Seohee Son

“I Don’t Know How We Would Make It”—Social Support in Rural Low-Income Families

This chapter provides an overview of social support in sustaining rural low-income families. Social support is defined and relevant theoretical perspectives are presented. Literature is included to help in understanding how informal networks function when needs are high and resources are few, with the amount and types of support varying by context and time. The Rural Families Speak (RFS) project mothers’ narratives help demonstrate the types, strengths, and constraints of the support networks that emerged for the families. Further research needs and strategies for aiding positive employment and family well-being outcomes for rural low-income families are presented.

Family Policy in South Korea: Development, Implementation, and Evaluation

This chapter describes the sociohistoric context of Korean families and the policymaking process of family policy in South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea, Korea hereafter). Until very recently, Korean families, influenced by Confucianism, have been the primary safety net and care providers with little or no assistance from the government. Recent demographic changes including low fertility, an increasingly aging population, a decrease in marriage, and an increase in divorce and transnational marriages have all contributed to social problems which need a more comprehensive and universal family policy. Major amendments to the marriage law in the Civil Law have eliminated a traditional patriarchal headship system of the family and provided equal opportunity for male and female household headship. This law has also been amended to require divorcing couples to have a period of consideration and to come to a financial settlement for child support. In addition, there have been significant improvements in the family–work balance policy and elderly policy. The newly legislated Framework Act on Healthy Families and the Multicultural Family Support Act provide strength-based and preventive family programs and services to families. Special services for families at risk have been expanded to include low-income families, single parents, and families who have members with special needs or who struggle with domestic violence. Based on these achievements, we can conclude that significant progress in family policy has been made during the last 10 years in Korea. Nevertheless, family policy should continue to develop and be more carefully designed and implemented to encourage men to be more engaged in family life and to shift the strong Korean work-oriented culture to a more family-oriented culture. Furthermore, an evidence-based policy should be sought to encourage positive effects and outcomes.

Family Life Education in South Korea

Family life education (FLE) in South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea; Korea hereafter) has developed and expanded within a short period of time, mirroring the country’s rapid changes in the past few decades. In this chapter, we first present the background of FLE in Korea by providing an overview of the socioeconomic, historical, and cultural contexts along with recent demographic changes related to families (e.g., the decline in fertility rates to the world’s lowest level, the increase in transnational marriages between Korean men and non-Korean wives). The second part focuses on the main providers of FLE programs, Healthy Family Support Centers and Multicultural Family Support Centers, that were created as a result of new family policies developed in the 2000s. It is discussed how these Centers and related organizations design, implement, and evaluate FLE programs and what types of programs they provide. FLE is also explained in other contexts including government-initiated parenting education; FLE in secondary and higher educational systems; FLE in academic, religious, and other nongovernmental settings; and FLE-related certification. Finally, current challenges of FLE in Korea and future directions are discussed. Throughout this chapter, the focus is on FLE programs with structured curriculum except for FLE in the formal education system because they are the most typical type of FLE in Korea.

The Effects of Married Immigrant Women`s Parenting Experiences on their Mental Health

요 약 본 연구는 방문 자녀생활서비스를 이용하는 유아 및 초등학생 자녀를 양육하고 있는 결혼이주여성을 대상 으로 그들의 자녀양육 경험과 정신건강 간의 관계를 살펴보는 것을 목적으로 한다 이를 위해 년 월 일부터 월 일까지 전국 다문화가족지원센터에서 제공하는 방문 자녀생활서비스를 이용하고 있는 결혼이주여성 명을 대상으로 설문조사를 실시하였다 결혼이주여성의 정신건강은 자아존중감과 우울을 통해 살펴보았으며 연구 결과는 다음과 같다 결혼이주여성의 자아존중감은 부모역할 인식과 양육스트레스 결혼만족도 사회적 지지와 관계가 있었 으며 우울은 결혼이주여성의 한국어 능력 월평균 가구소득 자녀양육 변인인 부모역할 인식 양육스트레스 자녀발 달에 대한 지식 가족 및 사회 관련 변인인 결혼만족도와 사회적 지지와 관련 있는 것으로 나타났다 본 연구 결과 결혼이주여성의 정신건강은 자녀양육과 밀접한 관련이 있으므로 결혼이주여성의 자녀양육에 따른 부담감 감소 및 부 모역할 효능감을 향상시키기 위한 부모교육 서비스가 결혼이주여성의 정신건강에 도움이 될 수 있을 것이다

A Basic Study on Strategy Development for Improving the Management of Multicultural Family Support Centers

This paper proposes strategy development to improve the management of Multicultural Family Support Centers by analyzing four Multicultural Family Support Centers (MFSCs) in Chungcheongnam-do. The research was conducted from September 2012 to January 2013. Future directions for the four MFSCs are established based on a SWOT analysis on both the internal and external environments of the centers. Various strategic directions for the four MFSCs were identified based on these analyses. For center A (urban type, college contract type), the strategic directions included the specialization strategy, systemization strategy, empowerment strategy, standardization strategy, and achievement maximization strategy. The strategic directions for center B (urban-rural combined type, social welfare center contract type) included the improvement of multiculture awareness, specialization strategy, human resource development strategy, and networking strategy. For center C (farming and fishing community type, direct management type by local authority), the strategic directions included the specialization strategy, activation strategy, qualification strategy, and networking strategy. For center D (farming and fishing community type, social welfare center contract type), the strategic directions included the specialization strategy, business standardization strategy, human resource development strategy, and network expansion strategy. The suggested management strategy development for the four MFSCs can provide implications for the management of MFSCs in other areas in Korea.

Rural Does Matter: Understanding the Rural Context

Understanding rural contexts is foundational to our discussion of rural low-income families’ employment opportunities and challenges. This chapter considers four major areas from rural low-income family research: (a) a description of rural America, (b) an understanding of rural contexts, (c) a listing of possible opportunities for the future, and (d) challenges for current and future research. Some of the voices from the qualitative portion of the Rural Families Speak (RFS ) study are included in these sections to support and illustrate the issues at the individual and family level and the perceptions of the rural macrosystem and community level.