Too Much of a Good Thing: Social Capital and Academic Stress in South Korea

Jonathan A Jarvis,Allison W Corbett,Jared D Thorpe,Mikaela J Dufur

doi:10.3390/socsci9110187

Jonathan A Jarvis, Allison W Corbett + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci9110187

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Abstract

In intense academic environments such as in South Korea, students experience extreme levels of academic stress. This stress peaks as students prepare for the college entrance exam in the final year of high school. Stress is associated with a host of negative outcomes, and academic stress is the leading cause of suicidal ideation among youth in South Korea. Research suggests that in high-stress contexts such as this, social capital can improve academic success and mental health, while reducing risky or deviant behaviors. However, this research has predominantly focused on Western contexts. Because of the unique intensity of educational pursuits and intense investment in education by parents, South Korea provides a compelling case for research on the effects of family and school social capital on youth academic stress. Using data from the Korea Youth Panel Survey (N = 2753), we find that particular components of family and school social capital can both reduce and exacerbate academic stress. While measures of closeness and connection to parents reduced academic stress, school social capital had a limited impact on academic stress. Furthermore, there may be a limit to the effectiveness of social capital to help with academic stress before it becomes too much of a good thing.

Highlights

South Korea’s educational environment is intense, competitive, and a major source of stress for students and families
Among our measures capturing school social capital, the average scores ranged from a low of 2.55 (I can talk about all my troubles and worries to my teachers without reservation) to a high of 3.88 (I get along well with friends at school)
Our study adds to a growing body of research on social capital by examining the effects of particular aspects of family and school social capital on academic stress in South Korea, a non-Western context

Summary

Introduction

South Korea’s educational environment is intense, competitive, and a major source of stress for students and families. While South Koreans consistently score in the top five among high-income nations on international educational assessments (OECD 2018a), and more 25–34-year-olds in Korea have a university degree than in any other country (70 percent) (OECD 2018b), this academic competition begins early and is the dominant narrative in the lives of families with children under the age of 18. The burden of providing their children with an edge in the ultra-competitive educational environment is a leading cause of anxiety and financial stress (Statistics Korea 2018; Kim and Bang 2017; Seth 2002; Sorensen 1994). For South Korean children, academic stress is a regular feature of childhood and adolescence, the most common reason for life dissatisfaction, and the leading explanation for youth impulse to commit suicide (Statistics Korea 2018; Choi et al 2019; Kwak and Ickovics 2019). A powerful mechanism by which parents can invest in their children’s success and provide advantages in competitive social contexts while reducing anti-social outcomes is through social capital (Coleman 1988; Novak et al 2018; Dufur et al 2015; Hoffmann and Dufur 2018; Caridade et al 2020).

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