Young people in Korea agreed more than their overseas peers that "children will bring great joy," while also expressing greater concern about the financial burden.
According to the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA) report titled "Study of foreign population policy cases" released on the 11th, a survey on perceptions of marriage, childbirth, and child-rearing conducted in 2024 among 2,500 adults ages 20 to 49 in five countries—Korea, Germany, Japan, France, and Sweden—found these results.
Among those who are not currently married, willingness to marry was highest in Korea at 52.9%. It was followed by Sweden at 50.2%, Germany at 46.5%, France at 38.2%, and Japan at 32.0%.
Willingness to have children ranked Sweden at 43.2%, France at 38.8%, Germany at 38.6%, Korea at 31.2%, and Japan at 20.3%, with Korea and Japan on the lower side.
Among those willing to have children, the number of children they plan to have was lowest in Korea at 1.74. Germany and Sweden were highest at 2.35, followed by France at 2.11 and Japan at 1.96.
If they were to have children, the share saying joy and satisfaction would increase was highest in Korea at 74.3%. Sweden was 64.9%, France 67.9%, Germany 62.7%, and Japan 57.5%.
By contrast, among negative impacts, agreement was highest with the item that the financial burden would increase. In particular, 92.7% in Korea said the financial burden would grow. Germany at 77.6%, France at 75.5%, Japan at 73.2%, and Sweden at 65.2% were equivalent to about 6 to 7 out of 10.
The research team said this suggests the financial burden may be related to Korea's low total fertility rate, adding that if negative perceptions of childbirth are eased and practical institutional support is strengthened, there may be room for positive changes in the future birth rate.