Care workers’ sense of responsibility, working conditions, and the quality of care in South Korea

In a journal article for The Philippine Review of Economics, Arslan et al. (2023) find that providing living wages, pension and health benefits, predictable work schedules, and adequate training opportunities help build positive relationships between care workers and the families of care recipients. This, in turn, strengthens care workers’ sense of responsibility and commitment towards their recipients.

Maria S. Floro is a member of the Macroeconomic Team of the Care Economies in Context Project.

Citation

Arslan, S., Alam, A., Floro, M. S., Cha, S.-E., & Kang, E. (2023). Care workers’ sense of responsibility, working conditions, and the quality of care in South Korea. The Philippine Review of Economics, 60(1), 191–222. https://doi.org/10.37907/8erp3202j

Abstract

As countries like South Korea expand their paid care services, ensuring quality care has become critical. Since care work involves significant emotional labour, a worker’s sense of responsibility for the care recipient’s well-being affects the quality of care delivered. In this study, we explore this particular determinant of quality care that has been under-explored to better understand its nature. However, a worker’s sense of responsibility or commitment level is not static and varies depending on various factors including working conditions. Using 2018 Korean childcare and eldercare survey data, we empirically examine the relationship between a worker’s commitment levels and working conditions by conducting Tobit and generalized maximum entropy (GME) analyses. Results indicate that training, shorter commutes, predictable schedules, and easy interactions with the care recipient’s family are associated with higher levels of commitment. Our findings highlight the importance of supportive working conditions in promoting quality care.