• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.45
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• pp.185-219
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• 2001

The purpose of this study is to explore the concept of social exclusion and underclass and to find out their implication for the poverty policy in Korea. Social exclusion as a concept, on the other hand, offers a broader perspective in addressing multi-dimensional disadvantage, especially in relation to social policy. The term underclass offers a convenient metaphor for use in commentaries on inner city crises because it evokes three widely shared perceptions: novelty, complexity, and danger. Conditions within inner cities are unprecedented; they cannot be reduced to a single factor; and they menace the rest of us. Open debate on the underclass accelerated in 1977 when Time magazine announced the emergence of a menacing underclass in America's inner cities. Drugs, crime, teenage pregnancy, and high unemployment, not poverty, defined the 'underclass,' most of whose members were young and minorities. With the publication in 1982 of Ken Auletta's Underclass, the word secured it dominance in the vocabulary of inner-city pathology. As implications for Korean poverty policy of the concept of social exclusion and underclass, the establishment of multi-dimensional concept of poverty, development of multi-dimensional approach of social work, improvement of National Basic Life Guarantee System, research on employment policy in social welfare field, and research on housing policy for the poor were suggested.

• 한국노년학
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.1041-1061
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• 2012

The study looked into the effect of housing poverty on the depression level for the elderly in depth. In this study, we defined housing poverty as sub-minimum standard housing conditions, excess housing expenditure and housing instability. In order to verify the correlation of two variables, a mediating model structured by social welfare service was used which gave out the 4th Korea welfare panel data. When it came to our research methods, structured equation analysis was applied to verify the mediating effect and theoretical background. The results revealed that housing poverty of the elderly directly affected their depression level. Also the satisfaction of social service showed a partial mediating effect between housing poverty and depression level. But the mediating effect of social service experience between housing poverty and depression level was not statistically significant. The outcome of this study indicated the practical and social intervention to promote a mental health of the elderly by improving residential environment.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• no.36
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• pp.175-202
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• 2008

This paper analyzes the relationship between social assistance and poverty in Korea. Social assistance in Korea which had a Poor Law tradition for about forty years, was finally reformed and a new general assistance scheme designed to protect fundamental human rights, was established in 1999. Are the means-tested social assistance benefits effective in protecting the poor from hardship? How effectively do the means-tested benefits reduce poverty? To assess the effects of the means-tested social assistance benefits in Korea on poverty reduction, the study uses household data from the National Basic Livelihood Security Programme Review Board (NRB). Moreover, to obtain a comparative perspective, a British dataset the Family Resources Survey (FRS) is assessed. The incidence and the intensity of poverty for a range of household types are analyzed before and after social assistance benefits for both countries. The results of the analysis show the Korean social assistance benefits do not radically alleviate poverty, although recipients' income positions are improved after social assistance transfers. Compared to Korea, Britain achieved marked success of means-tested social assistance benefits with a high degree of effectiveness, especially among the extreme and the severe poverty brackets, while there are variations between different household types regarding the incidence and the intensity of poverty before and after transfer.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.159-187
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• 2010

The main purpose of this paper is to attempt an alternative measurement and analysis of poverty considering income as well as time in order to present an effective antipoverty policy. Based on Korea Welfare Panel Study (2005), the income poverty, time poverty, and double poverty of household in which householders were under 60 years were measured. Moreover this paper found that households experiencing the time poverty might be faced with additional income poverty because of the necessity to purchase care services in the market to compensate for the time. As a result of the analysis, income poverty rate is 9.5%, time poverty rate is 15.7%, and time-adjusted income poverty rate is 10.8%. And low-educated single parents with young children are more likely to experienced income as well as time poverty. Therefore, this paper proved that the 'welfare to work' policy without considering situations in household could be faced with the limit. Furthermore, this paper suggests that social welfare policy should aim at minimizing the tradeoffs among different works and activities, and then support to improve the quality of life.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.75-95
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• 2002

Using 3 years of panel data on nearly 3,507 households, the Korea Labor Income Panel Survey(KLIPS) data, the authors measure the determinants of poverty and unemployment, and the extents to which poverty influenced unemployment. The probit analysis of unemployment shows that unemployment probability is lower, when male, lower age and is higher, high-school and over junior college, work duration is over 3 years. The probit analysis of poverty shows that poverty probability is lower, when male, higher education level, longer career. specially unemployment and social insurance is determinants of increasing poverty. Bivariate probit model of unemployment and poverty also provides similar findings to those probit analysis and shows an evidence of the influence of unemployment on poverty along with the positive role of social welfare policy such that social welfare receipt reduces the impact of unemployment on poverty.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.48
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• pp.82-112
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• 2002

