• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.17 no.9
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• pp.396-405
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• 2017

Main purpose of this study is to analyze determinants of household debt among middle and old individuals aged between 32 and 76 that include Korean baby-boomers(born between 1955 and 1963), using a HAPC (Hierarchical Age-Period-Cohort) model and Korean Welfare Panel Study 2006-2016. This study includes 86,056 individuals. Research findings indicate that aging and period effects have statistically significant relationships with household debt levels, however, cohort effects including a baby-boomer generation do not. While household debt increases by 3,530,000 Korean won as age increases by one year, the rate of increase in household debt reduces as individual ages. In addition, employment and health status at the individual level have significant effects on household debt levels. The unemployed are more likely than the employed to have high household debt levels while unhealthy people tend than healthy people to have high household debt levels.