Half of Seoul Citizens Experienced 'Corona Blue'

Seoul Survey Urban Policy Indicator Investigation
Causes Such as Infection Anxiety and Refraining from Going Out... Increase in Perceived Stress Rate

On the 30th, a social distancing sticker at the COVID-19 Jung-gu temporary screening clinic set up in Seoul Station Plaza was torn off. The government extended the current social distancing levels of Level 2 in the metropolitan area and Level 1.5 in non-metropolitan areas for three more weeks until the 23rd of next month. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] It has been revealed that the number of Seoul citizens experiencing depression, conflicts, and stress has increased due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Half of the citizens experienced depression, and the perceived stress rate in daily life as well as conflicts with family and others were found to be higher than before COVID-19.

According to the results of the ‘2020 Seoul Survey Urban Policy Indicator Survey’ conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government on 20,000 households and 2,500 foreigners in Seoul on the 4th, half (50.7%) of Seoul citizens experienced depression due to COVID-19 last year. The causes of depression (multiple responses) included ‘vague anxiety about infection’ (52.4%), ‘frustration due to refraining from going out’ (43.4%), ‘media reports related to COVID-19’ (29.5%), and ‘social distancing-related disconnection and reduced communication’ (27.5%).

Depression caused by COVID-19 was experienced more by women (53.7%) than men (47.6%), and was relatively higher among those aged 60 and over (55.7%). Conflicts within families and among neighbors also increased to 34.1% and 24.9%, respectively.

The perceived stress rate in daily life also rose by 4.9 percentage points from the previous year to 44.3%, with the proportion citing financial status (45.6%) as the main cause increasing by 7.8 percentage points. In particular, ‘infectious diseases’ ranked highest as a threat to the safety of Seoul citizens last year, surpassing ‘unemployment’ and ‘economic crisis.’

COVID-19 has expanded untact (non-face-to-face) activities. Among employed Seoul citizens, 32.6% experienced telecommuting. By age group, those in their 30s (44.6%) and by occupation, management and professional workers (46.9%) recorded the highest rates. Leisure activities with family and friends still accounted for a high proportion, but the rate of solo leisure activities increased by 7.3 percentage points from 18.7% in 2019 to 26.0% in 2020. The frequency of using delivery food surged by 74.1% compared to before, and messenger usage and online grocery shopping also increased by 67.9% and 67.4%, respectively.

The intention to reside in Seoul after 10 years rose by 3.3 percentage points from 60.5% last year to 63.8%. By age group, 7 out of 10 people in their 30s (67.2%) wanted to continue living in Seoul after 10 years, while about 4 out of 10 people aged 60 and over (41.6%) wanted to leave Seoul. Regarding appropriate living expenses after retirement, the response ‘less than 2 to 2.5 million won’ was the highest at 27.6%, but this decreased by 7.5 percentage points compared to 2019 (35.1% → 27.6%), whereas the proportion of citizens who thought more than 3 million won was necessary surged from 17.0% to 24.9% within a year.

The average age of household heads in Seoul was 51.8 years, an increase of 2.9 years compared to 2015. The average household size was 2.33 persons, and more than one-third (33.4%) of all households were single-person households, the highest proportion. In terms of housing occupancy type, the order was owner-occupied (42.1%), monthly rent (31.3%), and jeonse (long-term deposit lease) (26.2%), with monthly rent increasing and jeonse decreasing compared to five years ago.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to publish the ‘2020 Seoul Survey’ report in December, which will include a detailed analysis of the current status and causes by field and area, along with policy proposals.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.