Psychiatrists point to an unhealthy sense of self built on societal markers, such as wealth and social class, as the cause of gapjil in Korea.

Local psychiatrists say gapjil – an abuse of power by those with high status over subordinates – arise from an incorrectly formed sense of self. The Korean word gained renewed attention because of the behavior of Korean Air heiress Cho Hyun-min.

Cho has been accused of screaming profanities, displaying violent behavior and hurling a cup of water in the face of an executive of an advertising agency during a meeting, raising eyebrows both here and abroad.

The case follows the “nut rage” incident involving Cho Hyun-min’s older sister, Cho Hyun-ah, in 2014. Cho Hyun-ah got enraged after flight attendants served her macadamia nuts in a packet, not on a plate. She eventually ordered the plane back to its gate after displaying unruly behavior.

“By definition, gapjil refers to situations when a high-level person treats a low-ranked one inhumanely when there should be mutual respect in a power hierarchy between the employer and the employed,” said Professor Kim Hyun-soo from Myongji Hospital’s department of psychiatry.

Both gapjil and chaebol are words uniquely Korean, Kim added, noting that large, family-controlled conglomerates are rarely found in other countries.

“Daughters and sons of chaebol grow up like princes and princesses in a royal family and believe themselves to be extremely special, developing a wrong sense of self-esteem,” Kim said. “They grow up like monarchic offspring in a democratic society. Their narcissism, which can be either healthy or pathological, may not be a problem to themselves but may prove to be pathological from a societal point of view.”

“Because the individual believes social class structures are clear-cut and tends to view people as either human or subhuman [according to their social class], the perpetrator doesn’t know what he or she did wrong in most cases,” Kim said.

Psychiatrist Lee Jong-ha from Korea University Guro Hospital’s also pointed to unhealthy self-esteem as the cause for gapjil.

“Most gapjil cases come from wrongly formed self-esteem and a belief that they are a great person. This unhealthy self-esteem makes one act violently or gets extremely angry if he or she believes that someone is ignoring them and does not acknowledge him fully,” Lee said.

Korea University Guro Hospital noted that although low-self-esteem may lead to depression, too much self-esteem could also lead to problems, such as gapjil.

People with an unhealthy amount of self-esteem tend to think of others as economically, socially, and even humanely lower than themselves. In many cases, gapjil arises from people equating rich, fame, or power as an excuse for their unruly behavior, the hospital said.

But building high self-esteem on social factors such as wealth and social status is like building a house of cards, it added.

Lee noted that education regarding building healthy self-esteem is essential for a healthy society.

“Healthy self-esteem is created through belief in one’s self and efforts and by the encouragement of others,” Lee said. “We need education not just on raising self-esteem but on creating good personalities through stable interpersonal relationships and positive individual experiences. A healthy society is not made up of people who use authority, but of strong people who have inner strength.”

yjc@docdocdoc.co.kr

<© Korea Biomedical Review, All rights reserved.>