• Korean Journal of Family Social Work
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• no.43
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• pp.61-85
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• 2014

The aim of this study is to examine how labour transition of female householders is proceeded, and to identify mechanisms that cause them to be excluded from labor market. For this, thirteen lone mothers who have had labor experience in the market, while raising children were interviewed. This qualitative case study was proceeded by way of participants' interviews and questionnaires. Finding shows, impoverished lone mothers were horizontally moving incessantly on second labor market. As poverty worsens by years, poor lone mothers tend to be more dependant on the government's support and to transit downward to work-poor labor market. The unprivileged women were excluded from multi-dimentions: market structure, social relations and gender norms. The sex-segmental and human capital-oriented market has excluded women who gave up their career for caring. Female breadwinners were frequently excluded from social relations and opportunities for labor due to their stigma. sometimes they were self-excluded from the market for they had to care for their children. In conclusion, suggestions are given to enhance qualities of lone mother's lives and help them exit from poverty. It is necessary to implement positive labor policy with labor flexibility and stability and to practice socialization of care as care support system is very important for maintaining their jobs. Above all, social awareness of gender role must be changed.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.59 no.4
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• pp.191-216
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• 2007

This study focuses on the problem of feminization of poverty that is formed within family relations. In order to approach this question, this study analyses the process of becoming poor through the life stories of ten woman are now heads of a household. There are differences among the study participants in the process of becoming a member of a low-income class. I have classified them into two groups depending on the routes they are led into the low-income class; one is the continuation of poverty group, and the other is the new members of the low-income class group. The continuation of poverty group is the case where they have been poor since their childhood and are still poor in their adulthood. The new members of the low-income class group is the case where you have become a low-income class sometime around divorce. The difference of the groups are related to the differences of the ways the power relationships work within a family. Women head of a household are prone to poverty because of the discrimination in formation, distribution and control of resources in their original family and their family formed by marriage. The norm of male breadwinner worked as a discrimination device. But this kind of discrimination device showed differences in their workings according to class. The continuation of poverty group experienced exclusion in the gendered responsibility of supporting the family and maintaining the family, whereas the other group experienced exclusion through the gendered nature of the distribution and control of resources. By showing that the presupposition of discussions on the poverty of woman head of a household is false, these findings challenge the existing view that as long as 'The Family' is maintained women will not be poor.

• 한국사회복지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 1998.10a
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• pp.303-316
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• 1998

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.54
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• pp.295-319
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• 2003

The study starts from the critical thought on why most of female-headed single-parent families are under poverty regardless of their hard working. The study is to explore the lives of low-income single-parent families as working poor and to develop comprehensive policies for them out of poverty and other social vulnerability, using the concept of social exclusion which has been broadly introduced in the field of social science. Specifically, the study aims to analyse the process of social exclusion of low-income single-parent households, by comparing the differential lives in the economic, social, political aspects among male-headed dual-parent household, female-headed single-parent household, and poor female-headed lone-parent household who is under the public poverty line. The study was based on the secondary data analysis. A total of 3182 samples(the first 2508, the second 235, and the third 439) were included. Using SAS 6.12, frequency, chi-square, means, and ANOVA were utilized for the statistical analysis. Results show that single mothers, on the whole, are vulnerable population in terms of employment, housing stability and income. Also, low-income households of single mothers are more negatively affected by the IMF economic crisis and carry more pessimism on their future. In comparison with male-headed households, single mothers have fewer support from social insurance as well as family resources and higher burdens of additional caring need for the old, the disabled, and the chronically ill. These findings identify the reality in which female-headed households with dependent children are exposed to the overall social vulnerability and thus are easily trapped into the social disadvantaged. finally, the study suggests the development of comprehensive policies and counter-measurements for low-income female-headed families to be the primary member in our society.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.39-51
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• 2008

