Why South Korea has a record low birth rate
Summary
TLDRThe video discusses the declining birth rate in South Korea, attributing it to societal pressures to create 'perfect' children and an inflated sense of average standards. It suggests that parents' helicopter tendencies and the pursuit of unrealistic ideals contribute to stress and low self-esteem, which may deter people from starting families. The speaker advocates for a focus on personal passions and non-materialistic values to improve mental well-being and potentially reverse the trend.
Takeaways
- đ The global trend of declining birth rates is discussed, with a focus on South Korea's particularly low rate, historically at 0.72.
- đ¶ The concept of 'helicopter parenting' is introduced as a possible factor contributing to the birth rate decline, where parents are overly involved in their children's activities.
- đââïž The script highlights the pressure on children to participate in various extracurricular activities, which may not always align with their interests.
- đź A comparison is made to playing The Sims, where the desire to create a 'perfect' character is likened to the societal pressure to create a 'perfect' child.
- đ€ The script questions whether the pursuit of perfection in children is healthy, suggesting it may lead to stress and a lack of understanding of one's own interests.
- đ The 'pigil' or 'inflated average' phenomenon in South Korea is discussed, where societal standards are skewed, leading to a feeling of inadequacy among individuals.
- đ The script touches on the competitive and grade-obsessed culture in South Korea, which may contribute to low self-esteem and a lack of personal fulfillment.
- đŹ The philosophy of 'janga' is introduced, emphasizing the importance of pursuing activities that bring personal joy, rather than focusing solely on utility or monetary gain.
- đ± The need for South Koreans to discover and value personal interests and passions is emphasized as a way to improve self-esteem and potentially increase the birth rate.
- đ± The negative impact of social media on self-esteem is discussed, as it often leads to comparisons with others and a loss of personal dignity.
Q & A
What is the current birth rate in South Korea mentioned in the script?
-The current birth rate in South Korea is mentioned as being around 0.72, which is considered the lowest in the history of the world.
What term is used to describe parents who are overly involved in their children's lives as described in the script?
-The term used to describe parents who are overly involved in their children's lives is 'helicopter moms'.
What is the Korean term for private academies that are mentioned in the script?
-The Korean term for private academies mentioned in the script is 'Hagwon'.
Why does the speaker think the birth rate is declining in South Korea?
-The speaker suggests that the birth rate is declining in South Korea due to the pressure to create 'perfect children' and the societal expectation to excel in various areas, leading to stress and burnout.
What does the speaker compare the parenting style in South Korea to?
-The speaker compares the parenting style in South Korea to playing The Sims, where players often try to make their simulated characters 'perfect'.
What is 'pigil' and how does it relate to the inflated average mindset in South Korea?
-'Pigil' is a term that refers to the inflated average mindset in South Korea, where people perceive the average to be higher than it actually is in various aspects like height, grades, and income, leading to a feeling of inadequacy.
What philosophy does the speaker mention that could help South Koreans focus on their dignity?
-The speaker mentions the philosophy of 'Jango', which emphasizes that human dignity comes from loving and doing things that are useless in a practical sense, such as enjoying nature or spending time with pets.
Why does the speaker believe social media is detrimental to self-esteem?
-The speaker believes social media is detrimental to self-esteem because it constantly exposes individuals to others who appear more successful, leading to a loss of dignity and a feeling of inadequacy.
What advice does the speaker give to South Koreans to improve their quality of life and potentially increase the birth rate?
-The speaker advises South Koreans to focus on their personal passions and interests, to avoid comparing themselves to others, and to live in the present moment, which could lead to a happier life and potentially a higher birth rate.
What does the speaker suggest as an alternative to the current competitive and achievement-focused mindset in South Korea?
-The speaker suggests developing a mindset that values personal interests and passions over achievements and competition, and focusing on the non-material aspects of life that bring happiness and fulfillment.
Outlines
đ Declining Birth Rates in South Korea
The speaker introduces the topic of declining birth rates, particularly focusing on South Korea, which is experiencing the lowest birth rate in its history at 0.72. The discussion highlights the global trend of declining birth rates, even in countries with strong social systems like Finland. The speaker suggests that the pursuit of creating 'perfect children' through intense parenting, often referred to as 'helicopter parenting,' might be contributing to this trend. This style of parenting involves parents orchestrating their children's activities and education to an extreme degree, which may lead to stress and a lack of personal fulfillment for the children.