This study investigates the causes of poverty in Korea since the 1997 Economic Crisis by analyzing the composition and characteristics of the poor by the types of families. While the poor largely consisted of disadvantaged groups, such as the aged, the disabled, or the female-headed families before the Crisis, families headed by working-aged and non-disabled adults have represented a larger portion of the entire poor since the Crisis. The higher overall poverty rate in 1998 mainly resulted from the rapid increase in the number of the unemployed and the high poverty rate of their families. In 1999, the larger number of the unemployed poor exited from poverty by getting a job in the labor market, contributing to the reduction in the overall poverty rate. The significant number of families headed by working adults were poor in 1998, and the size of these working poor was not reduced in 1999. The poverty among this group has been caused by lowered wage rates and deteriorating job security. The findings from this study suggest that anti-poverty policies in Korea be improved to provide better income and employment assistance to the non-working poor and, more importantly, be extended to effectively reduce poverty among the working low-income families.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Child Welfare
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• no.54
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• pp.113-144
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether children's social capital(both within and outside the family) and happiness would vary depending on poverty, as well as the effects of poverty on the happiness of children through their social capital. The 2013 Korea Youth General Survey data were utilized. We analyzed data from 766 children between the ages of 9 and 12, as well as their parents. Data were examined using structural equation modeling analysis. The bootstrapping method was used to test the mediating effects of social capital. The results showed that poor children had lower levels of social capital(both within and outside the family) and happiness than non-poor children. Second, poverty had indirect effects one happiness. In particular, poverty affected children's happiness through their social capital obtained both from within and outside the families. The mediating effects were statistically significant. Based on the results, we suggested policy and practice implications, including various interventions for children in poverty that may improve their social capital, which influences children's happiness.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.305-317
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• 2007

This study investigated the effect of maternal interactive styles, parenting stress, home environment stimulation and social support on poverty in early childhood. Participants consisted of 145 mothers and their children living in Seoul and Kyounggi Province. Data included videotaped observations of parent-child play and standardized measures of social support, parenting stress, home environment, and child development. Results of the t-test indicated significant differences among father's age and education, mother's age and education, and income over the variable of poverty. Regression analyses indicated that home environment stimulation was the strongest predictor of variance in children's development. Results from the regression analyse were supportive of the hypothesis that home environment moderates the impact of poverty on children's development.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.48
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• pp.113-149
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• 2002

The primary purpose of this study is to analyze the decreasing effect of public and private income transfers on poverty rate. Two year data of Korean Labor and Income Panel Study (KLIPS, 1998, 1999) are used for the analysis, and 1/2 of median income and 1/3 of mean income are adopted to measure poverty rate. Although private income transfer contributes more to reduce the rate than the public transfer, the main effect for decreasing poverty rate is forced by the wage. Statistically significant variables that affect to the exit of poverty based on the logistic regression analysis are number of family members(-), wage(+), property income(+), social insurance benefit(+), and the transfer income(+). Therefore, the future policy should be more related with the active labor market policy for developing better human resources among the poor family.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.58 no.3
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• pp.245-268
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• 2006

The purpose of this study is to investigate the empirical relation between economic growth and poverty in Korea. Especially, the focus is put on exploring if there are any changes in the relation of economic growth and poverty. From 1982-2004 Korea Urban Household Survey, I constructed the annual data of poverty rate. I also obtained the annual data of the real GDP and the unemployment rate from the National Statistical Office. Using these annal data of the poverty rate and the macroeconomic performance, I analyzed the relation of them. As the result, I found that the macroeconomic growth have played very important role in reducing the poverty rate in Korea. Since 2000, the macroeconomic growth have still worked as an effective instrument for poverty reduction. However, there have been poverty increase that has not been explained by the macroeconomic growth since 2000. Based on these results, this paper suggests that the anti-poverty strategy in Korea should be changed from the old strategy emphasizing only economic growth to the new strategy pursuing both economic growth and social security simultaneously.