Nobel Prize-winning economist blames men for South Korea's declining birthrate

A Nobel Prize-winning American economist has pointed out that the main cause of the global decline in birth rates is the "gender imbalance in the burden of housework." He has cited South Korea as a prime example, drawing particular attention.
On the 18th (local time), the Washington Post published a column stating that Claudia Goldin, the 2023 Nobel Prize winner in economics and the first female tenured professor at Harvard University's Department of Economics,
In this study, Professor Goldin said, "After World War II, women's participation in the labor market accelerated, but men's attitudes toward housework remained unchanged.
"The birth rate is high in countries where men do more housework, and conversely, the birth rate is low in countries where men do less housework," he said.
Professor Goldin cited South Korea as a prime example. In fact, South Korea's total fertility rate for 2023 will be the lowest in the world at 0.72. In addition, South Korean women will have one more baby per day than men.
On the other hand, in Sweden, the gender gap in housework hours is less than an hour, and the country maintains a relatively high birth rate.
MARK, France, Germany, Sweden, the UK and other countries maintain a fertility rate per woman of around 1.6 children.
In the early 2000s, when people born in the 1980s reached marriageable age, their incomes increased 4.5 times.
However, attitudes towards traditional gender roles have not changed significantly, which has led to a steep decline in the birth rate, Professor Goldin said.
"We are stuck in the past when it comes to fairness in marriage," said Professor Goldin. While women want to advance in the workplace, men still hold to the traditional belief that their wives should stay at home, she said.
"When a society experiences rapid growth, it gives each generation enough children to adapt to modern society," Goldin said.
"It doesn't give people time to think about their own future. It forces people into a modern society," Goldin said. In addition, she said, "men are not allowed to be other fathers because couples share childcare and housework equally.
"We should believe that they are doing more housework," he said. Finally, Professor Goldin suggested that countries like Sweden, France, the UK and Canada should provide subsidies to address the issue of low birth rates.
The government has presented its solution to Congress as providing child care services that provide childcare services that are affordable for children.