초록 ▼

Ⅰ. 서론 및 조사방법
1. 연구배경 및 목적
-한국에서 한부모가구는 크게 증가하고 있으며, 최근의 인구주택총조사(2010)에서는 한부모가구가 전체가구 10가구 중 한가구에 해당할 정도로 많은 비중을 차지하고 있는 것으로 나타나고 있음. OECD 국가들의 평균 한부모가구 비율은 9.4% 수준으로, 한국은 평균에 거의 가까운 9.3%임. 이는 같은 동아시아 국가인 일본의 8.4%보다도 훨씬 높은 수치이며, 증가경향에 비추어볼 때 OECD 수준을 넘어설 가능성도 존재하는 상황임.
-특히 한부모가족의 출현과 증가는 기존

Ⅰ. 서론 및 조사방법
1. 연구배경 및 목적
-한국에서 한부모가구는 크게 증가하고 있으며, 최근의 인구주택총조사(2010)에서는 한부모가구가 전체가구 10가구 중 한가구에 해당할 정도로 많은 비중을 차지하고 있는 것으로 나타나고 있음. OECD 국가들의 평균 한부모가구 비율은 9.4% 수준으로, 한국은 평균에 거의 가까운 9.3%임. 이는 같은 동아시아 국가인 일본의 8.4%보다도 훨씬 높은 수치이며, 증가경향에 비추어볼 때 OECD 수준을 넘어설 가능성도 존재하는 상황임.
-특히 한부모가족의 출현과 증가는 기존 사회보장체계의 한계를 여실히 드러내고 있음. 한부모가족은 부모 양쪽이 수행하던 생계부양 및 자녀돌봄의 역할을 한명의 부 또는 모가 동시에 수행하여야 하므로 일가족양립의 어려움이 가장 첨예하게 부각됨. 뿐만 아니라 한부모가족의 대다수를 차지하는 여성가구주들은 노동시장 불평등 증가로 인한 빈곤문제에 가장 취약한 상황임.
-한부모가족들의 안정적인 자녀양육과 생활안정을 위해 여성가족부에서는 한부모가족지원사업을 시행하고 있음. 그러나 사업규모의 중요성에 비하여, 전국적으로 대표성있는 한부모가족 실태에 대한 연구는 이루어지고 있지 않음. 가족의 빠른 변화와 함께 복지에 대한 정책요구가 커지고 있고 사회정책 전반이 재편되는 사회적 상황속에서, 한부모가족에 대한 의제발굴 및 확산을 위해 대표성 있는 실태조사 자료가 시급한 상황임.
-이에 본 연구는 한부모가족 확률비례표본에 근거하여 전국적으로 대표성 있고 신뢰도 높은 통계수치를 제공하고자 함. 또한 이에 상응하는 정책개선방안을 제시할 것임.

Abstract ▼

The purpose of this study is to investigate the status of Korean single-parent families and to provide first-time survey results as the Single Parent Support Act has been revised. The number of Korean single-parent families has increased due to the changes in family structure. A single-parent, livin

