Changes In South Korea Research Articles

The relationships among family income, parental depression, and adolescent aggression in South Korea: A latent growth mediation model

Although the Family Stress Model is well-established with many examples, there is relatively little information about South Korean families, which are known for greater bonding between parents and adolescents. The current study examined whether changes in parents' depression would mediate the relationship between income dynamics and youth development changes in South Korea. The participants were 561 families who had completed the Korean Welfare Panel Study at three time points that covered the full span from elementary to high school. A latent growth mediation model was used, and the results indicated that 1) family income was associated with parental depression and youth aggression over time and 2) early parental depression fully mediated the relationship between early family income and subsequent youth aggression rates over time. These findings have major implications for policies and interventions with regard to low-income South Korean families.

Establishing methodology for evaluating refrigerant recovery and recycling equipment: institutional responses to climate change in South Korea

This paper aims to propose testing methods and standards for evaluating refrigerant recovery and recycling equipment so that the methodology can be used for alternative material-related technological research in South Korea. To achieve this, the paper establishes test methods based on international and domestic standards. Major test items can be classified into following categories; equipment performance and the quality of recycled refrigerant. Selected refrigerants are HCFC-22, HCFC-123 and HFC-134a. The resulted equipment performance revealed that the movable type, which is the majority model in South Korea, has recovery and capacity advantages to be suited into international standard. On the other hand, the quality of recycled refrigerant lagged in purity and high-boiling residue. The purity of HCFC-22 was 99.3% which was obviously contaminated than the pure refrigerant and the international standard. High-boiling residue of HCFC-22 and HCFC-123 also showed lower numerical value compared to the international standard. Aforementioned results imply the gap between international and domestic standard. Based on result values of test equipment and precedent studies, approximate standard performance criteria and values were set as proposed by South Korean standard.

Convergent or Divergent? The Hidden Dynamics of Institutional Changes in the Labor Markets and Social Welfare Systems in South Korea and Japan

Dualization explains analogous changes in South Korea and Japan like labor market segmentation and the expansion of social protection for nonstandard workers. This study argues, however, that their institutional structures and underlying dynamics of dualization are more different than they appear, where the subcontracting relations between big businesses and their suppliers come into play. The co‐operative interfirm relations in Japan become a buffer with which firms incrementally adjust to a coupled dualization in the labor market and social welfare system. Thus, Japanese nonstandard workers excluded from the social insurance system exist because of the formally segmented structures of labor markets and social welfare programs. By contrast, the exploitative subcontracting relations in South Korea intensify labor market segmentation and undermine government regulation of labor and social welfare, leading to a decoupled dualization. Those in South Korea persist despite the formally inclusive and unified structures of social welfare programs.Related Articles Luckhurst, Jonathan. 2012.“.” Politics & Policy 40 (): 958‐977. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1747-1346.2012.00386.x/abstract Wagle, Udaya R. 2013.“.” Politics & Policy 41 (): 947‐984. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/polp.12053/full Luccisano, Lucy, and Amy Romagnoli. 2007. “” Politics & Policy 35 (): 716‐751. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1747-1346.2007.00082.x/abstract Related Media Miyamoto, Hiroaki. 2016. “.” East Asia Forum. December 23. http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2016/12/23/reforming-japans-dual-labour-market/ Park,S. Nathan. 2015. “.” The Wall Street Journal. February 25. https://blogs.wsj.com/korearealtime/2015/02/25/south-koreas-labor-market-reform-struggles/

Executive-legislative competition in agenda setting: an analysis of longitudinal changes in South Korea

ABSTRACTThe historical patterns of executive dominance in national policymaking have undergone a rapid transformation in South Korea. In the context of an emerging institutional rivalry between the executive and legislative branches in forming national policies, this study examines a causal nexus among the agenda power parity, jurisdictional complexity, and the scope and diversity of the national agenda space. A series of data analyses on various original measures of the key variables reveal that the two dimensions of the national agenda space have been reshaped via different causal processes. While the rise of the legislative power in agenda setting and the complexity of legislative jurisdictions tend to increase the scope of the national agenda space, democratic transition subsumes the influence of all other factors in increasing the diversity of the national agenda space.

