• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.137-170
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• 2002

The present paper reviews the development of democracy in the West and Korea. The first part of the paper provide a cultural framework for understanding the development of democracy in West and Korea. In the second part of the paper, an empirical study conducted in Korea will be presented. A survey questionnaire was developed to assess respondents' conception of political participation, political efficacy, trust, leadership, and social relations and it has been administered to national stratified sample in Korea (n=1,000). The results indicate that Korean respondents support the basic ideas of liberal democracy, such as the right to vote, participate in political organization, freedom of speech, and criticize government. At the same time, Korean respondents supported collective values, such as harmonious family life, harmonious social relations, and governmental welfare programs. Although Koreans trusted close ingroup members, such as family members and friends, they were less likely to trust their colleagues and outgroup members and were not likely to trust political and governmental institutions. Moreover, Korean respondents showed a low degree of political participation and efficacy and a high degree of political alienation. As for leadership, Koreans preferred moral and strong leaders. The overall results indicate that in Korea, although the basic ideals of democracy are valued, the method of implementing these ideals is different from the West. Detailed analysis of the results and implications of the study will be presented.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.161-195
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• 2006

The purpose of this study is to examine factors influencing quality of life for individuals in the family, school or workplace, leisure settings, and Korean society using the indigenous psychological analysis. A total of 3,406 participants, consisting of 1,331 elementary, middle, high school students and 2,075 parents and teacher, completed an open-ended questionnaire developed by Kim and Park (2004b). The respondents reported the factors that influence quality of life in Korean society as follows: Economic condition, collective effort, leisure and cultural life, harmonious interpersonal relationships, effective government policy, and educational attainment. The factors that reduce quality of life in Korean society are as follows: Economic uncertainty, political instability, lack of citizenry, ingroup favoritism, corruption, lack of facilities for leisure and social life, and overemphasis on educational achievement. Second, the factors that influence quality of life in the family are as follows: Harmonious family relations and financial security. For students relationship with friends and academic achievement are reported as important factors influencing quality of life at school. For adults, harmonious interpersonal relationship, financial factors and occupational achievement are reported as important factors influencing quality of life at the workplace. For leisure and social leisure life, financial security, leisure time and interpersonal relationships are reported as important factors influencing quality of life. Third, as for generational differences, students reported political instability and adults reported economic uncertainty as the most important factor reducing quality of life in Korean society. For family life, students reported conflicts among family members and adults reported financial constraints as the most important factor reducing quality of life. For leisure and social life, students reported lack of leisure time and adults reported financial constraints as the most important factor reducing quality of life. Fourth, for students the following characteristics were associated with higher quality of life: Higher socio-economic status of the family, younger, and higher academic achievement. For adults, the following characteristics were associated with higher quality of life: Higher socio-economic status of the family and greater achievement their social life. Implications of these results on the quality of life in Korea, focusing on human relationship, financial factors, self-regulation and educational achievement are discussed.