In March 2005, riots erupted in South Korea against Japan for claiming sovereignty over some rocky uninhabited islets (0.23 km2). Five weeks earlier, riots did not erupt in South Korea when North Korea proved that it has nuclear weapons. How can we explain moral outrage in one case, when the...

On April 13-15, 2000 South and North Korean leaders met in Pyongyang for a meeting of peace ending over fifty years of hostilities. According to this meeting, South and North Korea were believed to be among the economies most directly affected by the world peace process. This had a large effect...

The paper argues that some peculiarities of national development strategies may be described and explained with the help of the power – property concept which is used as a complement to the Economic Freedom surveys methodology. A cluster analysis approach is used to reveal the discrepancies in...

We look at Korea's industrialization strategy and experience from the 1960s to the mid-1990s. Three elements of the Korean industrial development and structural change are discussed: 1) its outward orientation and export push, 2) its climb up the ladder of comparative advantage, and 3) its...

The study investigates disparities in social development in 144 countries worldwide. In the paper we aim to investigate cross-country differences in social development level in year 2011, as well as to estimate inequalities on the field. Secondly, we assess relative social development level...

The penal system has played a central role in the North Korean government’s response to the country’s profound economic and social changes. Two refugee surveys—one conducted in China, one in South Korea—document its changing role. The regime disproportionately targets politically suspect...

What do citizens of highly repressive regimes think about their governments? How do they respond to high levels of repression? This paper addresses these questions by examining the political attitudes of North Korean refugees. Unsurprisingly the evaluations of regime performance are negative,...

Despite North Korea’s turn away from economic reform and the constraints of the second nuclear crisis, the country has in fact become more economically open. But it has emphasized closer economic relations with China and other trading partners that show little interest in political...

South Korea, like many countries, is engaged in a policy debate concerning possible railways reforms. However, unlike most countries, here the focus of discussion has been the government’s proposal to open high-speed passenger train lines to a second train company that would supply on-track...

Households’ or individuals’ decision regarding charitable giving may differby type of recipient of the gift. In light of the relative paucity of empirical research on the impact of tax incentives on charitable giving outside Western countries, empirical research on this topic in South Korea...