South Korean Presidential Politics Turns Liberal: Transformative Change or Business as Usual?

AbstractThe impeachment of President Park Gyeun‐hye on 10 March 2017 saw South Korean politics enter a period of crisis. Her removal from office, the result of an unprecedented mass movement of citizen protests, provided a springboard for the subsequent success of the liberal candidate, Moon Jae‐in, in the presidential election of 9 May 2017. This article suggests that political change in South Korea is only possible if actors move beyond the politics of personality, and tackle the structural reasons for the policy failures of recent times. Further, if democracy, a humane economic system and responsive political institutions are going to be developed and nourished, the country's ‘imperial presidency’ needs to be reformed. In particular, the current ‘winner‐takes‐all’ politics, with the presidency as the main locus of power, needs to be reformed in ways that promote a more balanced political system, increasing the influence of other actors and institutions.

Spatial and temporal changes in leaf coloring date of Acer palmatum and Ginkgo biloba in response to temperature increases in South Korea

Understanding shifts in autumn phenology associated with climate changes is critical for preserving forest ecosystems. This study examines the changes in the leaf coloring date (LCD) of two temperate deciduous tree species, Acer palmatum (Acer) and Ginkgo biloba (Ginkgo), in response to surface air temperature (Ts) changes at 54 stations of South Korea for the period 1989–2007. The variations of Acer and Ginkgo in South Korea are very similar: they show the same mean LCD of 295th day of the year and delays of about 0.45 days year-1 during the observation period. The delaying trend is closely correlated (correlation coefficient > 0.77) with increases in Ts in mid-autumn by 2.8 days °C-1. It is noted that the LCD delaying and temperature sensitivity (days °C-1) for both tree species show negligible dependences on latitudes and elevations. Given the significant LCD-Ts relation, we project LCD changes for 2016–35 and 2046–65 using a process-based model forced by temperature from climate model simulation. The projections indicate that the mean LCD would be further delayed by 3.2 (3.7) days in 2016–35 (2046–65) due to mid-autumn Ts increases. This study suggests that the mid-autumn warming is largely responsible for the observed LCD changes in South Korea and will intensify the delaying trends in the future.

Holocene changes in flooding frequency in South Korea and their linkage to centennial-to-millennial-scale El Niño–Southern Oscillation activity

AbstractTo trace past changes in flooding frequency, we investigated fluvial sediments in the middle reach of the Nakdong River, South Korea. Sediments with larger grain size, lower total organic carbon percentage, and depleted δ13C values in the recovered sediment cores were interpreted as periods of more frequent flooding. Patterns of decreased long-term flooding frequency and vegetation changes during the early to late Holocene were similar to the decreasing regional summer monsoon intensity. Multicentennial frequent flooding periods in the study area (2900–3400 cal yr BP, 3600–3900 cal yr BP, 4600–5300 cal yr BP, and 5800–6400 cal yr BP) corresponded to stronger El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) activity periods. Based on previous studies showing that high-frequency tropical typhoon-driven coastal inundation along the western coast of Japan during the middle to late Holocene was coupled with stronger ENSO activity, it is likely that the observed centennial-to-millennial-scale flood frequency change in South Korea was influenced mainly by changes in the genesis and tracks of tropical typhoons at centennial-to-millennial time scales. This suggests that the centennial-to-millennial-scale hydrologic changes in East Asia were linked to the remote atmospheric-oceanic circulation changes represented by an ENSO-like pattern.

Health vulnerability assessment of heatwave and projections of future impacts under climate change in South Korea

Health vulnerability assessment of heatwave and projections of future impacts under climate change in South Korea

