I’ve read some explanations for their falling birth rate. What I don’t understand is, other developed countries also have those problems, their birth rates are low as well, but why are they not as low as SK’s?
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It’s cultural.
The “[Sampo generation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampo_generation)” in South Korea refers to women who prioritize their careers over traditional family life, leading to lower birth rates. When women focus on their professional goals and delay or forgo marriage and children, it reduces opportunities for starting families at a younger age, resulting in a decline in overall births.
This trend is influenced by changing societal expectations in south korea, increased educational and career opportunities, high child-rearing costs, demanding work culture, and the challenges of work-life balance.
The combination of these factors contributes to a decrease in marriages and births, posing challenges for population growth, an aging population, and the sustainability of the social welfare system in South Korea.
The work culture in South Korea is insane, it’s not uncommon to see Koreans working 80 hours a week. Companies like Samsung have been pushing longer work hours and shorter days for rest; this in turns makes having kids very difficult since both adults are working overtime.
A few bullet points:
There is so much stress among adults due to the insane work culture.
There is so much stress among young people due to insane study culture.
It is still a conservative country when it comes to sex so casual sex among young people is lower.
An increasing divergence between the sexes in expectations. Men still want the conservative life with an obedient housewife while women want independence and their own freedom and career.
There are more issues at play and I simplified the points a lot.
Birth rates in Scandinavian nations are quite low, enough so that the governments there offer numerous incentives to start a family. (See: ‘Do it for Denmark’ campaign.)
One key difference between Korea (and Japan) vs. Scandinavian nations is that most folks in the prime family-raising age range are working crazy hours. Especially for Korean women, prioritizing family over work is career suicide. All the government policies aimed at encouraging young people to start families are having little to no effect because corporations still punish women (by stalling or ending their careers) for having kids.
Decades ago, Korean women grudgingly accepted societal pressure and expectations, and became housewives upon having children. Back then it was very feasible for the man to be the sole bread winner and still make ends meet.
In recent years, more and more Korean women are standing up for themselves and prioritizing their careers. At the same time, the cost of living has increased so much that both parties in a couple have to work to afford their own space and put food on the table.
Speaking as a Korean who spent some time living in that brutally hyper-competitive society, I can’t help but feel some degree of Schadenfreude while watching the Korean government panic about a pending population collapse. All those decades of prioritizing economic growth over people’s lives are about to finally bite them in the butt.
I used to live there. Having kids in Korea is very expensive. It’s a hyper competitive society, families put huge emphasis on education and will spend large sums to get their kids in the best schools. Add on to that that Korea is already an expensive, stressful place to live. It is normal there for people to work 10-12 hour days, then go out drinking with their coworkers afterwards until late into the night. If your boss invites you all out, which is common, it’s not always easy to say no. Hard to raise a family with that lifestyle. Now add in to that that Korea is a very conservative country. Single mothers there are heavily stigmatized, they could be fired from their jobs and ostracized from their families. I had a white coworker who got pregnant and she lied to her boss that she was getting married so she wouldn’t lose her job. Most women who get pregnant out of wedlock will get an abortion. If they have a baby it will very often be sent to an orphanage, however Koreans have no culture of adoption, they place a great deal of importance on bloodline, blood relatives. An adopted child wouldn’t really be considered “family”, as such many of them end up sent overseas to places like america. While Korea is a wealthy, developed country, it is also very unequal. It is hard for average Koreans to get a good job, even with a college degree. There are other reasons but those are some of the big ones.
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From my experience living there, two important points come to mind:
1. People get married pretty late. My friend was 28 and her friends and family complained she was too young to get married.
2. People don’t have a kid unless they can afford one. They’re not into that “uh oh, we’re pregnant now, guess we need to get a side hustle.”
A korean friend told me that he thinks most of it is the ultra competitive education to job pipeline. It’s not a fun time and people don’t wanna make others go through it too.
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