Consolidating Democracy in Korea: Economy as Impetus, Corruption as Issue

• 발행기관: 한국학술연구원
• 저자명: O. Fiona Yap
• 간행물 정보: 『Korea Observer』Vol 44, No 4, 517~544쪽, 전체 28쪽
• 주제분류: 사회과학 > 정치외교학
• 파일형태: PDF
• 발행일자: 2013.12.30

영문 초록

The issues that frame the dynamic exchange between citizens’demands and the government’s responsiveness are significant towards continued consolidation in Korea. We contend that while weak economic conditions contextualize initial democratization in Korea, the pressures of economic performance ease as political trust grows with democratic progression. That is, weak economic conditions in open economies such as Korea are fertile grounds for citizens’ political challenges; with democratization, political trust buffers the political system from the pressures of economic performance. Systematic examination supports these arguments; however, the results also show that corruption corrodes political trust and the impact of corruption is increasing. These results are significant: first, it shows that democratization in Korea is robust to economic downturns, a useful insight in economic uncertainty. Second, it clarifies that political trust may displace economic performance in buttressing political development, which is relevant to Korea in particular and emergent democracies in general. Third, it highlights the priority task of tackling corruption for the consolidation of Korean democratization.

목차

Abstact

I. Introduction

II. Government Accountability and Political Trust

III. Data and Variables

IV. Results

V. Conclusion

References

키워드

Democratization Citizens Demands Government Responsiveness Economic Performance Political Trust Corruption