[2021 Muyeongo Report] Expert: "Family Breakdown is the Main Cause of Increase in Muyeongo Deaths"

<1>National Map of Unclaimed Bodies

Experts Diagnose Causes of Rapid Increase in Unclaimed Deaths
"Unclaimed deaths are not concentrated in densely populated or impoverished areas
It's a generational trend rather than a regional pattern"

[Asia Economy Special Reporting Team = Team Leader Ko Hyung-kwang, Reporters Yoo Byung-don, Jung Dong-hoon, Lee Jung-yoon] Experts diagnose that the sharp increase in deaths without kin is a complex phenomenon arising from simultaneous social changes.

Professor Jung Soon-dul of Ewha Womans University’s Department of Social Welfare particularly points out that the phenomenon of family disintegration is repeatedly leading to a vicious cycle of economic crisis. He said, "Family disintegration does not simply end with the severance of human relationships but leads to economic crises involving failure to maintain livelihoods and deterioration in quality of life," adding, "As the social relationships of the basic unit called family are severed, the number of people with tendencies such as ‘hikikomori’ (reclusive individuals who withdraw from social life and stay confined at home) is increasing in our society."

Professor Heo Joon-soo of Soongsil University’s Department of Social Welfare explained, "If a household is economically stable, external economic shocks can be buffered, but if the breadwinner faces unemployment or economic difficulties, the family faces separation and conflict situations due to long-distance labor, etc.," adding, "This is the process of family disintegration, including the increase of single-person households."

The phenomenon of family disintegration is not limited to specific regions or social classes. Therefore, as shown on the map of deaths without kin, even tendencies according to region or wealth disappear. As seen on the nationwide map of the ‘Deaths Without Kin Index,’ which Asia Economy calculated by dividing the average annual number of deaths without kin in the area by the 2020 population per 100,000 people, there are slight regional differences but it is a nationwide phenomenon. Professor Jung said, "Even in Seoul, the index is high in Jung-gu and Yeongdeungpo-gu, but contrary to common expectations, deaths without kin are not more frequent in densely populated or impoverished areas," adding, "The fact that this is distributed nationwide without social factors means it is a trend of the times rather than a tendency of specific regions. Psychosocial factors should be considered as influencing deaths without kin."

There is also analysis that the poor are more vulnerable to deaths without kin. Professor Heo said, "Deaths without kin represent the final stage of individuals who have been isolated for a very long time after becoming distant from family and personal networks," adding, "Once fallen into this state, poverty becomes entrenched. Those in absolute poverty or poverty classes are structurally more vulnerable to deaths without kin." Professor Jung said, "The biggest cause of the increase in deaths without kin stems from changes in family structure, but going forward, socioeconomic changes caused by the global spread of pandemic infectious diseases may simultaneously have an impact," diagnosing, "Because COVID-19 can also trigger economic crises."

※ This article was produced with support from the Korea Press Foundation’s government advertising fees.