한국인의 성공적인 노화를 위한 행복한 노년 개념 연구

A Study of the Conception of the Aging Well among Korean elders

It is no secret that the number of people over the age of 60 in Korea is growing rapidly, a phenomenon recognized as the “graying of Korea.”The numbers are staggering, with the demographics of the Korean population dramatically different from the earlier part of the 20th century. Unfortunately,Korea is an aging society that is unprepared for this transition. There has been relatively few research conducted in the area of gerontology which looks at “successful aging”in the Christian counseling context. The purpose of this article is to explore how Korean elders can find self-fulfillment and happiness in their later life. To this end, I use qualitative research methodology to study the main factors which may contribute to the successful aging of Korean elders. From intense 2 hour-long interviews with 10 individuals, I discovered 6 main factors which Korean elders identified as aging well factors: children’s happiness and success, health condition,financial status, hobbies, intimate relationship with friends, and faith. The measure of “successful aging”is life satisfaction and a sense of well-being in the face of decline. My study aims to further research in the Korean model of successful aging by not only considering the Korean elders’psychological side of aging such as self-image, social relationships, and financial preparation, but also factors such as their children’s well-being and success. After analyzing the data from the interviews, the following conclusion was reached: Korean churches must prepare pastoral counseling programs to respond to the “graying of Korea”and ensure the successful aging of Korean society.