Assessing Sensitivity of Paddy Rice to Climate Change in South Korea

Paddy rice constitutes a staple crop in Korea. This study conducted sensitivity analysis to evaluate the vulnerability of paddy rice to future climate change, and compared temporal and regional characteristics to classify regions with unfavorable water balances. Rainfall Effectiveness Index for Paddy fields (REIP), the ratio of effective rainfall and consumptive use, was used as a sensitivity index. Weather data from 1971 to 2010 and future climate change scenarios Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 were used to evaluate the sensitivity. Results showed an overall increase in water requirements and consumptive use. The REIP values were small for every period, except the 2040s, 2060s, and 2080s under scenario RCP 4.5, and the 2040s and 2080s under scenario RCP 8.5. Both climate change scenarios showed high sensitivity in regions Jeollabuk-do, Jeollanam-do, and Gyeongnam-do. However, regions Gyeonggi-do, Gangwon-do, and Chungcheongbuk-do had low sensitivity compared to other regions. The REIPs were used to categorize sensitivity into four types: low consumption–water rich, low consumption–water poor, high consumption–water rich, and high consumption–water poor. The Gangwon-do region had the highest number of regions that changed from the low consumption–water rich category to the high consumption-water poor category, making it a priority for measures to improve its adaptive capacity for climate change.

Developing the exchange traded market for government bonds: Effect of recent quote rule changes in South Korea

The 2010 new quote rule changes imposed on the exchange market primary dealers (PDs) for the Korea Treasury Bonds (KTBs) have increased the exchange market quality for the 5-, 10- and 20-year maturity KTBs. Knock-on effects have subsequently led to an increase in market quality for the 5- and 10-year maturity bonds in the over-the-counter (OTC) KTB market. However, the imposition of a spread width below a reasonable level in the KTB exchange traded market for the 3-year maturity KTB has led to a significant reduction in trade volume in the OTC KTB market for bonds of the same maturity.

Embodying Progress: Aesthetic Surgery and Socioeconomic Change in South Korea

Since the early 1960s South Korea has had one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. These developments have had a deep impact on the structure of society, but what impact have they had on the body? This article examines the relationship between such rapid socioeconomic transformations and the changes in uses and perceptions of the physical body among Koreans. This article uses a phenomenological theoretical framework to look at the narratives of embodiment of young Koreans that have had experiences with aesthetic surgery. The research examines the hypotheses that (1) the rapid transformations occurring in the South Korean economy are partly enabled by a specific ideology—a kind of ideology of progress in which economic productivity is valued above other aspects of everyday life, and (2) this ideology is articulated in the way individuals view and manage their bodies. In particular, it is evident in the embodied practices of Korean youths, such as the relatively recent popularization of aesthetic surgery. Thus, through surgical technologies the body is made to be more economically “productive” and may better contribute to the progress of the country as a whole.

The Role of Hegemonic Masculinity and Hollywood in the New Korea

We argue that during the 1940s Hollywood films had an important role to play in the creation of a postwar South Korean society based on the new global U.S. hegemony. The connections between political and economic change in South Korea and socio-cultural factors have hitherto scarcely been explored and, in this context, we argue that one of the key socio-cultural mechanisms that supported and even drove social change in the immediate post-war period was the Korean film industry and its re-presentation of masculinity. The groundbreaking work of Antonio Gramsci on hegemony is drawn on - in particular, his understanding of the relationship between “commonsense” and “good sense” - as well as Raewyn Connell’s concept of hegemonic masculinity. The character of Rick in the 1941 Hollywood classic Casablanca is used to illustrate the kind of hegemonic masculinity favoured by the U.S. Occupation authorities in moulding cultural and political attitudes in the new Korea.

The Alteration of Welfare Policy According to the Government Change in South Korea

The Alteration of Welfare Policy According to the Government Change in South Korea

