A group of elderly people are gathered at Jongno park in Seoul / Korea Times photo
The world is raving about Korean culture, from K-pop to K-food and K-beauty and "living like a Korean" is a trend among tourists these days. Yet for the domestic population, satisfaction with the quality of life is hovering below the average level of OECD countries, and the suicide rate hit its highest mark in 13 years.
According to an annual report released Thursday by the Ministry of Data and Statistics, the level of life satisfaction for Koreans stood at 6.4 points on a 10-point scale in 2024. That subjective value remains unchanged from 2023, and is slightly lower than the 6.5 points recorded in 2022. Korea also lagged when reviewing the three-year average for life satisfaction among 38 OECD nations. Koreans reported a three-year average life satisfaction of 6.04 points from 2022 to 2024, compared with the OECD average of 6.5.
This lower level of contentedness in Korea is reflected in numerous news stories detailing the cutthroat competition for university admissions, jobs after graduation and housing purchases. These social burdens compounded from these milestone moments have resulted in a national birthrate that reached a record low of 0.72 in 2023. Additionally, the relative poverty of the population that has reached retirement age is another reality that comes with various repercussions.
Korea is known for its Miracle on the Han River — the rapid rise from poverty to economic growth and prosperity — followed by a tumultuous period of democratization, but the nation is far behind its peers when it comes to alleviating the burdens of its people as they pass through phases of life. The dominant views that had once served the push for economic growth may no longer be sustainable in terms of social policy.
Income is one of the factors determining the overall satisfaction level, the ministry's study showed. One of its findings was that those in the lowest income bracket, earning less than 1 million won ($678) per month, showed a satisfaction level of just 5.8 points, pitted against the range of 6.4-6.5 points expressed by those who earned a monthly wage of 3 million won or more.
More worrisome are the indicated levels of negative emotion and the rising suicide rate. In particular, the number of suicides per 100,000 rose by 1.8 to stand at 29.1 in 2024. This represents not only a second consecutive increase in suicides but the highest recorded figure in 13 years. In 2011, the suicide rate was recorded at 31.7 per 100,000 people.
There are many reasons — including tough competition at school and work, and the relatively low tolerance for mistakes and failures in society — that lead to an increase in suicides. Korean society needs to take a broader approach by treating suicide as an issue of public health, one that requires national-level prioritization, such as the introduction of aggressive social programs to help those at risk.
Relatedly, the level of depression and anxiety felt by Koreans worsened in 2024, coming in at 3.8 points on the 10-point scale.
Koreans often say that when the mountain is high, the valleys can be deep. We have surmounted several peaks with our economic growth, democratization and the popularization of K-culture around the globe. It's time for the nation to head into the valleys, to face the problems that must be alleviated for a better quality of life.
Source: Korea Times News
