한국사회 여가소비의 양극화 현상 탐구

A Study on the Polarization of leisure consumption in Korea

The polarization phenomenon, which could be defined as 'reduction of the middle class', has recently emerged as a social issue to be solved in Korea. This study was to analyze the polarization phenomenon of Korea in terms of leisure consumption. Specifically, it investigated the polarization trend and leisure time and consumption differences among three different social classes. Using household survey(Statistics Korea)' and 'national recreation survey(the Ministry of Culture and Tourism), in this study, the polarization trend of leisure consumption was analyzed by calculating the inequality index(Gini coefficient) and the polarization index(Wolfson index) from 1997 to 2010. Results showed that the polarization phenomenon of leisure consumption appeared to be deepened especially after 2006 and the differences of the leisure holidays, leisure satisfaction and the level of happiness appeared to be significantly different between 'leisure consumption upper group' and 'leisure consumption middle and lower group'. Policy implications and limitations of the study were discussed at the end of study.