đ€ The Pressure of 'Pigi' and Inflated Averages in South Korea
The speaker delves into the South Korean concept of 'pigi,' which refers to an inflated sense of average standards. This mindset leads to a general feeling of inadequacy as people constantly compare themselves to unrealistic expectations. The term 'oding' is introduced, which is a grading system where grade five is considered average, but societal pressure often deems it as below par. This skewed perception of average contributes to a widespread sense of low self-esteem and dissatisfaction among the population, which may be a factor in the country's low birth rate.
đ± Embracing Uselessness for Human Dignity
The speaker discusses the philosophy of Jang Jai, emphasizing the importance of human dignity through the love of 'useless' things, such as walking in the park or spending time with pets. This philosophy is contrasted with the South Korean tendency to view individuals as tools for productivity and success, often measured by material wealth or academic achievement. The speaker argues that this focus on measurable success leads to a loss of personal identity and happiness, which in turn affects the birth rate. The speaker suggests that South Koreans need to rediscover their personal passions and values that are not tied to material success to improve their quality of life and potentially reverse the trend of declining birth rates.
đ Redefining Success and Encouraging Personal Passions
In the final paragraph, the speaker advocates for a shift in values where success is not defined by traditional metrics like academic scores or wealth. Instead, success should be about finding and pursuing personal passions, even if they do not lead to conventional achievements. The speaker suggests that this approach would lead to a more fulfilling life, where individuals are not pressured to meet societal expectations but are encouraged to explore and embrace their unique interests. This change in perspective could help improve mental well-being and potentially influence the birth rate by creating a more supportive and joyful environment for raising children.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄBirth Rate Decline
đĄHelicopter Moms
đĄInflation of Average
đĄPigi (Inflating Average)
đĄGrade System (Dung)
đĄSelf-Esteem
đĄJango (Philosophy)
đĄDignity
đĄSocial Media Influence
đĄPerfect Child
đĄPersonal Passions
Highlights
The birth rate is declining globally, even in countries with strong social systems.
South Korea currently has the lowest birth rate in history, at around 0.72.
The concept of 'helicopter moms' and the pressure to create a 'perfect child' may contribute to the low birth rate.
Parents in South Korea often push their children into extracurricular activities, whether the child is interested or not.
The idea of creating a 'perfect child' is compared to playing The Sims, where players often strive for perfection.
The concept of 'pigil' or 'inflated average' in South Korea leads to a skewed perception of what is considered average.
The inflated average mindset can lead to low self-esteem and feelings of inadequacy among South Koreans.
Jango's philosophy emphasizes human dignity through loving and doing what is 'useless' in a traditional sense.
South Koreans are encouraged to focus on non-materialistic values and personal passions to improve their quality of life.
The pursuit of material success and societal approval can lead to a loss of personal dignity and happiness.
The video suggests that a shift in values towards personal passions and away from materialism could improve birth rates.
Social media's portrayal of success can negatively impact self-esteem and contribute to the decline in birth rates.
The video concludes with a call to action for South Koreans to focus on personal happiness and self-love.
The importance of trying new things and finding personal passions, even if they don't align with societal expectations, is emphasized.
The video suggests that a more individualistic and passion-driven approach to life could lead to a happier and more fulfilling society.
Transcripts
hello everyone I'm out here it's a very
sunny nice day around me is just a
nature I want to talk about like a
little bit about like the birth rate
decline of South Korea it's it's a big
Trend in the whole globe like even even
the countries that are believed to have
beautiful um country system and like
some countries like Finland have a very
nice child Healthcare System and
northern European countries those
countries were believed to have like a
nice system that people have will have
no trouble deciding to have a baby or
like start a family but still like even
finland's birth rate was going down so
it's like weird because almost every
country is starting to have a decline
but well let's just focus on South Korea
because like we all know the whole
world's uh birth rate is declining so
let's like focus on South Korea cuz I'm
I am here this is South Korea by the way
some Koreans are riding on their bike
it's like you know I'm I'm actually here
anyways it's good to you know be in
South Korea when we talk about the low
birth rate because this is like um the
lowest birth rate in the whole history
of Earth we're at currently about 0.72
or something let me tell you my thoughts
on why that's
happening I think um so tldr I think
it's because we are trying to make a
perfect child like you know this term
called helicopter moms where they pick
up their child and they quickly go to
the next um you know Academy or it could
we call it Hagan in Korea but what they
do is they pick up their kit let's say
he's David like David hops on the car
and David Goes to like this um swimming
class and then he learns swimming comes
out after like an hour and Mom's waiting
with her car and she's like come on
David no time to waste and then they go
to um let's say like a reading you know
some sort of a some sort of an academy
that they learn it's not public
