Abstract

Purpose: This study explores the impact of discrimination experience on stress levels among Seoul’s public housing complex residents, emphasizing the moderating role of social capital. Research design, data and methodology: Utilizing the 2019 Seoul public housing (PH) panel data and an ordered logit model, the research categorizes residents based on personal and environmental factors, contrasting them across different local housing price levels. Results: We find that public housing residents' experience of discrimination has a significant impact on stress, and local housing prices are positively related to stress. Interestingly, stress due to discrimination is more pronounced in high-priced neighborhoods, which are associated with real estate inequality. Conversely, this impact is less pronounced in lower-priced neighborhoods. Importantly, social capital not only has a significant moderating effect on stress for all residents, but in high-priced neighborhoods, it also moderates the stress caused by experiences of discrimination for social housing residents. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for policy interventions to strengthen social capital and address socioeconomic disparities in public housing, and are significant for analyzing the nuanced relationship between neighborhood, housing affordability, discrimination, and stress in urban communities for public housing residents, which is a socially problematic issue.