This stock photo of a woman wearing a mask is not directly related to this article. (123rf)
This stock photo of a woman wearing a mask is not directly related to this article. (123rf)

The social isolation induced by the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have left lasting effects on those who were young college students at the time: Individuals within this particular group tend to focus more on individual values and are less goal-oriented, according to a South Korean study.

Researchers from the Korea Educational Development Institute conducted a longitudinal study on those who were admitted to universities in 2021, during the height of the pandemic. The subjects were given a series of questions about important values and their inclination in aspects of life.

A total of 4,100 then-college freshmen were researched, and the results were compared to those of individuals who started college in 2011.

Both sets of subjects were divided into three groups: those with "high goal orientation," meaning who have long-term goals and actively seek to accomplish them; those with "low goal orientation," and those in the middle. Some 12 percent of the 2011 freshmen had high goal orientation, but this figure halved to 6 percent among the 2021 freshmen.

The proportion of students with low goal orientation in 2011 was 26 percent, but the figure increased by 13 percentage points in 2021. This indicated that fewer young college students were setting life-long goals and actively pursuing them after the pandemic.

The students were also compared in terms of the values they placed importance on. Respondents were asked to assign a score out of five to six life categories: material wealth, honor, social contribution, interpersonal relationships, peace within the family, and self-growth.

Both the 2021 and 2011 freshmen considered peace within the family to be most important, with the former assigning a score of 3.69 and the latter, 4.05. However, the least important value for the 2021 freshmen was social contribution (3.19), while the 2011 group placed the least importance on material wealth (3.30).

The study also revealed a significant drop in the categories of social contribution (3.55 to 3.19), interpersonal relations (3.99 to 3.61), with the 2021 freshmen generally assigning lower scores than the 2011 group.

This indicated that those who spent their freshmen years during the era of social distancing placed less importance on relationships with other people.

When asked if they meet other people regularly to maintain relationships, the 2021 freshmen gave a score of 3.45, down from the 2011 freshmen's 3.96. Asked whether they call acquaintances first to maintain a relationship, the score dropped from 3.80 for the 2011 respondents to 3.23 for the 2021 group.

A particularly steep drop was witnessed in respondents' answers to "I empty my schedule for the weekends to spend time with my family." The 2011 group gave a score of 3.98, but the 2021 group gave a score of 2.95.

Even among those with high goal orientation, the 2021 and 2011 groups placed importance on different values. The former placed greatest importance on honor (4.78) and self-growth (4.62), while the latter emphasized peace within the family (4.73) and interpersonal relations (4.69).

Material wealth was at the bottom of the list for the highly goal-oriented 2021 freshmen, but it marked a substantial increase from their counterparts in 2011 to 4.10.

"We're seeing a general decrease in value orientation among the post-pandemic generation. ... The change in priorities among those with high goal orientation shows that the (COVID-19 generation) is more individualistic and less inclined to contribute to the community," the researchers said.

They added that isolation forced by social distancing, uncertainty over the future due to economic slump, and resulting stress appear to have contributed to the apparent changes in what the 2021 group values.


minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com