The objectives of this study were to analyze the socio-economical factors related to smoking and drinking behaviors using the Korea Welfare Panel data. The key variables were sex, age, frequency of health and medical facilities visit, subjective health level, smoking level, drinking level, depression symptoms, and low income level. Since the health variables in the Welfare Panel data were limited, the analysis was exploratory. In male population of those older than 30 years old, low income group people were more likely to smoke cigarettes than the general income population. In the result of the Chi square analysis, the smoking rate showed significantly different relationships with the different age groups, gender and income level. According to the descriptive analysis, persons with low income level were more likely to experience health risk behaviors and showed more medical service utilization. The utilization of the local public health centers was 4.6% for the Bow income level and 1% for the general level. The higher smoking rate was associated with the younger age, and the lower income. The smoking rate in the age category from 20 to 29 was 23.3% for the general level and 25% for the low income level. On the other hand, the drinking rate was even higher in the general families. The rates of non use of alcohol was 36.7% in the general families and 58.4% for the low income families. For both smoking and high risk drinking issues, demographic and sociological variables such as sex, age, education levels and income levels were analyzed, and there wer significant relationships. Health risk factors were serious for males, with age groups of 20's and 30's, lower education level, and in a low income family. In general, females were more unhealthy. The rates of smoking and drinking were higher in the low income level. Even in the health and nutrition survey results in 2005, persons in the low income class were experiencing poorer health in health level or the degree of action restriction. Since the effects of the health promotion could not be measured in a short period of time, it has not been easy to create the basis for the substantial effects. Factors related to health risks needs to be continuously studied using data from diverse field.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.68 no.3
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• pp.181-201
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• 2016

Using a nationally representative sample from three recent waves of the Korean Welfare Panel Study, this study examined the association between experiencing material hardship and suicidal ideation among low-income households in South Korea. Overall, we found that experiencing material hardship was associated with a higher likelihood of having suicidal ideation. We also found that, among individual items of material hardship, experiencing food insecurity or credit problems was associated with a higher likelihood of having suicidal ideation. Furthermore, we found that the association of experiencing material hardship with having suicidal ideation was more pronounced for male-headed or elderly-headed households. Policy implications to improve living condition among low-income households and reduce their suicide-related behavior were discussed.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.97-128
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• 2013

This paper analyzes the changing factors of income inequality by approaches to income sources focusing on the effect of husband-wife labor income relation and employment ratio change on income inequality. The level of contribution of income source to income inequality showed that the inequality of labor income between husband and wife(especially the husband's income) takes great importance. Also, the covariance of labor income of husband and wife showed growing trend and changed toward the same direction. As a result of the decomposition of the labor income covariance, it was found that the change in husband-wife employment ratio explained the covariance change better than the change in labor income inequality.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.59 no.2
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• pp.143-169
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• 2007

The major purpose of this study was to offer a comprehensive analysis of the changing trends and causes of poverty among urban wage earners' households from 1995 to 2005. In order to do that, this study used the micro data of "Income and Expenditure Survey of Urban Households" by the National Statistical Office(NSO) and GEE(Generalized estimating equation) regression model which is know as an appropriate method for the longitudinal and clustering data. The results show that (1) the numbers of poverty rate and poverty gap in recent years are even getting seriously worse than those in the IMF crisis. (2) Main characteristics of poor are female headed, old aged, low educated households, and having atypical working position. (3) Major determinants of poverty are also related to the variables as mentioned the above. (4) However, poverty reduction effect of public transfer increased preferably in recent years.

• 한국노년학
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.1119-1134
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is firstly to understand socio-demographic and health characteristics and economic characteristics of elderly single households aged over 60 and secondly to examine the relations between these factors and level of life satisfaction, especially differentiated relations by income level. We used the data drawn from third KREIS (Korean Retirement and Income Study) surveyed by National Pension Research Institute. The statistical methods used for the analyses were t-test, X², multiple regression analysis. For the whole sample, the results showed that the life satisfaction is positively related to higher income, better physical and emotional health status and having a religion. When we conducted the regression on two groups, the religion and income level were no longer significant factors. On the other hand, being a woman and enjoying good health contributed to life satisfaction for lower-income group while having a job and enjoying good health played a positive role in life satisfaction for higher-income group.

• 한국사회정책
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.3-38
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• 2018

This study aims to analyse the redistributive impact of the welfare state growth in Korea after 2000s and establish whether there are people excluded from the benefits of the growth. The growth of the Korean welfare state has been achieved by universalizing welfare benefits under the social insurance-centered institutions which are the legacies of the productivist/developmental welfare regime. When it comes to redistribution impacts, the welfare state growth improved inequality among old age populations to a certain degree due to the introduction of the Basic Pension. On the other hand, welfare benefits for the working poor population has hardly been improved in spite of the growing welfare state. It can be said, therefore, that low-income working-age populations have been excluded from the growth of Korean welfare state. These groups are mostly in middle-old age, unemployed or precariously employed and half of them were female householders. The exclusion of these groups from the Korean welfare state shows that the growth of the Korean welfare state was unbalanced. To include the excluded into the Korean welfare state, it is necessary to increase non-insurance social provisions, extend the range of application of the social insurances, integrate income protection, employment service, and vocational training for the working poor, and combine universal and targeted welfare benefits.