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Who are the happiest people in Korea? They are well educated young adults, who have a high perception of their income and social class. They also highly value family and leisure time, and regularly go to church. The findings from the latest Korean General Social Survey (KGSS)1 largely mirror societal values, i.e. the emphasis on education, family, and religion. They also reflect the highly competitive environment in Korea since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which drastically changed traditional lifetime employment policies and practices and widened income gaps.
The Survey asked, "Considering all circumstances, how satisfied are you with your current quality of life?" It was measured on a 3-point Likert scale from: (1) dissatisfied, (2) neither satisfied nor dissatisfied (3) satisfied. The answers produced a wide U-shape across all age groups. Satisfaction levels declined steadily between age 20 and 30, as young adults graduating from universities struggled with landing their first job. Between age 30 and 50, satisfaction with life is mired in a deep trough. However, when family obligations decrease and retirement age arrives,2 satisfaction swings up. Overall, the average was 2.17, which is similar to that of European countries as shown in Figure 1.
While satisfaction levels between married and unmarried respondents were similar, those between men and women were significantly different, especially among those who had experienced the death of a spouse or a divorce. While widowers had a 59% chance of being happy and widows 31%, divorced men...