• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.729-736
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• 2023

Traditionally, Germany, a conservative welfare state, has pursued a male breadwinner model based on gender division of labor. For a long time, Germany tried to address low fertility through economic support centered on cash benefits, but it was not successful. In 2007, the German government began to shift the paradigm of family policy for work-life balance under the slogan of "A mix of time policy, income transfer, and infrastructure." When the issue of low birth rates emerged as a national concern in Germany, there was a growing social sentiment that not only the government but also private companies should contribute to increasing fertility by providing family-friendly personnel policies and working conditions. Private companies have been voluntarily improving family-friendly working conditions beyond legal obligations, aiming to secure personnel and prevent turnover. Germany's fertility rate is currently rising toward the European average level in 2023, which can be attributed to the government's work-life balance policies and the participation of private companies. In terms of improving work-life balance policies in Korea, it has been proposed to change the perception of the need for fathers to participate in child care, to make parental leave compulsory for men, to guarantee employment for women after childbirth, to expand child care facilities, and to revitalize family-friendly policies in companies.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.30-41
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• 1986

It is worthwhile to compare the major social indicators between Korea the and Taiwan particularly focusing on population because two countries share close similarities in many aspects and gave access to the advanced level among the developing countries in recent years. Similarities or dissimilarities presented in this paper will be helpful to the researchers and the policy makers of the two countries by giving them insight on the situation. The similarities and dissimilarities between the two countries in the field of demography and social indicators are summarized as follows : 1. Similarity indicators can be found in fertility. One of them is Net Reproduction Rate and it was less than one in both countries in 1985. The past trend of fertility, in fact level and pattern of it, of the two countries from 1960 to 1985 has been very similar. 2. Level and pattern of mortality is quite different between two countries. Mortality level of Taiwan is lower than that of Korea. 3. The close similarity between two countries was shown in population structure and aging index. 4. On future population projection, the population structure and the level and pattern of fertility of the two countries are very similar. During fourty years, the period from the current population growth rate which is a little more than 1% to the zero growth rate, the annual population growth rate of the two countries is approximately 0.6% and that is similar to those of the current industrialized countries. According to the medium variant of the projection, Korean population will reach Zero Growth Rate between 2020 and 2025 whereas Taiwan between 2025 and 2020 5. Current level of contraceptive prevalence of both countries is very similar showing above 70% of the eligible women in 1985 and one of the valuable factors of achieving this high rate within short period must be the national program of the family planning. A close cooperation in the field of population policy formulation and its implementation is indispensable because Korea and Taiwan have similarity in many population indicators.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.117-124
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• 2021

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to analyze the factors affecting the enactment of local municipalities' ordinance for supporting Korean Medicine infertility treatment in the metropolitan area. Methods : For Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi Province, data on the enactment of Korean Medicine infertility treatment and socio-demographic data of the local municipalities were collected through the Enhanced Local laws and regulations Information System and on-line statistical database. Logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the factors affecting the enactment of the ordinance, The enactment of the ordinance was dependent variable, and the budgeting of local municipalities, the number of population, the number of births, the number of Korean Medicine doctors, and the total fertility rate were used as independent variables. Results : Up to 2000, the ordinances for supporting Korean Medicine infertility treatment were enacted in 16 local municipalities and the budget for that was supported by 18 local municipalities. Regarding the effect on the enactment of the ordinances, it was found that budgeting of Korean Medicine infertility treatment had a positive (+) effect, and the metropolitan government's budgeting and the total fertility rate had a negative (-) effect. Conclusions : This study suggests that the ordinance for Korean Medicine infertility treatment is a policy tool derived based on the problem of low fertility faced by each local municipality rather than the political influence of health provider's groups.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.77-90
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• 2007

Using 2004 Household Income & Expenditure Survey, this study investigated difference in consumption pattern among the households with the different number of children, and estimated the monetary cost of rearing children. The findings were as following. First, the major consumption categories for raising children included the expenditures for education, food materials, utility, health, and communication. Second, the potential consumption needs for clothing & foot ware and culture & entertainment were not fully satisfied for the households with children compared to the households without children. Third, in the households with one child, the level of consumption was about two thirds of that in the households without children. It was slightly above half in the households with two children. Lower consumption level of the households with children was mainly due to the burden of the educational expenditure. Forth, the average monthly cost of raising children was estimated by 680 thousands Won for one child, and 104 thousand Won for two children. Lastly, the implications for the fertility policy and the methods for the estimation of the child cost were suggested based on the results.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.197-208
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• 2012

