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Two Economic Crises, Unemployment, Working Poor, and Gender: Explaining the Dynamics of the Risk Patterns of Suicide in South Korea

문다슬 1 CHUNG, Haejoo 1

1고려대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

This study sought to identify gender-specific mechanisms of increased suicide rates during economic crises in South Korea. In order to address research aims, we focused on two international economic crises: IMF financial crisis in 1997, and international recession in 2008. This study provides three main findings. First, different mechanisms increased suicide rates during the two economic crises. Particularly, the high level of unemployment raised suicide rates during the 1997 IMF while the high level of working poor in the 2008 recession. Second, suicidal risk patterns for men and women differed at each period. The 1997 crisis which mostly affected full-time permanent workers had had relatively greater impacts on men suicide, whereas the 2008 crisis which affected precarious workers had done on women suicide. Finally, our finding indicated that these gender-specific risk patterns had been derived from the gendered labour market and male-friendly social policy. Placing women at the periphery of the labor market and using them as a buffer in times of crisis, governments failed to protect them from their economic difficulties. Suicide is fundamental and important public health and social problems. These findings suggest that the national suicide prevention strategy should pay attention to the social determinants of suicide through gendered as well as population health perspectives.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.