한국노인의 생활만족에 관한 연구

Abstract

産業化된 社會에 있어서 經濟發展 및 醫術의 發達로 因하여 老人世代는 젊은 世代에 비해 相對的으로 社會的 地位가 下落되며 이에 따라 老人들의 삶의 質的인 문제 즉 生活滿足度는 하나의 社會問題로써 대두되고있다. 韓國社會에서의 産業化는 西歐社會에 비해 늦게 시작되었으나 급속하게 진행됨에 따라 都市化 및 經濟構造, 家族構造의 變化는 급속히 이루어지고 있으며, 이에 따른 價値觀의 變化도 그 速度가 매우 빠르기 때문에 이러한 急變하는 韓國社會에서의 老人問題는 심각하다고 볼 수 있다. 本 硏究는 이러한 韓國社會에서의 老人의 生活滿足度에 초점을 맞추어 韓國老人의 生活滿足에 影響을 미치는 要因들을 밝혀내고 이들 要因들간의 關係를 分析的으로 살펴보았다. 먼저 老人의 生活滿足度에 관한 理論들과 旣存의 經驗的 硏究들 및 韓國의 특수한 상황을 고려하여 老人의 生活滿足度에 영향을 미칠 것으로 생각된 10개의 要因들 ? 地域, 性別, 配偶者有無, 健康, 宗敎, 社會經濟的 地位, 家族形態, 子女紐帶關係, 傳統的 家族價値觀, 그리고 社會活動에의 參與 ?을 중심으로 硏究假說 및 回歸·經路模型을 設定하였다. 都市와 農村의 男女老人 519名을 대상으로 質問紙調査를 實施한 후 單純相關關係를 分析한 결과 10개의 變數들 중 4개의 變數만이 老人의 生活滿足度와 相關關係가 있는 것으로 나타났다. 즉 자신의 健康을 좋다고 評價할수록, 社會經濟的 地位가 높을수록, 子女紐帶關係에 대해 肯定的으로 評價할수록, 그리고 社會生活에의 參與度가 높을수록 老人의 生活滿足度는 높은 것으로 밝혀졌다. 그리고 回歸分析結果 老人의 生活滿足度에 영향을 미치는 變數들의 效果에 있어서는 子女紐帶關係가 가장 크고 다음이 健康, 社會經濟的 地位, 그리고 社會活動의 順으로 밝혀졌으며 나머지 6개의 變數들은 老人의 生活滿足度에 直接的인 效果가 없는 것으로 나타났다. 그러나 經路模型 分析結果, 地域, 性別, 宗敎, 傳統的 家族價値觀은 老人의 生活滿足度에 間接的으로 영향을 미치고 있음이 밝혀졌으며 老人의 生活滿足度를 說明하는 主要經路로는 老人의 社會經濟的 地位가 傳統的 價値觀을 통해 子女紐帶關係에 영향을 미치며 이는 다시 老人의 生活滿足度에 영향을 미치는 經路로 밝혀졌다. 이상의 調査結果分析을 토대로 韓國老人의 生活滿足度를 높이기 위한 福祉政策樹立에 대한 제언으로써 먼저 社會制度的인 次元에서는 老人年金制度의 導入 및 老後生活保障을 위한 公的扶助制度의 확립, 老人을 모시는 子女에 대한 稅金控除惠澤의 부여, 老人을 대상으로 한 醫療保險制度의 확립 등을 들 수 있으며 그외에 老人專門病院을 개설하거나 地域社會奉仕活動을 生活化하고 老人들에게 적합한 役割을 제공해 주는 機關들을 生活化하는 方案을 제시하였다. 또한 家族形態面에서는 修正 擴大家族이나 修正 核家族의 形態를 모색함으로써 원만한 子女紐帶關係를 유지시켜 滿足스런 老後生活을 保障해 주는 방안들이 제시되었다. ; It is widely believed that the introduction and development of modern economic and health technology associated with industrialization and modernization results in a lowering off the status of the elderly which may cause the elderly to experience a lack of life satisfaction. Modernization in Korea has been accelerated by rapid industrialization. Along with industrialization, urbanization has been greatly advanced and with it a break down, or change, has occurred in the structure of the family. The value system has also undergone changes from the traditional form a more modern one. This has had, apparently, a negative effect on the life satisfaction of the elderly in Korea. This study is concerned with the problem of life satisfaction among the elderly in Korea and related factors. Finding correlations among those factors is the goal of this study. For this study, theories about life satisfaction and characteristics of Korean society were considered by reviewing previous empirical research. Ten factors: region, sex, marital status, health status, religion, socio-economic status (SES), family structure, solidarity between the elderly and their adult children, traditional values and social activities were identified as salient to the elderly’s life satisfaction. Ten hypotheses were established using these factors to explore the relationship of each of the ten factors with life satisfaction and regression and path models were built to clarity these relationships. In order to test these hypotheses and models, data were collected from interviewing 519 male and female elderly in rural and urban settings. Findings of this study were as follows; health status, SES, solidarity between the elderly ad their adult children and social activities were significantly related to their life satisfaction, and these factors were tested and identified to have an effect through regression analyses. Among the four factors, the solidarity between the elderly and their adult children had a stronger effect than the others. While the factors of region, sex, religion and traditional values were not verified as influential variables, they indirectly had an influence upon the life satisfaction of the elderly through a path model. The main path model constructed the following model : SES of the elderly influenced the value system, which in turn influenced the solidarity of elderly parents and their adult children and this solidarity determined life satisfaction. On the basis of these results several suggestions for a welfare policy to promote the degree of life satisfaction among elder people were presented. In the first place, for the elderly of lower economic status, the introduction of a pension system and the establishment of welfare policies, such as public aid and a tax deduction for children supporting their parents are proposed. Secondly, for the elderly in poor health, enlargement of the medical insurance system and hospital services specifically for the elderly are needed. Thirdly, to counteract feelings of uselessness, activation of programs to encourage community service on the part of the elderly, as well as promoting the idea of granting proper social roles to the elderly should be encouraged. Lastly, to sustain good relationships between the elderly and their adult children, support of modified extended family system is suggested.