There's an opinion that it may be a combination of change of values and social economic factors that caused low fertility of Korean society. This study intends to analyze actual conditions of family children values and gender role centered on university students in a marriageable age so draw a policy implication for overcoming low fertility. Main findings of this study are like following. First, as for analysis of childbirth intention shows average score of $3.35{\pm}1.142$ presented sex distinction that men have a higher tendency to women. Second, in gender role attitudes, it shows that gender role related on women's social activities($2.06{\pm}0.739$), traditional gender role in family($2.41{\pm}0.789$) influence on childbirth intention (p<0.001). Third, in family children values indicates moderate scores($2.95{\pm}0.648$) that son's position in family ($2.33{\pm}0.911$), relation between children and parents($2.80{\pm}1.050$), individual's position in family($3.56{\pm}0.671$) influence on childbirth intention(p<0.000) in the traditional values. Measures against low fertility will prove effective when family values are established favorable to marriage, childbirth, rearing, gender equality is settled in a society as a whole and related systems.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.147-162
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• 2022

Although the globally known one-child policy in China was abolished in 2016, the overall fertility rate in the country declined to 1.3 in 2020. In this study, we examined whether the achievement of major developmental tasks during the childrearing stage was associated with intentions to have a second child among Chinese married women. Based on family development theory, we included parenting adaptation, division of childcare responsibilities with the partner, and marital adjustment as key developmental tasks during the childrearing stage. The participants of this study were 315 married Chinese women who lived with a spouse and a child who had not yet entered elementary school. Data were collected through an online survey in February and March 2021. A multiple regression analysis of the data revealed that a lower level of economic parenting stress, a higher level of fairness in dividing childcare responsibilities with the partner, and a more positive change in their marital relationship after having the first child were associated with greater intentions to have a second child.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.185-194
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• 2012

Population aging in Korea is in progress rapidly, though it isn't recognized as a critical situation now. Absolute scale of population will decrease since 2030 and that of 2050 will stay in 2005 levels. But most serious problem is that the core working age group, 25-54 ages will begin to decrease since 2012 because of low fertility and population aging. In these situation of population aging, we will face inevitably great amount of labor force shortages and we should build up policy alternatives for solving these problems. I proposed some policy alternatives. firstly, pronatalism policies including state-supported child-care system for preventing decreases of absolute scale of population. Second, facing up to labor shortages under population aging, I proposed policy alternatives for increasing labor market participation, measured by employmeny rate, of aged (or aging) people including wage-peak system of extending retiring ages and women including lowering opportunity costs of women labor market participation rates, given laboer forces. And to conclude, we should approach to the aging problems by steady state equilibrium ecnomic growth, under inevitable population aging.

• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.85-100
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to raise the importance of 'family culture and values' in the process of diagnosing and discussing the causes and measures of low fertility in Korean society. In addition, I sought to find the causes of over - fertilization and ways to cope with it in terms of educational approach to establishing family culture and values. Specifically, this study firstly reviews the causes of low fertility in Korea by examining the evaluation of low fertility policies, secondly, examines the actual conditions and changes in family culture and values related to low fertility, and third, In this paper, I examined the validity of educational intervention, the actual state of intervention, the contents of education in institutional education, the necessity and effect of education, the composition of educational content, and possible policies and arguments based on educational approach. The issue of low birth rate is a national social problem facing the Korean society in the modern age. Considering its causes and countermeasures at the same time, it is necessary to pay attention to the factors of family culture and values as well as economic factors. To further emphasize the educational approach to gender equality and family-friendly family culture and values.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.769-778
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• 2023

This study compared and analyzed parental leave and child allowance, two major policies among solutions to the current serious low fertility rate problem, using unstructured data, and sought future directions and implications for related response policies based on this. The collection keywords were "low fertility + parental leave" and "low fertility + child allowance", and data analysis was conducted in the following order: text frequency analysis, centrality analysis, network visualization, and CONCOR analysis. As a result of the analysis, first, parental leave was found to be a realistic and practical policy in response to low fertility rates, as data analysis showed more diverse and systematic discussions than child allowance. Second, in terms of child allowance, data analysis showed that there was a high level of information and interest in the cash grant benefit system, including child allowance, but there were no other unique features or active discussions. As a future improvement plan, both policies need to utilize the existing system. First, parental leave requires improvement in the working environment and blind spots in order to expand the system, and second, child allowance requires a change in the form of payment that deviates from the uniform and biased system. should be sought, and it was proposed to expand the target age.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.25-51
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• 2017

This paper employs an Overlapping Generations Model to quantify the impacts of Korea's demographic transition toward an older population on the total output growth rate. The model incorporates the projected population through 2060 according by Statistics Korea. The effects of the low fertility and increased life expectancy rates are studied. The model is considered suitable for analyzing the effects of demographic changes on the Korean economy. Under the assumption that the TFP growth rate will not slow considerably in the future, remaining at 1.3% per annum, the gross output growth rate of the Korean economy is projected to slow to 1.1% per annum in the 2050s, from 4.0% in the 2000s. The shrinking workforce due to the decline in fertility plays a significant role in the deceleration of the Korean economy. The increased life expectancy rate is expected to mitigate the negative effect, but the magnitude of its effect is found to be limited.