Transition to adulthood in Korea: The effect of parent-child relation on

Over the last decade, difficulties in transition to adulthood has become a prominent phenomena in Korea. A distinct feature readily identifiable in Korea is the fact that most young adults continue to stay with their parents throughout their protruded transition period until they get married. In Korea, leaving home per se has scarcely been regarded as an event that has a meaning associated with becoming an adult independently from marriage. In this context, this study explores the effect of parent-child relation on the adult-identity among young adults.
An in-depth interview data of 36 never-married young adults ages 25 to 40, and 14 mothers or fathers with children in that age category is analyzed. Some of the findings from the analyses are as follows: The relationship with parents is an important context upon which young adults build their adult-identity. The parent-child relationship could be largely defined by the manner in which parents intervene in their children's transition to adulthood. Four types of parental involvement is could be identified: Aggressive intervention, supportive intervention, non-intervention caused by parental factors, and non-intervention resulted by child's refusal.