critical Ratio (CR) and Correlation value were used to analyze the validity of each item. CR was used to determine the significance of each item. If the CR is significant, the discriminant validity is acceptable. A Likert-type 6-point Scale was applied to this scale. The scale included the three aspects of intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints and structural constraints, and scores ranged from 1 to 6 points, where 1 point denoted strongly disagree, 2 points denoted disagree, 3 points denoted partially disagree, 4 points denoted partially agree, 5 points denoted agree, and 6 points denoted strongly agree. Higher scores represented a higher level of leisure constraints, while lower scores represented a lower level of leisure constraints. The KMO value of the scale was 0.72, which was greater than 0.50, suggesting that the content validity of the scale was high and representative.
Table 1: Analysis on the Items of the Leisure Constraint Scale Items Critical Correlation Ratio value 1. I am shy so I am afraid to participate in some leisure activities. 4.90** 0.55** 2. It is less likely for me to participate in leisure activities that may make me feel uncomfortable. 2.23* 0.33** 3. I prefer to participate in the leisure activities conforming to my religious beliefs. 2.76** 0.34** 4. I prefer to participate in the leisure activities requiring few skills. 3.94** 0.53** 5. I suggest that it is inappropriate to participate in leisure activities as my identity. 5.32** 0.54** 6. I feel that I am too nervous during the participation in activities and thus cannot feel relaxed. 5.73** 0.50** 7. I feel that I cannot obtain a sense of accomplishment in leisure activities. 3.33** 0.47** 8. My friends all live far away, so they cannot participate in leisure activities with me. 5.69** 0.62** 9. My friends have no time to participate in leisure activities with me. 4.61** 0.54** 10. My friends do not have sufficient money to participate in leisure activities with me. 5.63** 0.54** 11. My friends cannot participate in leisure activities with me due to their family or work. 2.86** 0.51** 12. My friends do not have sufficient skills to participate in leisure activities with me. 4.90** 0.42** 13. I lack friends with common interests to participate in leisure activities with me. 5.67** 0.61** 14. My friends do not have transportation methods to participate in leisure activities with me. 5.14** 0.55** 15. I do not get along with other people well during the participation in leisure activities. 4.11** 0.49** 16. Because there is no friend to invite me, I dislike participating in leisure activities. 5.02** 0.63** 17. I feel that no one is appropriate to participate in leisure activities with me. 6.43** 0.59** 18. I feel that the leisure activity environment is not clean. 2.53* 0.32* 19. I feel that the leisure activity environment makes me feel unsafe. 6.14** 0.32** 20. I feel that the expenses of leisure activities are too high. 5.74** 0.59** 21. I feel that the facilities of leisure activities are poor or old. 2.10* 0.38** 22. I feel that there is no professional to instruct me in how to participate in a specific leisure activity. 4.06** 0.53** 23. If I have sufficient money, I will participate in leisure activities. 4.60** 0.47** 24. If the transportation is convenient, I will participate in leisure activities. 2.85** 0.44** 25. If I know information about leisure activities, I will participate in them. 2.78** 0.31* *p<.05 **p<.01 RESEARCH RESULTS Analysis on Chinese Phonetic System Usage Ability and the Leisure Constraints As shown in Table 2, the difference in Vietnamese female immigrants Chinese phonetic system usage ability had a significant effect on three leisure constraints aspects, intrapersonal constraints (F =6.411, p =.000 <.05), interpersonal constraints (F =2.672, p =.033 <.05), and structural constraints (F =4.113, p =.003 <.05). Scheffé method posteriori comparisons found that in terms of intrapersonal constraints, the level of intrapersonal constraints perceived by Vietnamese female immigrants with poor Chinese phonetic system usage ability was higher than that perceived by those with a not bad ability. However, in terms of structural constraints, the level of structural constraints perceived by those with good Chinese phonetic system usage ability was higher than that perceived by those with not bad and poor abilities. The reason might be that Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese phonetic system usage ability had higher self-confidence, and thus encountered a lower level of intrapersonal constraints during the participation in leisure activities. However, on the contrary, in terms structural constraints, Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese phonetic system usage ability had more job opportunities and thus might spend more time working. Therefore, they perceived a higher level of structural constraints. Table 2: Analysis on Chinese Phonetic System Usage Ability and the Leisure Constraints excellent 27.25 5.574 good 26.96 4.817 Intrapersonal Constraints not bad 23.63 6.554 6.411 0.000*** poor>not bad poor 28.24 6.722 very poor 31.00 5.099 excellent 35.38 6.567 Interpersonal Constraints good 37.32 9.890 2.672 0.033* not bad 32.23 8.087