The purpose of this study is to investigate the status of Korean single-parent families and to provide first-time survey results as the Single Parent Support Act has been revised. The number of Korean single-parent families has increased due to the changes in family structure. A single-parent, living without a spouse or partner, faces more challenges in supporting family members depending on him/her and in raising children as a sole or primary caregiver. Furthermore, the female-headed households make a huge proportion of single-parent families and they are highly vulnerable to poverty due to the rise in labor market inequalities. Therefore, focusing on the difficulties single-parent families are experiencing, this study aims to investigates their current status from multiple perspectives.
The research subjects of this study were consisted of the households headed by single parents with children(and other family members). They were asked to respond to the survey questions on seven key areas: childcare, income and expenditure, relationships with ex-spouses, economic activity, health and housing status, life-world and discrimination, and policy needs. The survey was conducted for four months from October 2012, and the sample was achieved based on the population of 2010 Population and Housing Census. The number of survey participants was 2,522.
The analysis results are described as the following. First, the mean age of single parents was 43.7, in which those in 40s made a huge proportion. Approximately 64.2% of single parents who finished high school education made up a majority with about 23.8% of single parents who completed college or more. Most of single parents were divorced, and the rest were widowed or in other marital status. About 46.9% of single-parent families were headed by mothers, and the rest were single-father families, single-father families with other dependent family members, and single-mother families with other family members in order of majority. About 58.1% of single-parent families had children who were attending secondary school, and the rest were elementary-school and pre-school children. About 12.2% were National Basic Living Security recipients and 18.2% were consisted of the second highest median households receiving the NBLS and eligible families for Single-Parent Family Support.
Second, the utilization rate of day-care and education facilities appeared to be remarkably high among single-parent families compared with other types of families. But, single parents responded that there were some difficulties with the facility utilization due to the shortage of information and expenses. Because of poor social networks, they lacked childcare resources other than the day-care and education facilities.
Third, children of single parents spent more time alone compared with those of both parents. The majority of elementary and middle school children responded that they experienced being left alone at home without parents or caregivers, and even in the case of pre-school children, more than 10 percent were facing care deficit.
Fourth, the mean monthly income of single-parent families was 1,720,000 won, which does not reach the mean income of all households. The average assets of single parents were 55,490,000 won, which is only 21% of all households'. The level of income and assets appeared to be higher among father-parent families compared with mother-parent families.
Fifth, only 5.6% of divorced and unmarried single parents have until recently received childcare expenses from their ex-spouses or ex-partners, while about 83% have never received. They responded that Child Support Agency and advance on maintenance payments need to be established.
Sixth, approximately 86.6% of single parents were employed and the regular employment rate appeared to be 67.8%. About 42.1% of single parents were regular employees, 39.5% were temporary and daily workers, and 10.9% were self-employed. Most were employed in small businesses on a low-income, experiencing physical fatigue.
Seventh, their mental and physical health appeared to be in extremely poor status; especially, there were a number of single parents who have experienced depression. However, their medical services utilization rate was found to be quite low, in which 21.4% responded that they could not visit hospitals for financial burdens. This finding showed cost barriers to medical service utilization.
Eighth, housing stability was found to be low among single-parent families as only 23.5% of them were residing in their own houses while 54.3% of all households have their own houses. Housing stability appeared to be lower among low-income single-parent families; especially those who were released from welfare facilities for single-parent families were found to exit into an unstable housing situation.
Ninth, single parents' spare time was 3.8 hours a day on average, which is found to be quite short compared to adults aged 20 and older who have 5.2 hours of spare time on average. However, single mothers' spare time appeared to be similar to double earners while single fathers' spare time was much shorter than double earners.
Tenth, financial difficulties were most likely to be experienced after becoming single parents, as well as greater responsibilities for single- arenting and increased childcare expenses. In specific, they responded that childcare and education expenses, regardless of child age, were the most challenging. They were also found to experience the shortage of information on childcare and education, difficulties in career guidance, and management of children's school performance. These difficulties were more evident among low-SES single parents, and single-fathers were experiencing difficulties with fathering practices.
Eleventh, single-parent families, compared to other lower classes, showed the strong willingness to exit from welfare and, in fact, the rate of single-parent families leaving welfare appeared to be high due to employment and self-employment. Among NBLS recipients, the proportion of single parents who responded they would be able to exit from welfare in 10 years was found to be much bigger than the proportion of other parents who responded the same in previous research.
Lastly, single-parent families acquired information on the single-parent family support policies mostly from borough offices or community centers, and also had informally acquired information through personal networks or the internet. On the other hand, information acquisition through the single-parent family delivery system appeared to be rare. It is suggested that the take-up roles of the family welfare delivery system are reinforced.
Based on these analysis results, this study suggested the expansion of childcare services and cash assistance, support for childcare expenses, employment support for disadvantaged single parents, and expansion of housing and health services.