Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T07:50:15.820Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Quality of Social Capital and Political Participation in South Korea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 March 2016

Abstract

Previous research claims that associational membership produces social capital. Employing the first wave of the Asian Barometer Survey conducted in 2003, this study investigates the development of social capital and its political consequences in South Korea. Rather than study simple association membership, I examine the quality of civil society (defined as associational commitment and interaction) that individuals pursue through membership. This, I believe, provides a close test of the theoretical impact of social interactions on political participation. The findings indicate that there is a positive association between voluntary activity and two modes of political activity (voting and campaign participation) in different ways and to varying degrees. Associational membership is a significant predictor of voting. In the case of the quality of social capital, associational interaction (talking politics with group members) turns out to be significant in encouraging participation in election campaigns. Overall, my findings on the role of social capital support Putnam's argument that group interactions foster democratic participation.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © East Asia Institute 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alagappa, Muthiah. 2004. “Civil Society and Political Change: An Analytical Framework.” In Civil Society and Political Change in Asia, ed. Alagappa, Muthiah, 2560. Stanford: Stanford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Almond, Gabriel, and Verba, Sidney. 1963. The Civic Culture: Political Attitudes and Democracy in Five Nations. Princeton: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dalton, Russell J. 2006. “Civil Society, Social Capital, and Democracy.” In Citizens, Democracy, and Markets Around the Pacific Rim, ed. Dalton, Russell J. and Shin, Doh Chull. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Dalton, Russell J. 2007. The Good Citizen: How the Young Are Reshaping American Politics. Washington, DC: CQ Press.Google Scholar
Della Porta, Donatella. 2000. “Social Capital, Beliefs in Government, and Political Corruption.” In Disaffected Democracies: What's Troubling the Trilateral Countries? ed. Pharr, Susan J. and Putnam, Robert D., 202228. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Diamond, Larry. 1994. “Toward Democratic Consolidation.” Journal of Democracy 5, 3: 417.Google Scholar
DiFranceisco, Wayne, and Gitelman, Zvi. 1984. “Soviet Political Culture and ‘Covert Participation’ in Policy Implementation.” American Political Science Review 78: 603621.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Edwards, Bob, and Foley, Michael W. 1997. “Social Capital and the Political Economy of Our Discontent.” American Behavioral Scientist 40, 5: 669678.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Edwards, Bob, and Foley, Michael W. 2001. “Civil Society and Social Capital: A Primer.” In Beyond Tocqueville: Civil Society and the Social Capital Debate in Comparative Perspective, ed. Edwards, Bob, Foley, Michael W., and Diani, Mario, 116. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England.Google Scholar
Flanagan, Scott C., and Richardson, Bradley M. 1980. “Political Disaffection and Political Stability: A Comparison of Japanese and Western Findings.” In Comparative Social Research, vol. 3., ed. Tomasson, Richard F., 344. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.Google Scholar
Foley, Michael W., and Edwards, Bob. 1997. “Escape from Politics? Social Theory and the Social Capital Debate.” American Behavioral Scientist 40, 5: 550561.Google Scholar
Howard, Marc Morje, and Gilbert, Leah. 2008. “A Cross-National Comparison of the Internal Effects of Participation in Voluntary Organizations.” Political Studies 56: 1232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ikeda, Kenichi. 2002. “Social Capital and Social Communication in Japan: Political Participation and Tolerance.” Research Monograph Series, Center for the Study of Democracy, University of California, Irvine. Available at http://repositories.cdlib.org/csd (accessed March 20, 2008).Google Scholar
Inglehart, Ronald. 1997. Modernization and Postmodernization. Princeton: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kim, Sunhyuk. 2000. The Politics of Democratization in Korea: The Role of Civil Society. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kim, Sunhyuk. 2004. “South Korea: Confrontational Legacy and Democratic Contributions.” In Civil Society and Political Change in Asia, ed. Alagappa, Muthiah, 138163. Stanford: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Kittilson, Miki C., and Dalton, Russell J. 2008. “The Internet and Virtual Civil Society: The New Frontier of Social Capital.Center for the Study of Democracy, University of California, Irvine. Available at http://repositories.cdlib.org/csd (accessed November 20, 2009).Google Scholar
Krishna, Anirudh. 2002. “Enhancing Political Participation in Democracies: What Is the Role of Social Capital?Comparative Political Studies 35, 4: 437460.Google Scholar
Lee, Aie-Rie, and Glasure, Yong U. 2007. “Social Capital and Political Participation in South Korea.” Asian Affairs: An American Review 34, 2: 101118.Google Scholar
Newton, Kenneth. 1997. “Social Capital and Democracy.” American Behavioral Scientist 40, 5: 575587.Google Scholar
Putnam, Robert. 1993a. Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Modern Italy. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Putnam, Robert. 1993b. “The Prosperous Community: Social Capital and Public Life.” The American Prospect 13: 3542.Google Scholar
Putnam, Robert. 1995a. “Bowling Alone: America's Declining Social Capital.” Journal of Democracy 6, 1: 6578.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Putnam, Robert. 1995b. “Turning In, Turning Out: The Strange Disappearance of Social Capital in America.” PS: Political Science and Politics 28, 4: 664683.Google Scholar
Putnam, Robert. 2000. Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon and Schuster.Google Scholar
Putnam, Robert, ed. 2002. Democracies in Flux: The Evolution of Social Capital in Contemporary Society. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Rosenstone, Steven J., and Hansen, John M. 1993. Mobilization, Participation, and Democracy in America. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Seligson, Amber L. 1999. “Civic Association and Democratic Participation in Central America: A Test of the Putnam Thesis.” Comparative Political Studies 32, 3: 342362.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shin, Doh C. 1999. Mass Politics and Culture in Democratizing Korea. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Sigelman, Lee, and Feldman, Stanley. 1983. “Efficacy, Mistrust, and Political Mobilization.” Comparative Political Studies 16, 1: 118143.Google Scholar
Uhlaner, Carole J. 1989. “Rational Turnout: The Neglected Role of Groups.” American Journal of Political Science, 33, 2: 390422.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Uslaner, Eric. 1998. “Democracy and Social Capital.” In Democracy and Trust, ed. Warren, Mark E., 121150. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Van Deth, J. W. 2003. “Measuring Social Capital: Orthodoxies and Continuing Controversies.” International Journal of Social Research Methodology 6, 1: 7992.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Verba, Sidney, Schlozman, Kay Lehman, and Brady, Henry E. 1995. Voice and Equality: Civic Voluntarism in American Politics. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
White, James W. 1981. “Civic Attitudes, Political Participation and System Stability in Japan.” Comparative Political Studies 14, 3: 371400.Google Scholar