Unemployment, Isolation, and Depression Among Young People: The Silent Crisis
In recent years, a growing number of young people in South Korea have become what society labels as “socially withdrawn” — often referred to as hikikomori, a term borrowed from Japan. These individuals spend months or even years isolated from school, work, and social relationships. While they are often misunderstood or dismissed as lazy or unmotivated, the reality is far more complex. Their struggles are deeply rooted in childhood trauma, social anxiety, and a lack of emotional safety.
A recent national survey reported that the number of so-called “resting youth” (young people not in work, school, or training) is increasing, and that as many as 540,000 young people in Korea may be living in social withdrawal. In response, the Ministry of Health and Welfare launched its first official survey last year, and in August of this year, it opened Youth Future Centers — dedicated support centers for withdrawn youth — in four metropolitan areas: Incheon, Ulsan, Chungbuk, and Jeonbuk. Since 2019, starting with Gwangju, other local governments have also passed ordinances to support these isolated youth and have begun related programs.
This article explores the hidden challenges faced by socially withdrawn youth, why traditional job training programs often fail them, and how rebuilding basic life experiences — from going outside to eating in public — can be the first critical step toward healing and reintegration. Rather than blaming the individual, we must look deeper into the social and emotional environments that shaped them.
Helping socially withdrawn youth reintegrate requires a long-term perspective. But can a government — or local municipalities — that prioritize short-term results be counted on to support these socially isolated young people over the long run?
Lee Jung-hyun, secretary-general of Working School, says:
“The government and local agencies offer a lot of youth employment programs, like job counseling and consulting, but after five or ten sessions, they just stop. There’s no follow-through.”
Many young people who have experienced social withdrawal struggle when trying to find employment. This is often attributed to a lack of social skills or poor work performance. However, these difficulties are not their fault.
In many cases, they grew up in unstable households, experiencing neglect, verbal abuse, or even physical violence. These early experiences can cause emotional and neurological damage, affecting key areas of the brain such as the hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex. As a result, engaging in everyday social interactions or performing tasks at work can feel significantly more difficult for them than for others.
These young people often suffer from social phobia stemming from neglect, verbal or physical abuse, or bullying at home or school. They lack social experience and struggle with everyday situations —
It’s only after building up social skills and experiencing basic parts of daily life that they can begin to take steps toward employment. After recovering a sense of daily normalcy, they can consider entering the job market.
The non-profit organization Seeds, which runs the online platform “Mole Tunnel” and offline support center “Mole House” for isolated youth, also places “daily recovery” as its first and most important goal.
The process by which socially withdrawn youth begin to recover a “sense of work” through various programs is essentially the process of restoring social skills. These young people often grew up neglected at home and lacked basic social development. Activities like cooking, cleaning, shopping, exercising, watching movies, or attending performances are not directly related to working a job — but many of them struggle even with these everyday tasks. In other words, socially withdrawn youth are often people who lack even the most basic life skills needed to take care of themselves and enjoy life. They don’t know how to connect with others or function socially, and they lack the competence or confidence to perform in a workplace — which is why many supervisors find it difficult to accommodate them.
One example of supporting these youth in practice is at Working School, a social cooperative based in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. Secretary General Lee Jung-hyun explains:
“Our daily recovery program includes activities like going to a swimming pool, visiting an amusement park, buying clothes or cosmetics alone, or learning basic computer skills. Many socially withdrawn youth have never experienced these things. They often struggle with self-hatred, thinking, ‘At my age, I’ve never even done this,’ or ‘I don’t even know how to do that.’ They carry deep-rooted trauma and feelings of being a failure.”
That’s why telling them to simply “try harder” or “just get a job” can push them even deeper into isolation.
Kim Hye-won, director of PIE-na Youth and professor of Youth Culture and Counseling at Hoseo University, explains:
“Young people who’ve been in social withdrawal often struggle to feel accepted in the workplace. They need spaces within society where they can explore and express themselves.”
A staff member at a youth center in Cheonan is quoted in the report: “When someone gets rejected by 20 or 30 companies, it destroys their mental state. They start to feel like garbage, like everything they’ve done until now is meaningless. Even with all these qualifications, if they still can’t get a job, they feel like giving up.”
In the June 2024 issue of Labor Review, the report “Why Have Young People Chosen Isolation from the Labor Market?” by Kyujun Cho highlights “repeated failure in job searching leading to helplessness” as a key reason behind youth withdrawal.
Korea’s rigid, hierarchical “big brother” workplace culture also plays a role. Young employees often face workplace bullying, verbal abuse, sexual harassment, and are forced to work long hours without overtime pay. They’re expected to tolerate this treatment in silence. This kind of toxic environment causes many to retreat inward. Unless the labor market changes—where people are used and discarded through low-wage, low-quality jobs—withdrawn youth will continue to abandon the idea of entering the workforce.
Recovering a sense of normalcy — through eating out, exercising, learning basic skills, or simply spending time outside — is not a luxury, but a necessity. These are not trivial activities. For socially withdrawn youth, they are the foundation upon which confidence, communication, and independence are slowly rebuilt. Only after they feel safe and grounded in themselves can the idea of employment or social reintegration become meaningful.
We are taught — and most of society believes — that success means living in a bigger house than others, working in taller and more prestigious buildings, earning higher wages, enjoying better views, and eating more expensive dinners. If someone fails to enter this path — or is excluded from it — they are labeled a “loser.” Eventually, those who can’t keep up with society’s definition of success become outcasts… and many of them end up living in isolation.