• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.323-336
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• 2009

There has been a significant increase in the number of divorced families during the past 10 years in Korea. Divorce imposes a great impact on their children as well as divorcees. As many as 1.41 million children under 20 years-old have experienced their parents' divorce in past 10 years. Children are faced with much difficulty in adjustment after the parental divorce. Issues of the research and policy on the divorced family are discussed in this study. For future studies, a longitudinal research model, father-custody and grandparent-custody families, custody parents's gender, a theoretical model for Korean divorced families should be considered. New legislations have been recently enacted to enhance children's well-being, but further efforts such as the involvement of child development specialists in the divorce process should be followed in the pursuit of the best interest of the children.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.21-44
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• 2008

The main purpose of this study is to examine the effect of the family instability on the elderly suicide and to examine the change over time. An analytical model of causal structure was set up with residence, family instability and socioeconomic level as explanation variables for this study. The cause of death statistics and micro-data from the vital statistics for 1995, 2000 and 2005 were used. Family instability was measured through divorce, and the rate of elderly(male and female) suicide as well as the suicide rate of the elderly and those in their 20-50's was used for this analysis to examine the effect of divorce. This study hypothesized about family instability and elderly suicide through a literature review. This paper presents maps of the suicide rate by using GIS, and then ANOVA and regression analysis are carried out to verify a difference in the elderly suicide rate affected by residence and divorce. Divorce rate appears in most areas with a high level centering around metropolises except the central inland area. The rate of elderly suicide which stayed in only specific regions with a high level has increased as time went by, and the graph leveled high in most regions except the southwestern coast. In addition, the elderly suicide rate was increased rapidly in rural areas for the most recent 10 years. This shows the seriousness of problems of the aged in rural areas. Through the periods of economic crisis, a sudden increase in divorce causes family instability, which increase the suicide rate increasing. Divorce affects the elderly suicide rate and the 20-50s' suicide rate in the same way, and the stronger effect goes to the elderly rather than those in their 20-50s'. Regarding elderly suicide, the divorce has a different effect by gender, affecting males more than females. With these facts, we can draw the conclusion that family instability has the most significant effect on elderly males' suicide.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.53-57
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• 2020

This article reviews a wide range of literature on the standards and process of child custody evaluation in the US, and proposes custody evaluation standards appropriate to Korea. Custody evaluation refers to the process of making psychiatric and psychological evaluations of each parent and the child during a custody dispute and presenting to the family court a report of custody evaluation with the aim of safeguarding the best interests of the child. In the past, it was thought that children arethe fathers' possessions or that younger children should be raised by the mother; however, currently, custody rights are evaluated in accordance with the principle of the best interests of the child. The principle is all-encompassing and vague and hence, the court makes increasingly more requests to mental health professionals for custody evaluation. Since the Seoul Family Court introduced the expert consultation system in 2017, the involvement of mental health professionals in child custody decisions has increased in Korea. Custody evaluators should try to be neutral and find the objective facts, keeping in mind that their role is to aid the court in making a custody decision.