Household Structure and Activity in Ciudad Juárez

This chapter focuses on variations in structure and activity manifested by households as they intersect with the developing economy of Ciudad Juarez. It analyzes how basic activities of Juarez households are carried out and affected by both their structure and their relationship to the economy of the newly industrializing city. Recognition has been growing regarding the significance of the household as a unit of analysis in the study of society. Production refers to those activities that procure or increase the value of household resources. The household must devise an efficient strategy to meet the labor requirements of productive activities, whatever they may be. The role of wealth in determining household size--wealthy households can attract and hold more members --seems obvious, but there are those who argue that size determines household wealth. The household's dependency ratio, which provides a sense of how many people must share in the consumption of resources, comprises the first measure of distribution activities.