The number of calls to parents, which surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, has declined again following the end of the public health emergency.
According to the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs' "2024 Korea Welfare Panel Survey and Analysis Report" released Tuesday, 44.38% of the 7,654 households surveyed had parents living separately. Among these households, the average number of phone calls to parents in 2023 was 106 per year, or about once every 3.4 days.
The frequency of contact with parents rose sharply during the pandemic. It averaged 90 times per year in 2018, before the pandemic, but climbed to 103 in 2020 as COVID-19 spread, and reached 112 and 113 in 2021 and 2022, respectively. With social distancing and infection concerns making in-person meetings difficult, phone calls served as a link maintaining family relationships.
However, in 2023, after the pandemic ended, the figure turned downward again. The median, however, stood at 52 times per year, showing little difference before and after COVID-19.
"Lower-Income Households Made Fewer Calls"… Linked to Rising Lonely Deaths
The frequency of in-person visits to parents also declined during the pandemic before recently showing a slight recovery. Visits averaged 39 times per year in 2018 and rose to 43 in 2019, but dropped to around 40 during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. The figure then recovered to around 42 in 2022 and 2023.
Differences by income were also observed. In 2023, general households contacted their parents an average of 106 times per year, while low-income households did so only 95 times. The institute analyzed that differences in economic conditions and living environments also affect the frequency of family interactions.
Meanwhile, these changes are linked to the issue of lonely deaths. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 3,924 people died alone in Korea last year, up 7.2% from the previous year. More than one in every 100 total deaths was a lonely death. Men accounted for 81.7% of the total, and single-person households of middle-aged men in their 50s emerged as the most vulnerable group.
