Research

Research Interest and Current Projects

My research aims to understand the precariousness in work and labour market and how the institutions (e.g., social policy) shape such labour market patterns both in Europe and East Asia.  I am specifically interested in its intersection with gender, understanding precariousness and social policy with gender lens. Recently, I have been looking into housing inequalities/precariousness and subjective precariousness. 


More broadly, my research interest lies in:

PROJECT "From Housing Inequality to Sustainable, Inclusive and Affordable Housing Solutions"

With Dr.Caroline Dewilde and Dr.Erwin Gielens (Tilburg University), we are examining the housing inequality across Europe as part of a large international interdisciplinary research project EqualHouse (Horizon Europe).

PROJECT "Patterns of labour market trajectories in South Korea"

With Dr. Juri Kim (Korea National University), we are working on the long-term labour market segmentation patterns in South Korea. Using Group-based Multi-trajectory Analysis on Korean Labor & Income Panel data, we are trying to identify the different work trajectory patterns over the last 10 years, based on the changes in workers' contract type, income level and subjective job insecurity.

PROJECT "(preliminary title) Are we all precarious? understanding long-term subjective insecurity"

With Dr. Koeun Park (Korean Health Insurance Research Institute), we are trying to understand why even the seemingly secure workers may feel precarious about their job prospects in the long-term. Building on the literature on the subjective job insecurity, we start from the premise that the workers' insecurity cannot be fully captured through the 'objective' measure (namely, permanent/fixed-term contracts). We take the discussion further by adding the long-term prospect to measure workers' subjective job insecurity, and examine the determinants of such insecurities using both individual and national level variables. We are currently focusing on Europe, using the European Working Conditions Survey.

Journal Publications

Other publications

Book chapter:

Project Report:

Policy Report:

Datasets:

Presentations

Invited Talks/Panel Discussions

연세대학교 복지국가연구센터 세미나 (28/12/2023 Yonsei University Welfare State Research Center Seminar). "'이중' 노동시장을 넘어: 노동시장 분절화와 잠재계층분석 (Beyond 'dual' labour markt: labour market segmentation and latent class analysis)".

한국보건사회연구원 개원 53주년 기념 국제세미나: 엔데믹 시대의 글로벌 보건/복지 동향과 전망 (20/07/2023 Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs 53rd Anniversary International Seminar: Global Trends of Health & Social Welfare Entering the Endemic Era) - discussion on the labour market policies and challenges in Belgium post-Covid 19.

비판과 대안 신진연구자 네트워크 연구모임 (18/01/2023 Critical Social Welfare Association Early Career Researchers Network Research Meeting). 유럽 노동시장 외부자의 여성화와 가족정책의 역할 (Feminisation of labour market Outsiders across Europe and the role of family policy). 

2022 ESPAnet Annual Conference Roundtable on "Social Policy in Changing European Societies: Research Agendas for the 21st Century"

CSB seminar, University of Antwerp. "Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?"

2nd (LIS)2ER workshop “Policies to Fight Inequality: The Case of Work-life Reconciliation and Family Policies” 


Conference Presentations 

Seo, H., Meuleman, B., and Pulignano, V. (2023.09) “Quantifying and Measuring the Qualitative Concept of Unpaid Labour in Paid Employment" 2023 ESPAnet Annual Conference, held in Warsaw.

Seo, H. and Park, K. (2023.05) "Is 'standard' secure? Exploring the discrepancy between the objective and subjective job insecurities incorporating the long-term perspective." Dag van de Sociologie, held in Gent.

De Becker, E., Seo, H., Pulignano, V., and Schoukens, P. (2023.05) "Mapping the social protection coverage for platform workers." Dag van de Sociologie, held in Gent.

Seo, H. (2023.03) Feminisation of Labour Market Outsiders and the Impact of Family Policies. WFRN Virtual Conference Series "Advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Work and Family Research: Bringing Marginalized Identities to the Forefront".

Seo, H., Pulignano, V. and Tijdens K. (2022.09) Gig Workers’ Control over Working Time and the Autonomy Paradox. Industrial Relations in Europe Conference (IREC) 2022, held in Tampere.

Seo, H., Pulignano, V. and Tijdens K. (2022.09) Gig Workers’ Control over Working Time and the Autonomy Paradox. 2022 ESPAnet Annual Conference, held in Vienna.

Seo, H. and Park, K. (2022.07) Job-related Health Risks and Subjective Job Insecurity: how perceived health risks make workers insecure. Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics (SASE) Conference, held in Amsterdam.

Park, K. and Seo, H. (2022.06) For a more sustainable social care service: occupational hazard of the social service workers and its impact on their subjective job security in South Korea, 18th East Asian Social Policy (EASP) Conference, held in Seoul/online.

Chung, H. and Seo, H. (2022.06) Flexibility stigma - how national contexts can shift the way we penalise flexible workers. Work + Family Researchers Network (WFRN) 6th Conference, held in New York, USA.

Seo, H. (2022.05) 유럽 노동시장 외부자의 여성화와 가족정책의 역할 (Feminisation of labour market Outsiders across Europe and the role of family policy). 한국사회정책학회 여성사회정책연구자네트워크세션, held in Seoul, Rep. of Korea.

Seo, H. (2022.04) Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. PSA Annual International Conference, held in York, UK.

Seo, H. (2021.11) Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. 2nd (LIS)2ER workshop “Policies to Fight Inequality: The Case of Work-life Reconciliation and Family Policies” 

Seo, H. (2021.09) Does gender matter? Feminisation of labour market Outsiders and the impact of childcare. 2021 British Society for Population Studies (BSPS) Annual Conference

Seo, H. (2021.08) Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. 2021 ESPAnet Annual Conference

Seo, H. (2021.08) Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?.  Intersections of Gender, Work/Family, and Social Policy: A Graduate/Early-Career Workshop.

