According to a survey, firefighters are highly esteemed in the U.S. and Germany, as opposed to general perceptions in Asian countries including South Korea. (Image courtesy of Pixabay/CCL)
SEOUL, Mar. 18 (Korea Bizwire) – A recent study has shed light on the varying perceptions of occupational prestige across different countries, with lawmakers being held in high regard in Korea, China, and Japan, while firefighters are esteemed in the U.S. and Germany.
The research, conducted by the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training (KRIVET), highlights a stronger distinction between high and low-status jobs in Korea compared to other nations.
The study, which surveyed 1,500 employed individuals aged 18 to 64 in each of the five countries during July and August of last year, aimed to gauge the social status attributed to various occupations on a scale from one to five.
Among the 15 professions evaluated were lawmakers, pharmacists, high school teachers, small business executives, mechanical engineers, software developers, bank clerks, factory workers, restaurant staff, construction laborers, social workers, firefighters, AI specialists, film directors, and digital content creators.
The findings revealed significant disparities in how occupations are valued from one country to another. In Korea, politicians scored the highest with 4.16 points, followed by pharmacists and AI experts. Occupations such as construction laborers, restaurant employees, and factory workers ranked at the bottom, with firefighters also placed lower down the list.
In Japan and China, politicians also topped the rankings, with pharmacists and film directors following. Conversely, in the U.S. and Germany, firefighting was considered the most prestigious occupation, with software developers taking second place.
Politicians ranked much lower in these countries, occupying the 12th position in the U.S. and 10th in Germany.
The gap between the highest and lowest-rated occupations was particularly pronounced in Korea, indicating a strong consciousness of occupational hierarchy within Korean society.
The study suggests that Koreans, more so than their counterparts in other countries, perceive a distinct hierarchy among professions, reflecting a deeper cultural emphasis on the status associated with one’s job.
Furthermore, when respondents were asked to rate the social status of their own occupations, Americans reported the highest self-regard, followed by Germans, Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese. This may indicate lower occupational self-esteem among Korean and Japanese workers, according to the study’s findings.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
