The fact that degree of women's poverty risk is higher than that of men's one has been firmly proved since discussion about 'feminization of poverty' appeared. The common way to explain women's poverty is to measure income of female householders and a...
The fact that degree of women's poverty risk is higher than that of men's one has been firmly proved since discussion about 'feminization of poverty' appeared. The common way to explain women's poverty is to measure income of female householders and according to this, poverty rate of women is 3 times higher than that of men. If so, is poverty a problem really applicable to female householders only? Is poverty risk of women who live together with male householders low? And, does a woman with poor income have the same high poverty risk both before and after getting income?
In order to find out an answer to this question, this study divided it into 3 phases; input, output and outcome, and surveyed individual women to analyze feminization of poverty in Korean society. First, poverty was measured in the aspect of output with a focus on income through an existing analysis method of feminization of poverty. Through 5 indicators such as poverty rate and gap between gender, women's weight in poverty strata, change in gender poverty gap and change in female poverty rate, many-sided analysis was made on poverty status of women, Next, from the input aspect, analysis of female poverty was conducted with emphasis on the labor hours contributed to income and the individual social right. Finally, female poverty from the viewpoint of outcome leading income to quality of life was investigated through free time and discretionary time. In addition, this study paid attention to gender inequality within a household as a factor to intensify female poverty, and it also looked into inequality within a household arising in the course of movement per phase, negotiation process around it and the traditional gender ideology. It used KLIPS (Korean Labor and Income Panel Study) for an analysis from the output level, and also utilized data combined KLIPS with Time Use Survey for an analysis from the input and outcome level. As to the part such as inequality in a household that an analysis was difficult through quantitative research, it was supplemented by using the mixed method research through case study.
Study results are as follows;
First, using the data of KLIPS for last 12 years, this study looked into the feminization of poverty arising from the output aspect on the unit of analysis as per householder, individual in all ages, and individual in working age. According to the analysis result, the formula of 1:3 gender poverty gap still applied. However, such a method connotes a limitation that it is an analysis only limited to a part of women. Thus, poverty status was measured on the individual unit and the analysis showed that gender poverty gap became intensified as time went. Nevertheless, this result also contains excessive distribution problem of the elderly inside the poor strata. Based on such a question, this study finally limited analysis object to production population group. Analysis result revealed that figure of gender poverty gap decreased comparing to measurement on the unit basis of a householder or the individual in all ages and it was difficult to discover tendency according to time.
Second, feminization of poverty was investigated from the input aspect. In order to make comparison more clearly, object was classified into 4 groups; non-poor male, poor male, non-poor female and poor female. First, poor female had the longest gross working hours among all the groups and had the highest time poverty rate. This means that input level for a household survival is high in poor female. Besides, from the input aspect unlike income poverty, there was no big difference whether a woman was a householder or a member. Also, analysis of inequality level between and within groups through Theil index indicated that gender influence in poor strata was 3 times higher than that of non-poor strata. This study paid attention to individual social right as one of reasons for increase in gross working hours of poor women and analysis result showed level of social right of poor woman was the lowest one. This suggested that poor women were unable to reduce working hours because their social right level as another source to earn income was low.
Third, with free time and discretionary time as center, this study investigated poverty status from the outcome aspect that production of a household converted to quality of personal life. According to the analysis result, poor women experienced mixed exclusion at the point where gender and class crossed alike the input aspect. First of all, poor women had the shortest free time and the discretionary time among all the groups and also had highest poverty rate of living quality. According to analysis result of inequality level with focus on discretionary time, gender influence also showed 3 times higher in the poor strata than in the non-poor strata.
Finally, as the central context causing input increase and output decrease of poor women, this study looked into aspect of inequality within a household through qualitative research. According to analysis result, gender difference existed in the degree experiencing and feeling poverty at the phase where input converted to output, and where output converted to individual outcome. In addition, it was revealed that a bargaining theory did not apply to the poor household during increase in inequality within a household, but a traditional gender ideology still had stronger influence.
Above result explains that analysis method of female poverty with limitation to visible productions rather reduced strength and aspect of poverty which were experienced by women. After all, it can be said that more problematic situation to women is 'feminization of obligations and responsibilities' than feminization of income poverty. Meantime, it was also a remarkable result that the highest level of poverty occurred at the outcome phase when analysis was made with gender gap with center. In other words, women experience inconsistency between input and outcome, and the group with the greatest difference is poor women. As such, obligations and responsibilities for survival of a household have been feminized but its right and compensation are not quite satisfied so that the situation might be a mechanism which furthermore aggravates feminization of poverty. And, intra-household inequality exists in the center of such a mechanism.
It is undeniable that analysis on feminization of poverty developed up to now visualized female poverty problem. By expanding feminization of poverty and reorganizing analysis frame, this study has a meaning to find out the situation that compensation and right of poor women become weakened is a big problem while obligations and burdens of poor women increase more than lack of income. Besides, in the course of comparing gaps between groups, such things were visualized as gender differential problem in the poor strata, intensified input of poor female householders, exclusion of outcome of non-poor female householders and the like. This study also has a meaning that an empirical analysis was conducted through above matters on secondary poverty and hidden poverty of poor women which existing researches were unable to discover.