Structural Constraints p<.05* poor 34.53 7.054 very poor 36.50 4.680 excellent 25.88 6.105 good 31.24 6.009 not bad 26.34 5.474 poor 25.04 8.213 very poor 26.33 7.474 4.113 0.003** good >not bad, poor Analysis on Chinese Literacy and the Leisure Constraints As shown in Table 3, the difference in Vietnamese female immigrants Chinese literacy had a significant effect on two aspects of leisure constraints, namely, intrapersonal constraints (F =5.630, p =.000 <.05) and structural constraints (F =2.459, p =.0047 <.05). Scheffé method posteriori comparisons found that the level of intrapersonal constraints perceived by Vietnamese female immigrants with very poor Chinese literacy was higher than that perceived by those with excellent, good, and not bad Chinese literacy. The reason might be that those with better Chinese literacy would not feel worried if Chinese literacy is required during the participation in leisure activities. In addition, they could better understand the meanings of the words and information conveyed. Consequently, they perceived a lower level of intrapersonal constraints. Table 3: Analysis on Chinese Literacy and the Leisure Constraints excellent 23.38 7.113 good 24.52 6.153 very poor> Intrapersonal Constraints not bad 24.59 6.173 5.630 0.000*** excellent, good, not poor 27.29 6.542 bad very poor 32.08 6.512 excellent 31.71 8.760 good 32.52 8.664 Interpersonal Constraints not bad 33.47 7.024 1.225 0.301 poor 35.64 8.124 very poor 34.46 11.730 excellent 27.13 6.202 good 29.55 4.089 Structural Constraints not bad 25.50 5.781 2.459 0.047* poor 26.18 7.454 very poor 27.85 11.224 p<.05* Analysis on the Ability to Write Chinese Characters and the Leisure Constraints As shown in Table 4, the difference in Vietnamese female immigrants ability to write Chinese characters had a significant effect on three aspects of leisure constraints, namely, intrapersonal constraints (F =3.372, p =.011 <.05)), interpersonal constraints (F =2.797, p =.027 <.05), and structural constraints (F =11.023, p =.000 <.05). Scheffé method posteriori comparisons found that in terms of interpersonal constraints, the level of interpersonal constraints perceived by Vietnamese female immigrants with a very poor ability to write Chinese characters was higher than that perceived by those with a poor ability. In terms of structural constraints, the level of structural constraints perceived by those with a very poor ability to write Chinese characters was higher than that perceived by those with a not bad and poor ability. Therefore, if the ability to write Chinese characters is involved in leisure activities, such as the completion of basic information or comments on activities, Vietnamese female immigrants with a better ability to write Chinese characters can assist those with weaker abilities, which is helpful to the establishment of interpersonal relationships. As a result, they perceived a lower level of interpersonal constraints. However, the level of structural constraints perceived by those with an excellent ability to write Chinese characters was higher than that perceived by those with a poor ability. The level of structural constraints perceived by those with a good ability to write Chinese characters was higher than that perceived by those
with not bad and poor abilities. The reason might be that the Vietnamese female immigrants with a better ability to write Chinese characters had to spend more time on other things (such as work), and thus perceived a higher level of structural constraints. Table 4: Analysis on the Ability to Write Chinese Characters and the Leisure Constraints excellent 24.17 5.547 good 25.04 5.867 Intrapersonal Constraints not bad 24.81 6.311 3.372 0.011* poor 28.87 8.698 very poor 30.20 7.855 excellent 33.67 7.731 good 34.30 8.437 Interpersonal Constraints not bad 33.38 7.833 2.797 0.027* very poor>poor poor 31.48 6.633 very poor 44.00 13.191 Structural Constraints excellent 28.89 5.766 excellent>poor good 28.86 4.584 good > not bad, not bad 25.12 6.294 11.023 0.000*** poor very poor> poor 22.10 7.194 very poor 34.60 9.423 not bad, poor p<.05* Analysis on Chinese Reading Ability and the Leisure Constraints As shown in Table 5, the difference in Vietnamese female immigrants Chinese reading ability had a significant effect on two aspects of leisure constraints, namely, intrapersonal constraints (F =3.473, p =.009 <.05) and structural constraints (F =4.695, p =.001 <.05). Scheffé method posteriori comparisons found that the level of intrapersonal constraints perceived by the female immigrants with a very poor Chinese reading ability was higher than that perceived by those with excellent, good, not bad, and poor abilities. It could be inferred that the Vietnamese female immigrants with a better Chinese reading ability may read more efficiently and be more confident than those with a poor Chinese reading ability, if there is a need to read Chinese during the participation in leisure activities. Therefore, they perceived a lower level of intrapersonal