2025/04/30 by Soo‐Yeon Yoon, Hyunjoon Park · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Family Dynamics and Relationships #Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving #Work-Family Balance Challenges
paper · doi:10.1111/jomf.13114
openalex publication_date 2025/04/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/09
ABSTRACT Objective Complementing existing economic and structural explanations of trends toward later and less marriage in Korea, this study focuses on the part played by gender‐role attitudes in shaping never‐married adults' marriage desires, which, in turn, are likely to affect their marriage behavior. Background The persistent characteristic of marriage in Korea as a package requiring multiple family roles and obligations may conflict with the changing gender‐role attitudes that have been facilitated by women's educational expansion and labor force participation. This inconsistency may impact never‐married adults' desire to marry. Method We analyzed data from a recent online survey that asked unmarried Korean men and women aged 25–49 about their desires for marriage and attitudes toward gender roles. Using factor analysis and ordered logit regression, we examined the association between gender‐role attitudes and marriage desires among never‐married adults. Results Factor analysis identified two distinct dimensions underlying gender‐role attitudes among never‐married Korean adults: (1) attitudes toward the primacy of the breadwinner role for men and (2) attitudes toward the incongruency of work and family for women. We found that gender‐role attitudes were significantly associated with marriage desires for women but not for men. Conclusion The stronger relevance of gender‐role attitudes for women's marriage desires is consistent with the salience of the marriage package for Korean women. We discuss the implications of our findings for the continued decline in marriage rates in Korea.