Joung Hwan Park / The Concept of family / Tue 9am

Has the dream of having a family become a thing of the past? It is so evident in today's society that people tend to move away from the traditional concept of family towards the concept of a smaller family or even a life of independence.

We cannot deny the fact that industrial and economic development has taken place in Korea over the past few decades. Hence, I believe these factors have played a big role in terms of the transition in family structure in Korea. The concept of a small family would consist of single child families or even families without children. The reason behind this change in family structure is mainly the economical development within the country, which has led to more parents working; thus, further leading to a situation where those parents do not want to be occupied so much time-wise and money-wise by the job of raising children.

Women have become a more predominant force in today's business world and this has played a big part in terms of the independence of women. In the past, it was not easy for women to even receive the same quality of education as men did; hence, this meant that men were the ones with decent jobs and breadwinners of the house, where women had no choice but to stick to being just housewives. However, women have gained more power in the business world compared to the past, and this resulted in the gaining of financial freedom and independence from men. At the time where men were more financially predominant it was not easy for women to get a divorce, but now the situation has changed and more women prefer to divorce their partners if they feel it's best for their children and themselves. Thus, this has led to more single-parent families or people who choose the life of independence.

          With the introduction of new values and ideas following the process Westernization and economic development, the change in people's concept of a traditional family or even having a family at all is inevitable. However, it has been found that Korea had become an aged-society with a lack of young people who are able to work. Therefore, I personally think, not just for the sake of changing the society but for a more enjoyable life, people should think again when deciding on getting a divorce or just staying single for the rest of their lives.