Abstract

Recently much attention has been paid to the effect of neighborhood characteristics on the health of individuals, independent of individual demographic and/or socioeconomic characteristics. Although many empirical studies of a kind, mostly based on Western society, have appeared on various international journals, few studies have shown empirical evidence of neighborhood characteristics as an independent and significant risk factor of ill health in Korea. This paper discusses possible reasons that neighborhood seems to be neither significant nor substantial regarding its impact on the health of Koreans. Addressing the uniqueness of Korean society regarding the concept of neighborhood, attributes of neighborhoods, and methodological challenges, authors suggest that more sophisticated conceptual and methodological approach, specific to Korean society, should enable to reveal the effect of neighborhood characteristics on individual health in Korea.

• Keywords: Neighborhood characteristics;Multi-level analysis;Korea Uniqueness;Concept of neighborhood