기후변화 영향에 따른 호두나무 재배지역 변화 예측

본 연구에서는 호두나무에 대하여 단기임산물 재배적 지도를 바탕으로 기후변화를 고려한 전국의 재배가능지역을 MaxEnt 모델을 이용하여 추출하였다. RCP 4.5 및 8.5 시나리오와 HadGEM2-AO모델을 이용하여 2050년대와 2070년대의 기후변화에 따른 재배지역 변화를 예측하였다. 분석결과, 미래의 재배적지면적을 현재 수치와 비교하였을 때, RCP 4.5에서는 충청남도, 전라북도, 전라남도에 이르는 우리나라 서쪽 지역이 주로 감소할 것으로 나타났으며, RCP 8.5에서는 경상북도, 경상남도 일부 지역을 중심으로 감소할 것으로 나타났다. 하지만, 평균고도가 600m 이상으로 높은 지역인 강원도는 2070년대 RCP 4.5에서 18.3%, RCP 8.5에서 56.6%가 증가할 것으로 나타나 기후변화의 영향 정도에 따라 전국적으로 재배가능지역의 차이가 있는 것으로 나타났다. 현재 호두 생산량이 가장 많은 지역을 분석한 결과 공주시, 김천시, 영동군은 2070년대에는 RCP 8.5에서 재배지역의 감소가 클 것으로 예상되었으며, 공주시는 RCP 4.5에서 감소폭이 더 큰 것으로 나타났다. 무주군과 천안시는 현재의 재배가능지역이 모든 시나리오에서 유지될 것으로 나타났다. 본 연구의 결과는 미래 기후변화에 따른 영향이 불가피한 상황에서 예상되는 피해를 최소화하고 경쟁력 있는 임산물 생산을 위한 기후변화 영향평가 자료로 활용될 것으로 판단된다. The objective of our study was to predict future cultivation areas for walnut trees (Juglans sinensis), using the cultivation suitability map provided from Korea Forest Service and MaxEnt modelling under future climate conditions. The climate conditions in 2050s and 2070s were computed using the Regional Climate Prediction (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios with the HadGEM2-AO model. As a result, compared to the present area, the cultivation area of the western Korea including Chungcheongnamdo, Jeollabuk-do, Jeollanam-do decreased on a national scale under RCP 4.5, and those of Gyeongsangbukdo and part of Gyeongsangnam-do decreased under RCP 8.5. However, Gangwon-do which is located in higher altitude over 600 meters than other regions showed increases in cultivation areas of 18.3% under RCP 4.5 and of 56.6% under RCP 8.5 by 2070s. The predicted map showed large regional variations in the cultivation areas with climate change. From the analysis of current top ranking areas, the cultivation areas in Gimcheon-si and Yeongdong-gun dramatically decreased by 2070s under RCP 4.5 and 8.5; that of Gongju-si decreased more under RCP 4.5; and those of Muju-gun and Cheonan-si sustained the areas by 2070s under both scenarios. The results from this study can be helpful for providing a guide for minimizing the loss of walnut production and proactively improving productivity and quality of walnuts with regard to unavoidable climate change in South Korea.

Assessing vulnerability of forests to climate change in South Korea

This study demonstrated a framework to assess vulnerability of forests to climate change. We focused on how alterations of temperature and precipitation might affect forest type distributions and carbon-related functions. In particular, our framework considered three sectors of forest type distribution, net primary production, and soil carbon storage. Future projections were derived from mechanistic models for South Korean forests under the A1B scenarios of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. Forest type distributions were simulated by the Hydrological and thermal analogy group model, while the MAPSS and CENTURY1 models estimated forest carbon flux/storage. We quantified normalized vulnerability indices for each sector. Our results indicate that the overall vulnerability of forest type distribution is greater in the west central regions and southeastern inlands. The vulnerabilities of carbon flux/storage show that net primary production of South Korean forests is relatively less susceptible to climate change, but a highly vulnerable area of soil carbon storage mainly spreads from the west central to the south east region. The spatio-temporal vulnerability map with a synoptic overview from this study might be useful for policy makers in preparing adaptive measures and identifying management priorities.

Projected irrigation requirements for upland crops using soil moisture model under climate change in South Korea

An increase in abnormal climate change patterns and unsustainable irrigation in uplands cause drought and affect agricultural water security, crop productivity, and price fluctuations. In this study, we developed a soil moisture model to project irrigation requirements (IR) for upland crops under climate change using estimated effective rainfall (ER), crop evapotranspiration (ETc) and the IR of 29 major upland crops in South Korea. The temperature and precipitation will increase, but the ER is projected to decrease under climate change. ETc and the net irrigation requirement (NIR) are expected to increase under climate change. Vegetable crops have less ER and more NIR than cereal crops with a similar amount of ETc, which means they are more sensitive to water scarcity and IR than cereal crops. In addition, we found that barley has the smallest daily ETc and IR but the highest increase rate in NIR under climate change, especially in the central part of South Korea. The NIR of Chinese cabbage-fall is the lowest in the northern region and increases moving southwards. The NIR of spinach is projected to increase gradually from the southern and eastern coastlines to the northern inland area. Onions have the largest ETc and NIR of the 29 upland crops, but they show small changes compared to other crops under climate change. Water scarcity is a major limiting factor for sustainable agricultural production. The variation of IR and ETc values for each crop under different climate change scenarios depends on the crop, soil, space, and meteorological characteristics. The results of this study can be used as a guideline for irrigation and soil water management for upland crops under climate change.

