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The North Korean standard of living during the famine

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  • Schwekendiek, Daniel

Abstract

For decades, North Korea has been one of the world's most secluded societies. Due to a lack of reliable statistics, little analytical research has been done on the well-being of those who suffer most under totalitarianism: the North Korean people. By considering height data as a sensitive indicator of the North Korean standard of living, we explain what has historically influenced the welfare of children in different regions. Using cross-sectional data from 1997 when the peak of the infamous famine coincided with extreme environmental influences, we primarily test a number of socioeconomic hypotheses that have been proposed in the literature. Of these, the public distribution system and local harvest conditions--which may reflect black and gray market activity--were found as having a positive and statistically significant effect on height outcomes. Furthermore, from a biological point of view, males and older birth cohorts seem to have suffered more during the famine of the 1990s.

Suggested Citation

  • Schwekendiek, Daniel, 2008. "The North Korean standard of living during the famine," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(3), pages 596-608, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:66:y:2008:i:3:p:596-608
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Baten, Jorg & Wagner, Andrea, 2003. "Autarchy, market disintegration, and health: the mortality and nutritional crisis in Nazi Germany, 1933-1937," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 1(1), pages 1-28, January.
    2. Marcus Noland, 2004. "Famine and Reform in North Korea," Asian Economic Papers, MIT Press, vol. 3(2), pages 1-40.
    3. Daniel Goodkind & Loraine West, 2001. "The North Korean Famine and Its Demographic Impact," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 27(2), pages 219-238, June.
    4. Richard H. Steckel, 1995. "Stature and the Standard of Living," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 33(4), pages 1903-1940, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sunyoung Pak & Daniel Schwekendiek & Hee Kyoung Kim, 2011. "Height and living standards in North Korea, 1930s–1980s," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 64(s1), pages 142-158, February.
    2. Steckel, Richard H., 2009. "Heights and human welfare: Recent developments and new directions," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 1-23, January.
    3. Schwekendiek, Daniel & Pak, Sunyoung, 2009. "Recent growth of children in the two Koreas: A meta-analysis," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 109-112, March.
    4. Dahlan, Hadi Akbar, 2021. "Trends and Food Technology Gap in Global Food Policy," SocArXiv 7r8sm, Center for Open Science.
    5. Luguang Jiang & Ye Liu, 2022. "Grain Security in Light of the Current Geopolitical Background and Agricultural Policy in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-14, July.
    6. Pak, Sunyoung, 2010. "The growth status of North Korean refugee children and adolescents from 6 to 19 years of age," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 385-395, December.
    7. Kyoo-Man Ha, 2021. "The need to transform from one-way to two-way natural disaster management," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 105(1), pages 177-189, January.
    8. Shim, David, 2010. "How Signifying Practices Constitute Food (In)security: The Case of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," GIGA Working Papers 122, GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies.

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