Website will explore quality of life for Koreans

Want to get a snapshot of what life is really like for Koreans? Statistics Korea said yesterday it is providing statistical indicators of the “quality of life” in Korea through its website.

The agency said its Statistical Research Institute has selected a total of 81 indicators in 12 areas that will give a portrait of Koreans’ quality of life. Among the 81 indicators, data from 11 will be not be posted next year because those indicators have only been measured a single time. In order to determine whether indicators have improved or gotten worse, they must be measured for at least two years.

“As new social problems like a low birthrate, an increasing number of suicides and aggravating social conflicts are rising, the focus of policy has shifted from economic development to enhancing people’s quality of life,” Statics Korea said in a release. “We hope this will be a source of base data when ministries make policies.”

In addition, the statics agency said it has been become a global trend to measure people’s quality of life and social development. Statics Korea said that since the Stiglitz Commission in 2009 and the OECD in 2011 released reports, efforts to measure people’s quality of life have spread around the world.

Japan has had its “Measuring National Well-being” project since 2010, while Australia has been conducting “Measures of Australia’s Progress” since 2002.

Statistics Korea said it has been working with the Korea Sociological Association since 2011 to develop a framework of indicators and which categories should be included.

However, it will not provide a “composite index” of Korean’s quality of life because there is controversy over which indicators should have more weight value than others.

“Because of the controversy, most countries don’t release composite indexes for quality of life,” the agency said.

BY JOO KYUNG-DON [kjoo@joongang.co.kr ]