• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.117-123
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• 1993

Food is an expression of social identity. The food we eat identifies us as members of a social group, distinguishes us from other groups, and binds us together through a process of self-categorization and social identification. This research extends the theory of collectivism versus individualism as basic dimensions of culture and personality to research on food and identity. We tested 2 hypotheses among 402 university students in Korea and the U.S. 1) Americans assume relatively individualistic orientation while Koreans relatively collectivistic in orientation. 2) Koreans and Americans differ in their orientation toward food, with Americans assuming an individualistic orientation and Koreans assuming a collectivistic approach. The level of collectivism versus individualism was measured by using Hui's INCOL Scale. We initially hypothesized that the Americans would be strongly individualistic and Koreans strongly collectivistic, however our results did not prove this. The two groups showed collectivistic social identity with the Americans being a bit more collectivistic, so little support was found. In order to test the second hypothesis, we devised a new set of questions based on a idea by Hui and Fischer. It was found that this hypothesis was strongly supported. In conclusion, it is difficult to find overall differences in collectivism versus individualism between the two groups. But in the area of attitude toward food, we found clear differences. For Koreans, food is an expression of collectivistic identity, whereas Americans assume a more individualistic approach.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.217-236
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• 2021

The present study examined the mediating role of the subjective norm about social distancing in the relationship between individuals' collectivistic orientation and their social distancing behavior during the early COVID-19 crisis in Korea. A total of 445 South Korean adults residing in Korea participated in a survey during which level 2 to 2.5 prevention policies were being enforced. Results indicated, as expected, that collectivism positively predicted the perceptions of subjective norm that supports social distancing, which in turn predicted positively individuals' participation in social distancing as prescribed by the central government. This result emerged regardless of the individuals' perception of personal vulnerability to COVID-19. We discuss implications of these findings and directions for future research regarding the link between individualism-collectivism and the behavioral immune system, along with the role of social distancing in effectively curbing the spread of corona virus during the pandemic.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.221-257
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• 2020

This study examined whether popular music lyrics, the new research topic, reflect changes in Koreans' cultural orientation and whether individuals' cultural orientation is related to the genre of popular music that they prefer. In Study 1, we content analyzed popular music lyrics from 1980 to 2018 to see if Koreans' cultural orientations changed over time. The analysis showed that as the release dates approached the 2010s, the lyrics expressed the ideal attitudes of individualist cultures more frequently than those of collectivist cultures; this suggests that Koreans have gradually become more individualistic over time. In Study 2, we examined the relationships between individuals' cultural orientations, preferences for various genres of popular music, and functions of music. The analysis showed that people with more collectivistic attitudes tended to prefer mid- and low-arousal music, such as Ballads and Rap/Hiphop, while those with less collectivistic attitudes preferred high-arousal music, such as Rock/Metal. This result is partly consistent with the hypothesis that collectivistic people would prefer lower to higher arousal music. In addition, our analysis showed the strongest positive relationship between collectivism and the social function of music; this result can be interpreted as indicating that collectivistic people use music to maintain good interpersonal relationships. This paper concludes by discussing the implications of these findings, the limitations of this study, and directions for further research.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.285-303
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• 2021

The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of the Korean version of the zero-sum belief scale among a sample of Korean adults. The original scale was developed by Różycka-Tran, Boski, and Wojciszke (2015) based on the Belief in a Zero-Sum Game (BZSG) model. A total of 508 participants (252 college students and 256 non-student adults) completed an online survey comprised of the scales of zero-sum belief, social trust, subjective socioeconomic status, individualistic-collectivistic tendencies, and social comparison orientation. Results of the exploratory factor analysis and the confirmatory factor analysis indicated that zero-sum belief scale has one factor. The internal consistency of the zero-sum belief scale was good. The Zero-sum belief scale did not have a significant relationship with social trust and subjective socioeconomic status. However, the scale was positively associated with vertical individualistic and vertical collectivistic tendencies and negatively associated with horizontal collectivistic tendencies. There was no significant relationship between zero-sum belief and horizontal individualistic tendencies, but there was a significant positive relationship between zero-sum belief and social comparison orientation. However, the results from the college student sample and the non-student adult sample were different. Lastly, this study could facilitate future research on zero-sum belief in South Korea, and future studies are needed to reveal the predictors and effects of zero-sum belief.

• International Journal of Costume and Fashion
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.79-96
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of acculturation level and individualism/collectivism on shopping behaviors such as' informational influences, shopping orientations, and store patronage of Asian ethnic groups residing in the United States. A total of 129 Asian adults residing in North Carolina State of the U.S. completed questionnaires. Results showed statistically significant differences in responses to an informational influence (i.e., media source) and two shopping orientation subscales (i.e., shopping confusion in the Us. and personalized shopping) between low- and high-acculturated groups. A significant difference was found between the individualistic group and the collectivistic group on three shopping orientation subscales. Due to the potential importance of considering both acculturation and individualism/collectivism when looking at shopping behaviors, four groups were created by categorizing respondents on the basis of their acculturation level and individualism/collectivism scores. Comparison on shopping orientations and informational influences by four groups revealed statistically significant differences in response to two shopping orientation subscales and two patronage behavior subscales.

• East Asian Journal of Business Economics (EAJBE)
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.21-30
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• 2021

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of affective commitment in employees of Korean companies' subsidiaries in Mexico. Specifically, we study the moderating effects of cultural orientation on the relationship between perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) and affective commitment among these Mexican employees. Research design and methodology - This study was designed to explore the impact of perceived CSR on affective commitment and the moderating roles of collectivism and power distance on the employer-employee relationship. We applied hierarchical regression to survey data collected from 296 employees working for Korean company subsidiaries in Mexico to examine the proposed hypotheses. Results - The results show a significant positive effect from perceived CSR on affective commitment. In addition, this study confirms a positive moderating effect from collectivism and a negative moderating impact from power distance on the relationship between perceived CSR and affective commitment. Conclusions - Drawing upon social identity theory, this study found that Mexican employees' perceptions of their company's CSR and their own cultural value orientations influence affective commitment to the organization. This study extends the understanding of perceived CSR and affective commitment, and particularly demonstrates that the relationship between perceived CSR and affective commitment is influenced by employee collectivistic and power distance orientation.