Seoul residents skeptical about social mobility

By Kim Bo-eun

Only 32 percent of Seoul residents believe social mobility is possible based on one’s own efforts, according to a survey released by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Thursday.

The 2017 Seoul Survey shows young people in their teens and 20s have the same pessimistic views as people in their 30s to 50s.

Among teens, 33.6 percent responded that social mobility is made possible based on one’s efforts, which is less than 34.2 percent of the people in their 20s who gave the same response.

The lower the respondents’ income, the more pessimistic they are, the survey shows.

Among those earning 1 million won and less a month, 28.2 percent said social mobility is possible whereas among those earning 3 million and more the figure is 32 percent.

Meanwhile, respondents gave 4.51 on a scale of one to 10 on “fairness” in society.

They believe the greatest unfairness is seen in the deprivation of social minorities’ rights, followed by tax policies, employment opportunities and income.

More than half of the respondents believe they are being discriminated against based on income. Others cited education, job and appearance as factors of discrimination.

Respondents gave 6.97 on a scale of 10 on overall life satisfaction.

Among the respondents, 54.2 percent said they experienced stress in the past two weeks. One in four (25.6 percent) said they experience high levels of stress.

The survey was conducted last October on 20,000 Korean households and 2,500 foreign residents in Seoul.

The Seoul Survey is conducted annually to collect data on citizens’ quality of life, housing and education.