In recent years, the scope and beneficiaries of social security have been continuously expanding in South Korea. Accordingly, social welfare expenditure has been steadily increasing. Although the expansion of welfare policies continues, efforts to identify and verify the effects of welfare policies have been relatively neglected. Identifying the effectiveness of welfare policies and finding out the way to increase their effectiveness helps to reduce blind spots in welfare policies. As a result, welfare benefits can spread to a broader range of people. This study aims to identify the beneficiaries' perception of welfare policies and to derive methods to increase the effectiveness of policies. This study classifies beneficiaries based on their specific patterns of perception of welfare policies, which are hidden behind inconsistent responses about the satisfaction with various welfare policies. Individuals were grouped into four groups, and factors influencing group decisions were identified. The data used for the analysis was a welfare perception survey conducted by the Korea Welfare Panel Study. A Clustering methodology was used to classify groups with similar welfare perceptions, and a logistic regression model was also used to analyze how the groups were determined. As a result of the analysis, beneficiaries could be divided into four groups based on the perception of various welfare policies. Each group had different characteristics according to the perception of the government's welfare policy. In addition, factors determining each group were different according to various demographic and sociological factors. This study could show which factors are essential to maximize the effectiveness of welfare policies and the satisfaction of beneficiaries. Therefore, the analysis results derived from this study would be helpful when prioritizing the beneficiary groups.

The recent global spread of COVID-19 has a ripple effect that heralds a great change in human civilization. Due to this, the fundamental changes in daily life are expected where no one can be exempt from. Therefore, it is indispensable to transform the state responsibility and the levels of intervention for the welfare of people, and the design and the operation of welfare policies and system. It is also necessary to examine and reset the fundamental social policy paradigm. This study consists of two major parts. First, it is intended to identify the characteristics of Korea which could be described by process of policy formulation and current status by systematically and comprehensively analyzing the development history of health and welfare policies. Based on this, the study suggests changing factors and related policy tasks that should be noted and studied for policy paradigm shift. In particular, the aspect of health and welfare policies and short- and long-term tasks to cope with the crisis of great transformation by COVID-19 pandemic will be the focus of discussion. Second, the study intended to develop the history of health and welfare policy and related research materials into digital contents which could increase the universal understanding and awareness of health and welfare policy by improving the public accessibility of health and welfare policy information. In order to be prepared for a future research environment where the zero contact(non-contact) is expected to become a new normal, it is intended to provide an online space for examining the past, present, and future of health and welfare policies and research from KIHASA by establishing an archive of research records at the online space.

As a result of the analysis using Household Income and Expenditure Survey(HIES), the consumption of child household is larger in size and propensity to spend than no-child household. And as the proportion of education expenses is high, consumption for leisure and housing decreases especially in school-age, multi-child, and low-income households during the economic downturn. In the analysis using KOREA Welfare Panel Study(KOWEPS), the effect of raising the poverty rate of child support based on equivalised disposable income in 2018 was 3.5%p, the effect of lowering the poverty rate of the child sector's wage is 1.0%p related to childcare, 0.09%p child allowance (September to December), and 0.05%p CTC. Given the economic difficulties of raising children and the institutional examples of OECD countries, the current child allowance needs to be expanded into a more multi-layered support system by expanding the age group, adding selective support based on the number of children, and combining systems for the vulnerable class such as single-parent, dual-income, and unemployed households.

This study aims to examine determinants of health in older adults aged 65 or older with a particular attention to community environment (physical, social, and policy environment). The study also investigates whether the associations between community environment and health vary by individual socioeconomic status. Data are drawn from multiple sources including the 2019 Community Health Survey, Korean Statistical Information Service Regional Indicators, and Land Survey to analyze the association between community-level environment indicators and individual-level health outcomes. We use multilevel modeling to take into account the interdependence between individuals within each region(si-gun-gu). The analytic sample includes 66,949 adults aged 65 or older living in 250 si-gun-gu regions. The results show that the average walking distances to parks, health care facilities, senior centers, and public gyms are significantly different across regions. Levels of social capital (trust toward and support from other community residents) and satisfaction with community environment also significantly differ across regions. Findings from the multilevel models suggest the positive effects of social capital and satisfaction with community environment on older individuals’ self-rated health, depressive symptoms, and cognitive disability. Also, the higher rates of basic pension recipients in the regions are associated with poorer self-rated health of individuals, and those who are residing in rural area report lower levels of depressive symptoms but show higher likelihoods of cognitive disabilities. Finally, the positive effects of the better access to health care and recreational facilities of the communities are more evident among older adults in 70s and those with lower levels of socioeconomic status compared to their respective counterparts. Our findings suggest that community environment and social capital such as trust and support between community residents are important for the physical, mental, and cognitive health of community-residing older adults. Thus, it is important to make the communities more aging-, health-friendly and develop community programs and places to encourage interactions and support between the residents. Given the greater effects of the access to the community resources among those with lower levels of socioeconomic status, special attention and policies are needed for such vulnerable groups of older adults.

In the initial phase, EITC was not applied to households having the benefits from the National Basic Livelihood Security System (NBLSS). Then, it has been available for them with NBLSS since 2015. Our study aims to analyze the effect of this change in EITC on the labor participation of the working and workable poor, considering that many of the NBLSS recipients live below the poverty line. Due to data availability, we roughly estimate the effect by focusing on two groups, one receiving only NBLSS and the other receiving both NBLSS and EITC. The results indicate that EITC could increase the labor participation of NBLSS recipients, but it seems to be limited to some NBLSS recipients who do not live in poverty. The results imply that we need to contemplate the more effective ways to help the poor pull themselves out of poverty through work.

