A study on Korean seafarers public image based on the Q-methodology

Abstract

Korean seafarers have played a key role throughout the country’s history and economic development. They have been a major source of foreign remittance into the nation as well as a pivotal sector in emergency logistics during war times. However, the current number of Korean seafarers in decreasing due to low job attractiveness and retention rate onboard. This is a major problem for the national and international shipping industry as youth seem not to be interested in working onboard for long periods of time. The purpose of this study is to 1) determine what the public opinion about seafarers in Korea is and 2) find out what factors mostly stand out in the public opinion about seafarers profession. The paper suggests that three main types of opinion groups emerged. The first type is labeled as ‘high risk, high workload and high stress’ as respondents recognized a high possibility of accident onboard and, at the same time, acknowledged that seafarers can be fatigued and stressed. The second type was named as ‘Dangerous, Dirty, Difficult’, as seafarers’ image was mainly associated to fishing vessels and not to merchant and passenger ships. The third type recognized that the social position of the seafarers was low due to ‘low social recognition’. The study suggests that all three types have a negative image of seafarers’ job. Based on the results of this study, it is necessary to establish various policies and marketing tools to improve the negative job image linked to seafarers by the public opinion. If the public image of seafarers can be improved and attractiveness rose, it is expected a higher number of seafarers will pursue and keep a career at sea.