The euphoria of fans whose team wins a major sporting event is ephemeral. But, prominent professors at Korean universities tell me that the unprecedented success of the Korean team in the current World Cup competition is causing a turning point in Korean attitudes towards their own society and economy. Why?
Many Koreans, especially those who studied or lived in the West, complain about the "cronyism", and the resulting importance of "connections" in all walks of Korean life, which they see as pervasive features of Korean society. They claim that such rampant cronyism is preventing Korea from catching up economically with the West, despite the fact that Korea soon will have as much human capital as western countries.
To understand Korean cronyism we have to see it as one aspect of a set of related social conventions. Koreans accept a sense of knowing one's place in society that seems extreme to Americans. In social interactions, and also in business dealings, Koreans maintain a hierarchy that seems to weigh age more highly than performance.
The euphoria of fans whose team wins a major sporting event is ephemeral. But, prominent professors at Korean universities tell me that the unprecedented success of the Korean team in the current World Cup competition is causing a turning point in Korean attitudes towards their own society and economy. Why?
Many Koreans, especially those who studied or lived in the West, complain about the "cronyism", and the resulting importance of "connections" in all walks of Korean life, which they see as pervasive features of Korean society. They claim that such rampant cronyism is preventing Korea from catching up economically with the West, despite the fact that Korea soon will have as much human capital as western countries.
To understand Korean cronyism we have to see it as one aspect of a set of related social conventions. Koreans accept a sense of knowing one's place in society that seems extreme to Americans. In social interactions, and also in business dealings, Koreans maintain a hierarchy that seems to weigh age more highly than performance.