education it's going to be private
education so that means they are paying
another people to teach their child not
like know the public system they do all
that but why well but there are few
reasons one of the reason is maybe the
child actually wants to learn swimming
so David would be like Mom can I can I
learn swimming I like swimming well then
the nice mom would be like okay well um
sure you can try learning swimming so
that's like case one number two is David
David doesn't want to swim but the mom
was like David if you want to be a a a
beautiful man in the future with a with
a nice body
and if you want to be praised by other
people you have to learn at least one
you know one athletic thing and let's go
swim David doesn't want to learn math
but maybe the mom was like David if you
want to get a good SAT score you have to
learn math like it could be something
like that it could be the the mom trying
to make David a perfect child now
it this reminds me of playing The Sims
because when you play Sims some people
well like at least me when I play Sims I
always make my sim like the perfect one
like you know like never get fat always
has a treadmill or some sort of a like a
working out machine in the room um
always have like cooking 10 Charisma 10
like my sim would be talking with a
mirror all day long and the next day
reading about cooking all day long you
know what I mean like there's this some
sort of urge or like a tendency that I
want to make my sim perfect but should
we do that to our child too or should we
have a mindset of when I have a child
I'm going to make my child perfect it
sounds good right but is it and I don't
think so cuz if my sim I mean my Sim
doesn't have a have an ego but if it did
what if my sim says Hey Sonu I know you
you want me to live a good life but I
don't want to work out I don't want to
read this cooking book can I just order
pizza then if the Sim starts to talk to
you and say that can you actually say
okay then you can do whatever you want
um let's go to
Party um what I want to say is
If the child actually likes studying and
if the child actually wants to do all
those stuff then that's perfect you know
nothing wrong here
but if it's if if if the child like
doesn't really said anything about hey I
like this or I want to do this but if
the parent like pushed or pressured the
child to do this like learn this learn
that and everything and the child is
like okay maybe you know I should do
this because Mom and Dad says I should
do it so they're like learning something
without knowing why they're doing it and
that becomes a stress
because that becomes uh a mental stress
because burnout or all these uh mental
depressions happen when you're doing
something that you don't know why you're
doing they think they have to do at
least that much investment to their
child to become a a good parent I guess
or maybe to present their child a good
life but
in my perspective I think that's
actually the worst thing you can do to a
child if the child actually likes to
learn math and actually likes to learn
swimming that's a good thing to do as a
parent but not asking what the child
wants but just pressuring them to do
this and that sounds a bit like
Sims and I I don't think that's a good
way to raise a child
so I want to talk about this really
toxic trade in Korea it's called
pigi in English it means inflated
average South Korean male has an average
height of
1744 CM so that means most of the
majority are
but when we go to like Soul or like a
like a club or like a you know place
where there's like a lot of
people they always say oh I think you
know to become like average in Korea you
have to be at least
178 but in real in reality 178 is
actually higher than average but they
think they're like their average mind
average like feeling is skewed they feel
176 or
1778 is
average that's inflated average in um
it's very prevalent in South Korea and
it applies to a lot of of categories for
example there's also this term
called it's like a short term of oding
it means there's this grade system dung
it means like a grade grade system where
grade one is the best and grade grade
nine is the
worst so basically that means grade five
is in the middle it's like the average
score and when some person writes a
comment or you know starts to debate
about something but when they seem to be
off topic or when they seem to look dumb
a little bit they write down which
means which means oh the national
average is grade five it's say it's it's
it's it's saying that grade five is a
low score saying most majority of people
are dumb saying the since the average
score is grade five and in their mindset
grade five feels very
low they they are saying that this
commenter is dumb but in
reality if that person actually got like
a like a great grade five and that means
that person is an average isn't that so
so it it means most of the Koreans have
like a mindset that the average score is
a low score I mean then who is who gets
the average like what is the real
average
like they think at least you have to get
a grade three and grade three is like
top 177% so they think Koreans think you
have to be at least top maybe 20% to
become the ideal average so what does
that mean the all the lower 80% will
feel like oh I'm not
enough this is so
prevalent in South Korea height grade
money like how much money you make so
because of this skewed like inflated
average
mindset most people
feel inadequate most people feel they
are not good enough so because of this
inflated average
mindset most people have a low
self-esteem I want to finish this video
by talking about Jango in Korean we call
it
changa his philosophy is about human
dignity and he said human dignity comes
from when we love stuff that is useless
and that could be for example loving you
know our dog loving walking around the
park I mean walking around the park
doesn't make you any money or you know
doesn't make you go up on the history
book you know right it's just walking