The Irony of the Unchecked Growth of Higher Education in South Korea: Crystallization of Class Cleavages and Intensifying Status Competition

This study raises questions about the discrepancy between the praise for Korean education by international organizations and Koreans’ dissatisfaction with their education. First, the study identifies the main reason for the discrepancy as inequality at the level of higher education. To track down the formation of the current problem of educational inequality and excessive competition for status, the study evaluates the historical changes in South Korea’s education system in the past several decades, focusing on the unchecked expansion of higher education. In doing so, the study shows how the aggregate decisions made by individuals and families, and the political dynamics of the past five decades have affected broad policy regarding educational stratification in South Korea. In the last section, the study presents what has been an empirical pattern of educational stratification in Korea reflecting all these social changes during the past five decades in Korea.

Language Learning as a Struggle for Distinction in Today’s Corporate Recruitment Culture: An Ethnographic Study of English Study Abroad Practices among South Korean Undergraduates

Young adults in South Korea are encouraged to constantly develop their skills and qualifications to meet the challenges posed by the job market in the country’s neoliberal post-IMF crisis economy. This paper examines the ways in which changes in South Korea’s labor market and corporate recruitment culture have affected the ideologies and practices of the country’s youth with regard to the English language. By drawing on Bourdieu’s concept of distinction and specifying the processes of distinction into replacement, opposition, and addition, this paper clarifies the ideological construction and effects of oral communicative competence in English through an ethnographic analysis of post-secondary learners studying English in a study abroad context. Influenced by South Korea’s recruitment culture, these learners distinguish primarily between learning English for standardized tests in South Korea and learning English for authentic communication while studying abroad. However, the efforts of learners who have studied abroad to develop their oral English skills bear limited fruit in South Korea’s recruitment culture, which does not fully appreciate the value of the job seeker’s experience of having studied English abroad. Thus, the limits of distinction function to impose the burden of English learning on individual learners.

The Changing Shape of Welfare Policy in Korea: Analysis of Break Point in the Welfare Budget

This paper aims to investigate the welfare policy change in South Korea. Based on punctuated equilibrium theory, I analyze kurtosis and break point of the distribution of variation in the general government welfare budget. As a result, the change in welfare budget levels in South Korea has been quite moderate. But two break points were set in 1977 and 1999. These cutoff points are related with the change of the Korean Welfare State and clearly distinguished from different times. That is, the characteristics of structure that were built during these two time periods have lasted until now. Specifically, the responsibility of state in welfare is narrow. And the feature of employment-friendly welfare policy was formed in 1977. Also, the focus on livelihood security and employment in welfare spending was constructed in 1999. The analysis of budget is a useful tool in examining the policy change. We expect to find more specific characteristics of the Korean welfare state including special accounts and funds in future.

The impacts of high-speed rail extensions on accessibility and spatial equity changes in South Korea from 2004 to 2018

The construction of South Korean High-Speed Rail (HSR) or Korea Train eXpress (KTX) has been evolving in phases since its first operation in 2004. This development raises concerns whether the benefits from the extended HSR network would again be limited to the initial HSR corridors and will deepen the inequalities in accessibility with the rising issue of uneven regional development of the country. This paper measures the accessibility of each stage of HSR network extension and evaluates its spatial distribution, variation, and changes using weighted averaged travel time and potential accessibility indicators. The results of this study find different accessibility impacts from each stage of HSR extension. Although travel-time reduction and increased attractions have been widened in more cities by each HSR extension, the spatial equity is degenerated by the extension in 2010/2011 as the improvement of accessibility has been concentrated in cities along the primary HSR corridor near the already-advantageous Seoul capital area. In contrast, the future HSR extension in 2018 will enhance equitable accessibility to the isolated regions such as the northeast and the southwest regions of the country. However, the relative degree of accessibility improvement will not be large enough for increasing the spatial equity of accessibility without more extended HSR networks between provinces.