earticle

영어

Objectives: This study aims to understand the changes in drinking behavior of Korean workers from one-person households amid the COVID-19 pandemic, using semantic network analysis. Methods: A qualitative research was conducted by interviewing 10 participants (5 men and women each) ranging from 21–39 years of age. A one-hour interview session was held through a video conference tool “Zoom.” The responses were dictated for later analysis. Results: The dictated responses from the participants were analyzed with a semantic network analyzing program “Netminer 4.” Through co-occurrence frequency analysis and centrality analysis (betweenness centrality, eigenvector centrality), 55 keywords were abstracted for men, and 77 for women. The top 5 keywords that occurred more than 10 times from men were “Post Covid-19,” “Drinking Alone,” “Beer,” “Social Restrictions,” and “Work.” For women, the keywords were “Post Covid-19,” “Friends,” “Beer,” “Drinking Alone,” and “Home.” Conclusion: The results showed that the drinking behavior of both men and women had drastically changed following the outbreak of the pandemic. With outdoor activities reducing considerably, the participants chose to drink at home, and mostly alone. The frequency of drinking alone significantly increased in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.