around the park because I love to do it
Jong Jaa
said what makes us human
is
doing what you love that is useless what
janga really wanted to say was if you
treat everything in life as something
that you have to be useful and make
money for example walking around the
park before connecting that idea with
like making money you're like oh I'm so
comfortable walking around the park I
love walking around the park it's your
routine but like when that person says
let's make money out of walking around a
park when they treat that to something
that they have to be useful that thing
becomes something that they don't love
anymore but South Koreans
really need this philosophy because most
of them treat themselves as tools they
say hey I have this amount of
certificate hey my grade is like 95 I'm
a I'm a good student but they never talk
about what they love they never talk
about what their dream
is this is basically becoming a tool
it's like not a human it's it's
basically a a factory printed citizen
just to do more work right I think this
is why South Koreans have a low birth
rate it's just too depressing to focus
your life on making more money and
getting proved that you are a good
worker and being praised that you have
10 certificates 10 like 100 on your math
test but they never talk about my
favorite moment in life is walking
around the lake listening to music my
favorite moment in in life is walking my
dog or giving food to my cat or saving
other peoples and I think underlying the
low birth rate of South Korea the root
of the problem is this South Koreans
lack
philosophy they're always like ah you
have to at least make six figures when
you're about 30 years
old well then are the people who doesn't
make that amount amount of money at age
30 are they losers no they're perfectly
fine they're all perfectly fine human
beings like you know what I mean if if
we start to put a guideline that is
measurable there's always a winner and a
loser but we can't do that to
humans I
mean to protect your self-esteem and
other people's self-esteem we should
always talk about a value that is not
comparable that the values that is
always um measurable only by by
you for example like my love towards um
let's say running around uh the lake
listening to a music that's what I love
I
cannot tell you how much I love it
because it's it's a value only inside me
of course somebody maybe has the same
hobby or the same thing like maybe you
might love to walk around the lake
listening to your favorite music but
like the music's going to be different
the pace of walking is going to be
different the feeling when you approach
the water is going to be different
everything is just
personal and that is dignity when a
value is not convertible to another
value let's say money or like gold you
know time that is
dignity South Koreans need this they
don't have dignity they need to focus on
the present right now what they love and
they need to develop more and learn who
they are oh I didn't know but I liked
plants like this oh I didn't know but I
liked piano music they need to learn
about more about themselves and just
live in right
now trying to um just fill their life
with more things that they love and that
brings up happiness and that will make
your life more happier maybe eventually
you know
they will have a kid and maybe they'll
say oh I should raise my kid like me so
maybe they'll say son it could be like
David David number two David it's okay
to get a zero score on math or maybe 10
like 20 what what matters is you enjoy
math what matters is you had a fun time
taking the test what matters is you have
a goal it it doesn't need to be math or
whatever but what matters is you have
something that you're passionate about
and if you're not I'll help you finding
it
so I think when South Koreans finally
focus on um the dignity part of life or
you know what makes us human part I
think they will
be hugging their child when they come
back with a low score saying it's okay
what matters is not giving up and trying
out what you love and trying to find out
what your love if you don't like math
that's totally fine what matters is you
tried taking the math test and figured
out that maybe it's not your thing but
that doesn't make you a lesser person it
makes you a person actually a better
person because you tried to find what
you love in your life so plus one try
I think that's what we need in South
Korea and I think that's why the birth
rate is going down and the reason why
like you know other successful countries
like Finland or like rich countries you
know the reason why their birth rates
are going down is because social media
shows even richer people there's always
a richer people than you there's always
someone richer when you see that on the
social
media your dignity part turns off and
you're like oh maybe I'm not good enough
maybe I need more money maybe I need
this maybe I need a a a bigger chest a
wider shoulder a better looking face
your dignity part in your brain turns
off suddenly when you look at other
successful people's or other you know
social
media that's why social media is bad for
you because your dignity part of your of
your your philosophy suddenly turns off
because it's really hard to resist that
it's really hard to resist
that's a different person from me so I
should not start comparing it's really
hard to do this even I look at like
social media you know and think like oh
I want to be like him it's it just
happens naturally it's really hard to
resist that
but we have to train ourself not to
compare to others and just focus on
yourself and your life you know and just
you know you you get what I'm saying
yeah so anyways
I hope you liked it and I hope you have
a good day and I hope you find what you
love and I hope you practice and
actually do fill your life with all the
stuff that you love thank you for
watching and I'll see you in the next
video bye-bye
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