Colloquium in April 2024
Keunbok Lee (Researcher, Gyeonggi Research Institute, South Korea)
In South Korea, the belief that children cannot achieve the same level of socioeconomic success as their parents’ generation has been widely spread. The sense of helplessness stemming from entrenched inequalities in life opportunities, coupled with the belief that success is unattainable without parental support, can diminish overall life satisfaction. Despite these beliefs, there is a dearth of empirical studies examining the correlation between life satisfaction and intergenerational social mobility in South Korea. Additionally, the relationship between geographical mobility and this correlation remains unexplored, despite the likelihood of an interconnection between geographical mobility and intergenerational social mobility in South Korea.
To explore the impact of social and geographical mobility across generations on life satisfaction, this study examined data from a survey of 1,500 adult residents in Gyeonggi Province, unveiling the following findings. First, the study reveals that intergenerational social mobility shows no significant association with either one’s residential location at age 14 or their father’s hometown. Second, the study indicates that neither social mobility nor geographical mobility across generations independently affects life satisfaction. Third, despite this lack of independent effects, the study highlights that the influence of intergenerational social mobility on life satisfaction is mediated by geographical mobility. Finally, it is observed that the effects of social mobility on life satisfaction are discernible only among individuals whose fathers hailed from the Seoul metropolitan area (including Gyeonggi Province) and who themselves resided in this area at age 14.
These findings warrant further scrutiny, as they stem from a survey conducted solely among residents of Gyeonggi Province in South Korea. However, they suggest that the effects of social mobility on life satisfaction can be intricate in South Korea, with regional social networks built up over generations potentially exerting a significant influence on how individuals perceive their experiences of social mobility.