This study aims to investigate the working life of the youth population during the Covid-19 pandemic. The youth labor market is known as vulnerable to economic downturns and less resilient than any other age group in previous recessions. Using a difference-in-differences framework applied to the economically active population survey microdata, this study confirmed that the youth population is more affected by the Covid-19 pandemic than other working-age groups. The employment rates of youth decreased both in the first and the third waves of the pandemic. During the first wave (March to April 2020), face-to-face service sectors, where young workers were widely employed, contributed to decreased youth employment. However, by the third wave (December 2020), the hiring freeze on regular positions led young graduates seeking decent jobs to stay out of the labor market. Among the youth population, male humanities and social science graduates who left school 2 to 4 years earlier showed the highest decrease in employment. This study also found that gender differences in reacting to this recession. During the pandemic, while the male youth stayed out of the labor market and invested in human capital such as preparing for employment and hiring exams, the female youth returned to the labor market, actively seeking jobs. This report provides implications for the youth labor market and policy based on these findings.

This study aims to examine the adequacy of raising the age ceiling for contributions to the National Pension (NP). Although the pensionable age for the NP has increased, the age ceiling for contributions remains fixed at 59. To be sure, there are several measures by means of which individuals can extend their participation beyond the mandatory age gap, such as “voluntarily & continuously contribution” and “additional payment.” However, they are only temporary measures and fail to fill the gap between the pensionable age and the age cap for contributions. In this regard, the main purpose is to examine whether the decisions made through the 1st NP reform in 1998, including the decision to mandatory age ceiling for contributions remain persuasive even now, 20 years later. The results of this study show that the number of older workers who can contribute to the NP beyond the contribution age is increasing every year and that there is a segment of old-age benefits recipients who can afford to pay contributions to the NP even after reaching 60.

South Korea has been ranked 10th in the world in terms of gross domestic product. However, older adults in Korea spends many years working to eke out a living well past their retirement age. This study aims to analyze what effect the expansion of home pension would have on reducing elderly poverty and on decrease the risk of poverty among the middle-aged. Results show the home pension effectively reduces old-age poverty rates for both the current elderly population and the middle-aged in Korea. Furthermore, a gradual expansion of the home pension is found to have an effect of reducing the inequality between the elderly and the general population. The home pension, an asset liquidity mechanism, is more beneficial to middle-class home owners. However, a full-scale expansion of the home pension may aggravate the inequality between the current old-age population and the future old-age population. The fact that the take-up rate of the home pension remains at only 1% reveals the need for a gradual expansion of the home pension, whereby individuals who are old or are in preparation for retirement can make a choice with the freedom to liquidate their homes for old-age income. The home pension should gradually extend to cover the middle class, but those who are asset-rich and income-poor, accounting for 11.6 percent of all households, need to be covered first. This study recommends to strengthen the role of the home pension as a formal old-age income security program, and to increase ease of access for individuals so that they can freely decide to participate in the program.

As the number of elderly people increases, there is a need to expand the nursing home facilities infrastructure. For the proper supply of resources, prior to the expansion of infrastructure, a review of whether the current supply of nursing home facilities is properly supplied by region should be preceded. The purpose of this study was to examine the adequacy level of demand-supply of nursing home facilities by region and to prepare measures to ensure the adequacy of supply and demand of nursing home facilities to ensure the equality of opportunities. In this study, the demand was divided into those aged 65 or older, those aged 85 or older, and those who were recognized for the first to third grades of long-term care. The supply was divided into the number of facilities and the number of personnel. According to these standards, the adequacy and status of supply compared to demand have been verified. According to the results of this study, first, the analysis results of the regional demand-supply status of nursing home facilities are as follows. First of all, the adequacy of demand-supply of nursing home facilities varies depending on how it define demand and supply. Regardless of the scenario, however, the demand for nursing home facilities are concentrated in urban areas. Next, supply is also concentrated in cities. Next, supply is also distributed around urban areas. While the number of facilities are highly distributed around the city center, the number of personnels are distributed around the outskirts of the city. It also exhibits different characteristics by region and type of facilities. Second, as a result of an analysis of the adequacy of supply compared to regional demand of nursing home facilities, Korea’s nursing home facilities are oversupply overall. In detail, the central of the city and rural areas are short of supply, and the outer areas of the city center are oversupply. Based on these findings, this study proposed policy measures to ensure the adequacy of supply and demand of nursing facilities for the elderly.

This study aims to examine the direction and characteristics of changes in Korean families since the end of the 1990s, and to suggest policy implications accordingly. While Korea as a society has taken steps toward diversity, Korean families have not made much progress in that direction. The nuclear family is still the main form of families, with its proportion decreasing and diversity expanding. However, although some late-modern elements are observed in the expansion of diversity, early-modern features still persist or deepen. In the past 30 years, there has been little improvement in gender equality in family care and the labor market. Having emerged in the system of developmental state, familism remains strong as a family support system. As policies and systems advanced, the dependence on public services for caring and child rearing increased, but the time and cost burden on the family did not reduce. Although the supply of services has expanded, the roles and functions required of the family have not changed as the structure of Korean society as a whole remained unchanged. Family changes in the future will go further. This is because society will continue to change amid rapid technological change and globalization, and it is not yet clear in which direction the new generation that makes up the family will move. Families will continue to change in the future. This requires flexible policies and institutional approaches. Otherwise, there will emerge that can Otherwise, there will emerge many incidents of inconsistency between policy and the reality. For the socialization of care, more proactive system improvement is needed. Gender equality in the labor market should be further emphasized. In particular, in terms of the functional aspect of the family, it is necessary to improve the gender-balanced system in working hours and child care hours. Finally, it is necessary to support marriage and childbirth as a way to help individuals in their early stages of family formation to improve their living conditions.