"My In-Laws Are Staying Over? No Way," My Wife Yelled... Holidays Are a Season of Conflict

"Holiday" Identified as the Top Time for Marital Conflicts
36% of Survey Respondents Choose It as Number One

When is the crisis period in married life? A survey revealed that couple conflicts occur most frequently during traditional holidays such as Seollal and Chuseok, which are national festivals.

According to a survey conducted by remarriage matchmaking company OnlyU and marriage information company Bienarae, targeting 536 adults nationwide hoping for remarriage, 36.0% of respondents (men 35.8%, women 36.2%) identified 'holidays' as the time when conflicts with their ex-spouse occurred most frequently during their marriage.

Holiday Spouse Conflicts

Respondents saw the seeds of conflict in the small and large quarrels that occur while families gather and spend time together during the holiday period. Among male respondents, 32.1% said the biggest discomfort was the 'time spent at both families’ homes,' while 34.3% of female respondents cited 'division of roles in preparing ancestral rites' as the cause of disputes.

Following these, similar to men, the order was time spent at both families’ homes (25.0%), uncomfortable relationships with the in-laws (18.3%), and whether to visit the in-laws (14.6%).

In this regard, on the 22nd, a story was posted on the anonymous workplace community 'Blind' by an office worker who is even considering divorce due to holiday disputes.

Office worker A, whose parents live in Seoul while the couple resides in Daejeon, said, "My parents said they would come to Daejeon to see us, so I told my wife, 'They can stay at our house for a night.'" He added, "When my wife heard that, she shouted, 'Absolutely not.'"

He continued, "I wouldn’t have minded if my wife’s parents stayed at our house," and said, "The Daejeon house was prepared with help from my parents. I want a divorce."

Netizens’ reactions to the story were mixed.

Some criticized A’s wife, saying, "Is it really that uncomfortable to stay for just one night?" and "Let’s see what she says if you say you have to repay the help for buying the house," while others responded, "Have you thought about the many things to take care of like cleaning and preparing food when your in-laws come?" and "If your in-laws come suddenly, when do you visit your own parents?"