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The signboards of private institutes in Seoul’s Gangnam district. Education is a major expenditure for parents. (Hankyoreh file photo) 　

South Korean parents are spending roughly 25% of their household income on raising their children, a recent survey shows. The same survey found that around 60% of parents regard this cost as a burden.

Moon Moo-gyeong, head of international research and cooperation for the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education, presented her research findings on South Koreans’ perceptions of becoming parents and their attitudes about raising children during the Childrearing Advancement Forum on Dec. 13. Her research included a survey (repeating a survey from 2008) of 1,013 adults between their 20s and 50s. Along with married individuals with children, the survey also included 259 unmarried individuals and 57 married individuals without children.

Parents said they spent an average of 24.8% of their household income on raising their children. This rate was the lowest for parents in their 20s at 17.7% and the highest for those in their 30s at 27.3%. Parents with one child spent an average of 20.1% on childcare, while parents with three or more children spent an average of 28.7%. The survey found that 59.7% of parents feel pressured by these expenditures.

The percentage of respondents who believe that parents have a major impact on their children’s growth increased from 44.7% in 2008 to 57% this year. And when respondents were asked to assess their role as parents, the percentage who think that they are adequate parents decreased from 35.7% in 2008 to 26.7% this year. Respondents think that they are inadequate as parents because of their perception that they are not providing enough financial assistance. This also corresponds with the survey‘s finding that parents believe that financial ability is the most crucial requirement for being an ideal parent.

When asked how long parents ought to provide their children with financial support, 73.8% of respondents in 2008 said until children enter university or until they graduate from university, while 72.9% of respondents this year said until children graduate from university or get a job. In other words, parents think they ought to provide financial assistance for longer than they used to. About 20% of women who responded to the survey said that it was okay not to have children, and the biggest reason for this was because of the financial burden (43.3%).

This year’s survey was also different from the 2008 survey in terms of parents’ childrearing values, which were assessed by asking what parents’ expect from their children. In 2008, the quality that the most parents (33.5%) wanted from sons was an outstanding personality and attitude (responsibility and dedication), while this year, the most parents (37.3%) wanted sons to have outstanding social skills (interpersonal relationships and leadership). The most desired quality (28.4%) for daughters in 2008 was outstanding physical characteristics (appearance, height and figure), while this year that percentage increased to 31.3%. Character and attitude also increased from 22.9% to 31.2%.

“South Korean parents all identify financial assistance as the primary requirement for being good parents, the greatest obstacle to becoming good parents and the reason for feeling inadequate as parents. There is a vicious cycle at work in which parents work more in order to support their children, which weakens their emotional connection to and communication with their children, and in which children invest more time in their academic achievements, which makes it harder to spend time with their parents,” Moon Moo-gyeong said.

When asked in the survey how much time that parents spend focusing completely on their children, mothers said an average of 1.08 hours a day and fathers an average of 0.58 hours. On the weekend, mothers and fathers respectively reported spending 2 hours and 1.85 hours focusing on their children.

“As the economic crisis and the burnout society or overworked society continue, we are entering an age where individuals are finding it hard just to survive, and this reality is having a major influence on families and childrearing. Just as absolute values about marriage are in decline, values about children are also becoming relative, with some couples choosing not to have children. This is an important research task that also needs to be addressed in government policies about the low birthrate,” said Hong Seung-ah, head of family and social equality research at the Korean Women’s Development Institute, during the forum.

By Hwangbo Yon, staff reporter

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