Seo, H. (2021.07) Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. 2021 Social Policy Association (SPA) Annual Conference.

Seo, H. (2021.07). Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. 2021 SPA Postgraduate and Early Careers Conference.

Chung, H. and Seo, H. (2021.06) Flexibility stigma - how national contexts can shift the way we penalise flexible workers. The 19th ILERA World Congress.

Seo, H. (2021.06). Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?. Political Studies Association (PSA) Social Policy and Politics Specialist Group Event: ECR Webinar on the Intersections of Social Policy and the Labour Market.

Seo, H. (2021.02). Gendering the Dualization: Feministation of Labour Market Outsiders and Gendered Patterns in the European Labour Market. CHASE Feminist Network Sharing Research and Practice Event 2021.

Seo, H. (2020.09). Feminisation of Labour Market Outsiders: Empirical study on Dualization Theory and Women’s Overrepresentation in Outsider Jobs. ESPAnet 2020 PhD Seminar (virtual).

Seo, H. (2020.08). Feminisation of Labour Market Outisders: Empirical study on Dualization Theory and Women's Overrepresentation in Outsider Jobs. ECPR General Conference (virtual).

Seo, H. (2019.08).  Critique of Dualisation Theory in Analysing the Dualisation in East Asia: focusing on the case of South Korea. 11th International Nordwel Summer School, Bremen, Germany. 

Lee, S. S-Y, Seo, H., & Park, K. (2018). Why are Korean Cleaning Workers Precarious? - Female Cleaning Workers and the Fictional Korean Social Safety Net. Presented in the Korean Association of Social Welfare Policy Spring Conference. (In Korean) 

Seo, H. (2017) "Social Insurance of Special Form Workers: What Affects Their Exclusion?" presented at the 14th East Asian Social Policy, held in Nagoya, Japan. (presenting MA thesis) 

Seo, H. (2016) "Dual Self-support System in Korea: Synergy or Anergy?" presented at the graduate student session of 13th East Asian Social Policy, held in Seoul, Republic of Korea.  


Department Talks

Social Work & Social Policy Research Group, KU Leuven. "Job-related Health Risks and Subjective Job Insecurity: how perceived health risks make workers insecure." (30/01/2023)

Social Work & Social Policy Research Group, KU Leuven. "Gendered labour market patterns across Europe: does family policy mitigate feminisation of Outsiders?" 

Work in Progress

Under Review:

"Flexibiiltiy Stigma: how national contexts can shift the way we penalise flexible workers" (with Prof. Dr. Heejung Chung)

"Labour market segmentation through the gender glass: multigroup latent class analysis examining how the labour market segmentation is gendered in Europe" (single author)

"Employment Quality: A Social Determinant of Health in a Changing Labor Market in Korea" (with Julie Vanderleyden, Dr. Deborah De Moortel and Prof. Dr. Christophe Vanroelen)

"Firm-size matters: dualization on top of cross-firm variations under the legacy of productivism in South Korea" (with Prof. Dr. Heejung Chung)


Work in Progress:

"Gig workers control over working time and autonomy paradox" (with Prof. Dr. Valeria Pulignano and Dr. Kea Tijdens)

"Job-related Health Risks and Subjective Job Insecurity: how perceived health risks make workers insecure" (with Dr. Koeun Park)

"(preliminary title) a longitudinal study on the changes of labour market precariousness/segmentation in South Korea" (with Dr. Juri Kim)

"Quantifying and Measuring the Qualitative Concept of Unpaid Labour in Paid Employment" (with Prof. Dr. Bart Meuleman and Prof. Dr. Valeria Pulignano)

"Basic Income and Gender-work Dynamics: how different basic income scenarios shape working time intentions by gender" (with Cyrille Francisco)

Previous Projects

PROJECT "Researching precaroiusness across the paid/unpaid work continuum (ResPecTMe)"

With Prof. Valeria Pulignano (Principal Investigator) and Prof. Bart Meuleman from KU Leuven, we have worked on an advanced ERC project ResPecTMe to identify and measure the unpaid work workers to as part of their paid jobs, and understand labour precariousness in terms of paid/unpaid continuum. We have developed a survey to measure and capture the concept of 'unpaid work' that has been theorised by the qualitative research conducted as part of the project. We are also working closely with ILO, Eurofound, WageIndicator Foundation to develop a more comprehensive and useful measurement. (for more information, you can see our website)

PROJECT "Mapping the social protection coverage for platform workers"

With Prof. Eleni De Becker (Vrije Universiteit Brussels, KU Leuven), Prof. Valeria Pulignano and Prof. Dr. Paul Schoukens (KU Leuven), we have tried to map out the social protection coverage of platform workers with Socio-legal perspective, as a collaboration between the ResPecTMe project and Working Yet Poor project. Given the varieties of working patterns among the platform workers, we have examined how platform workers with different working patterns would fare under the different social protection systems across Europe. We have examined how platform workers would be covered by the unemployment protection systems in Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy if they all have the legal status as employees (forthcoming in European Journal of Social Security)

PROJECT "Gender matters: feminisation of labour market outsiders across Europe and the role of family policy"

My PhD research project was on gendered dualization of the labour market across Europe, and the impact of family policy on the cross-national variations of the gendered patterns. My supervisors are Prof Dr Heejung Chung and Dr Trude Sundberg.