Trapped in a Gray Zone of Isolation: A Qualitative Study on the Social Withdrawal and Isolation Experiences of Youth NEETs in South Korea

Young people not in employment, education, or training (hereafter, Youth NEETs) have been examined in South Korea primarily through quantitative indicators, leaving the lived experience of their social isolation and withdrawal largely unexplored. This study explored how Korean Youth NEETs experience isolation and withdrawal, and how these states are formed and sustained within their life contexts. A qualitative multiple-case study was conducted with eight non-job-seeking Youth NEETs aged 19–34, recruited purposively in Seoul. Data were collected through repeated in-depth interviews and were analyzed through within-case analysis followed by Stake’s cross-case analysis. Five main categories, 11 subcategories, and 33 meaning units emerged: the shadow of marginalization; being pushed out into the world unprepared; being treated as expendable in an unstable labor market; failing on the high threshold of employment; and being trapped in a gray zone of isolation. Participants experienced cumulative and multidimensional social exclusion across family, school, the labor market, and social relationships, which manifested psycho-emotionally as learned helplessness, self-stigma, avoidant coping, and depressive distress. The findings suggest that NEET status should be reframed as a problem of multidimensional social exclusion rather than individual failure, and that integrated, stage-based psycho-emotional support is needed alongside employment-centered policies.