South Koreans feel happier and perceive their social status as higher when their household incomes are larger. (Image courtesy of Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, Mar. 20 (Korea Bizwire) – South Koreans feel happier and perceive their social status as higher when their household incomes are larger, according to an annual government survey released on March 19 that highlighted the nation’s emphasis on economic growth over wealth distribution.
The 2023 Social Integration Survey conducted by the Korea Institute of Public Administration showed that subjective happiness among South Koreans stayed at an average of 6.7 out of 10 for the third straight year from 2021 to 2023.
Life satisfaction and feelings that one’s work was valuable dipped slightly below last year’s values but remained above 6 out of 10. Worry and depression levels also declined modestly to 3.4 and 2.8 respectively.
Significantly, happiness levels rose in lockstep with household income. Those with monthly household incomes under 1 million won rated their happiness at just 6.1, while those earning between 5 million and 6 million won averaged 6.9, and households making over 6 million won averaged 6.8.
Office workers in Yeouido stepping out to eat during their lunch break (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
The gap of 0.8 between the highest and lowest income groups widened slightly from 0.6 in 2022. By age, those 19 to 49 averaged 6.8, but the score fell to 6.5 for those 60 and over.
Similarly, perceptions of social status closely tracked income levels, with those in the top income bracket rating their status 0.9 points higher on average than the lowest earners at 5.7 versus 4.8.
Men continued to rate their social status slightly higher than women at 5.6 versus 5.5. The socioeconomic status gap widened for those 60 and over, who rated their status at just 5.3 on average.
There was a persistent belief that children have better opportunities for upward mobility than their parents through effort, a trend that has continued since the survey began in 2013.
When asked about national priorities for the next decade, economic growth topped the list at 39.5 percent, though this figure marked a steep drop from 55.2 percent in 2022. Protecting the environment rose to the third most important priority at 13.4 percent, overtaking increased workplace participation.
Assessing values the nation should pursue, “growth” at 39.7 percent outranked “distribution” at 18.7 percent, continuing a recent trend after distribution briefly led growth in 2021 at 37.4 percent. Some 41.6 percent called both equally important.
Satisfaction with current political conditions declined slightly to 4.4 out of 10, while economic conditions saw a similar 0.1-point dip to 4.6. But five-year outlooks improved to 5.0 for politics and 5.3 for the economy, outpacing present assessments.
The percentage calling their ideology centrist slipped 2 points to 46.7 percent but still led conservative at 29.9 percent and progressive at 23.4 percent. Contrary to assumptions, conservatives outnumbered progressives across income levels, including the lowest tier.
A majority of 45.9 percent agreed with accepting foreigners as South Korean nationals. (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Education)
The survey uncovered persistent discrimination toward minorities, with 52.3 percent saying they could not accept sexual minorities, down just slightly from 55.9 percent in 2022. This was the second highest rejection rate after 72.1 percent for convicted criminals.
Rejection rates for North Korean defectors and foreign immigrants were 16.5 percent and 7.2 percent respectively, showing modest decreases over three years. But children from single-parent families and the disabled had far lower rejection rates below 3.5 percent.
However, 45.9 percent agreed with accepting foreigners as South Korean nationals, nearly double the 25.4 percent opposed. Trust levels in foreigners and strangers were low at 1.8 out of 4, dipping 0.1 points from 2022, compared to 3.6 for family members.
The most trusted institutions were medical facilities at 2.9 out of 4, followed closely by private companies at 2.8. The National Assembly received the lowest scores of 2.0 for trust and 1.9 for integrity perceptions.
The nationally representative survey by Gallup Korea interviewed 8,221 South Koreans aged 19 and over last September and October on a wide range of social issues, values and discrimination.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
