Disparities in Future Realization and Depression Among Young Adults: Examining Regional Differences in the Moderating Role of Social Support Network

Background/Purpose: Young adults (YA) face increasing challenges related to perceived disparities in future realization in terms of economic status, educational attainment, individual effort, and government support. These disparities increase stress and uncertainty, contributing mental health problems, particularly depression. Depression among YA has emerged as a critical public health issue in South Korea, with 35.9% of YA experiencing depression in 2022. Social support networks, which are known to buffer psychological distress, may differently moderate this relationship differently across regional contexts, given the different pressures faced by metropolitan and non-metropolitan YA. While YA in metropolitan areas often face competitive pressures and overwhelming social expectations, those in non-metropolitan areas may face limited access to essential infrastructure and support systems. However, little is known about how perceived disparities and regional differences interact to influence depression among YA. This study examines the relationship between perceived future realization gaps and depression, and how social support networks moderated this relationship differently in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas.

Methods: Data for the analysis were drawn from the 2022 Youth Life Survey, focusing on 14,966 YA (aged 19-34) with living parents (metropolitan: 4,938; non-metropolitan: 10,028). The independent variable, perceived disparities in future realization included five domains: (1) parental economic status, (2) parental educational attainment, (3) YA’s own educational attainment, (4) YA’s own efforts, and (5) government policy support. Depression, the dependent variable, was measured with nine items. Social support networks, the moderating variable, were operationalized as the sum of responses regarding support received from family, friends, and public and private institutions. Generalized linear models, accounting for positively skewed depression scores included stepwise modeling with control variables (age, gender, cohabitation with parents, housing type, marital status, migration experience, employment status, income, perceived class level, housing satisfaction, and self-rated health) to test moderation effects. All analyses were conducted using Stata 18.0.

Results: Findings showed that increased perceived disparities in all five domains significantly predicted increased depression among YA in both metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas. While social support networks did not directly influence depression levels, their moderating role showed notable regional specificity. In metropolitan areas, social support networks significantly buffered depression associated with perceived disparity in parental educational attainment (β = -0.018, p = .028). Conversely, in non-metropolitan areas, social support networks significantly moderated the depression associated with perceived disparity in parental economic status (β = -0.028, p < .001) and the YA’s own educational attainment (β = -0.020, p < .001).

Conclusions: These results suggest that perceived disparities in future realization significantly contribute to depressive symptoms among YA in South Korea, with regional differences. In metropolitan areas, an adequate social support network effectively buffers depressive symptoms associated with perceived disparities in parental educational attainment. Conversely, in non-metropolitan areas, social support network plays a critical role in alleviating depression associated with perceived gaps in parental economic status and YA’s own educational attainment. Therefore, interventions aimed at enhancing social support networks need to adopt region-specific approaches, particularly addressing structural inequalities in educational and economic opportunities, in order to effectively mitigate depression among YA.