constraints. In terms of structural constraints, the level of structural constraints perceived by those with a very poor Chinese reading ability was higher than that perceived by those with not bad and poor abilities. The reason might be that the Vietnamese female immigrants with a better Chinese reading ability would encounter fewer problems in the obtainment of various leisure information, the use of leisure facilities, and the reading of leisure-related explanations. As a result, they perceived a lower level of structural constraints. Table 5: Analysis on Chinese Reading Ability and the Leisure Constraints excellent 24.79 6.015 good 24.77 5.690 Intrapersonal very poor>excellent, good, not bad 25.12 6.661 3.473 0.009** Constraints not bad, poor poor 25.62 7.217 very poor 33.33 3.317 Interpersonal Constraints Structural Constraints excellent 34.84 6.030 good 35.77 8.147 not bad 32.91 8.225 poor 33.13 7.183 very poor 37.78 12.637 excellent 27.53 5.815 good 29.86 5.676 1.348 0.254 4.695 0.001** very poor>not bad, poor
p<.05* not bad 25.92 6.079 Poor 24.92 6.659 Very poor 32.78 10.171 Analysis on Chinese Composition Ability and the Leisure Constraints As shown in Table 6, the difference in Vietnamese female immigrants Chinese composition ability had a significant effect on three aspects of leisure constraints, namely, intrapersonal constraints (F =10.932, p =.000 <.05), interpersonal constraints (F =5.123, p =.001 <.05), and structural constraints (F =6.560, p =.000 <.05). Scheffé method posteriori comparisons found that in terms of intrapersonal constraints, the level of intrapersonal constraints perceived by the female immigrants with a very poor Chinese composition ability was higher than that perceived by those with excellent, good, and not bad abilities. The level of intrapersonal constraints perceived by those with a poor Chinese composition ability was higher than that perceived by those with good and not bad abilities. In terms of interpersonal constraints, the level of interpersonal constraints perceived by those with very poor Chinese composition ability was higher than that perceived by those with good, not bad, and bad abilities. In terms of structural constraints, the level of structural constraints perceived by those with excellent and good Chinese composition abilities was higher than that perceived by those with poor abilities. The reason might be that the Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese composition ability would smoothly get along with companions or establish confidence during the participation in leisure activities than those with a poor Chinese composition ability, which also reduced their interpersonal constraints and intrapersonal constraints. However, those with better Chinese composition ability might have to apply such abilities to various aspects of life, such as assisting and instructing their children in homework or meeting the requirements of other work. As a result, they perceived a higher level of structural constraints. Table 6: Analysis on Chinese Composition Ability and the Leisure Constraints excellent 26.07 6.456 Intrapersonal Constraints good 22.60 5.628 very poor>excellent, good, not not bad 24.57 5.923 10.932 0.000*** bad poor>good, not bad poor 30.13 7.036 very poor 34.50 4.037 excellent 35.60 8.124 good 31.08 8.236 Interpersonal Constraints not bed 33.59 7.914 5.123 0.001** very poor>good, not bad, poor poor 33.20 5.768 very poor 44.83 9.042 excellent 29.45 5.518 good 27.28 4.638 Structural Constraints not bad 26.01 6.157 6.560 0.000*** excellent, good>poor poor 22.30 7.800 very poor 30.17 12.937 p<.05* CONCLUSIONS The Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese phonetic system usage ability had more self-confidence, and thus perceived a lower level of intrapersonal constraints during the participation in leisure activities. However, they might have more job opportunities and thus spend more time on work. As a result, they perceived a higher level of structural constraints. During the participation in leisure activities, if there were a need to use Chinese literacy, the Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese literacy would not feel worried and would be more confident in understanding the meanings of characters. Therefore, they perceived a lower level of intrapersonal constraints. During the participation in leisure activities, the Vietnamese female immigrants with a better ability to write Chinese characters could assist those with a poor ability, which is helpful to the establishment of interpersonal relationships and interactions. Therefore, they perceived a lower level of interpersonal constraints. However, the Vietnamese female
