Young Adulthood in the Context of Economic Uncertainty and Inequality: The Reciprocal Relationship between Employment Instability and Mental Health

Abstract

Depression among young South Koreans has been sharply increasing. The life course perspective and cumulative disadvantage theory suggest a link between poor mental health and difficulties in the transition to work in the context of prolonged economic uncertainties. Using the Korean Welfare Panel Study (KoWePS, Waves 1–13), this research used structural equation modeling to examine the reciprocal associations between non-stable employment and depressive symptoms among Koreans in their 20s, born between 1979 and 1990 (N = 1,441) and how they are moderated by educational attainment and gender. Results show that earlier disadvantages in employment and mental health accumulated across young adulthood through social causation, health selection, and path dependence influences. This process varied by educational attainment but not gender; less-educated young adults were at greatest risk of accumulated disadvantages. Our findings underscore that employment precarity and mental health are intertwined, requiring increased supports for young adults, especially for the less educated.