immigrants with a better ability to write Chinese characters might need to spend more time on things (such as work) other than leisure activities. Therefore, they perceived a higher level of structural constraints. During the participation in leisure activities, the Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese reading ability would read more efficiently and have more confidence than those with poor Chinese reading ability, if there was a need to read Chinese. As a result, they perceived a lower level of intrapersonal constraints. The Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese reading ability would encounter fewer difficulties in either the obtainment of various leisure information or while reading the usage instructions for leisure facilities. Consequently, they perceived a lower level of structural constraints. During the participation in leisure activities, the Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese composition ability performed better than those with poor ones in either getting along with companions or establishing self-confidence. Therefore, the interpersonal constraints and intrapersonal constraints they perceived were reduced. However, because those with better Chinese composition ability might perform better in every aspect of Chinese proficiency, they might apply such ability to other aspects of life. As a result, they perceived a higher level of structural constraints. To summarize the above, Chinese proficiency had a significant effect on Vietnamese female immigrants leisure intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints. The level of leisure constraints perceived by the Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese proficiency was lower than that perceived by those with poor proficiency. Chiou (2000) indicated that the possession of the ability to listen, speak, read, and write Chinese characters has many positive effects on female immigrants, their families, and the entire society. In addition, it can increase their ability to communicate, interact, and exchange in life. Chang (2008) pointed out that Chinese proficiency is the prerequisite for assisting female immigrants in obtaining other information and techniques, and it also an important tool for expanding their social life and interpersonal relationships. Chen (2008) indicated that Chinese is the major tool for female immigrants to connect with the living world. As a communication medium, language is required in either living customs or interpersonal interactions. The findings of the studies mentioned above were consistent with the research results of this study. Only when the Chinese proficiency of Vietnamese female immigrants is improved can they more easily get along with people. Moreover, Chinese proficiency is an important tool for Vietnamese female immigrants to expand their social lives and interpersonal relationships in Taiwan. The learning of Chinese and the possession of the abilities to listen, speak, read, and write Chinese can reduce the constraints Vietnamese female immigrants may encounter when engaging in leisure activities. At present, Vietnamese female immigrants have gradually increased their exposure to external environments and overcome various difficulties to choose the leisure activities they intend to participate in. However, during leisure participation, they still encounter some interpersonal constraints. Therefore, it is advised that government authorities should promote a positive image of Vietnamese female immigrants in order to enable Taiwanese society to accept them and view them as a part of their environment. It is hoped that the level of discrimination and rejection can be reduced to prevent Vietnamese female immigrants from suffering from unequal or unfriendly treatment. Moreover, this study found that the level of structural constraints was significantly higher, suggesting that Vietnamese female immigrants perceive a relatively higher level of constraints on individual time, the use of devices and facilities, obtainment of information, transportation, and financial aspects. Therefore, to promote leisure activities for Vietnamese female immigrants, relevant units should improve the relevant facilities and devices and increase the accessibility of those devices, such as increasing the number of devices, improving transportation convenience, and removing restrictions (such as expense and time restrictions). In addition, relevant units can more frequently propagate leisure information to reduce the structural constraints perceived by Vietnamese female immigrants. Although many educational units instructing Vietnamese female immigrants in learning Chinese have been established in Taiwan, Vietnamese female immigrants usually have little time to learn Chinese. They frequently suspend Chinese courses due to the pressures of pregnancy, childbirth, taking care of the family, financial burdens, and even marital discord, which may further lead to problems such as running away from home or divorce. Therefore, government authorities are advised to show more concern over Vietnamese female immigrants, and to have an in-depth understanding of the causes for their family problems and the factors impeding them from learning Chinese. Government authorities should formulate relevant strategies to aggressively assist them in removing these barriers. Moreover, this study results showed that Chinese phonetic system usage ability, an ability to write Chinese characters, and Chinese composition ability have a significant
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