ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the socio-economic, cultural and political factors of social cohesion in contemporary South Korea. South Korea, on the outside, appears to be an admirable combination of economic prosperity, social stability and democratic freedom; however, our discussion reveals that there is a triple paradox of social cohesion in Korea. First, among all Asian countries, South Koreans exhibit one of the lowest levels of attachment and belonging to the community, especially in self-identification with nation and country, despite being one of the ethnically and culturally most homogenous societies in Asia and even in the world. Second, even though South Korea is one of only a few liberal democracies in the region, yet there is very weak institutional trust. Third, the majority of Koreans still believe that Korean society is highly unequal, exclusionary and unfair. The chapter also discusses two relatively new challenges to social cohesion that threaten the South Korean society: immigration and integration of North Korean refugees. Finally, the chapter concludes by pointing out that there is a paucity of academic studies related to this topic and the two new challenges need to be addressed in order to preserve and improve social cohesion in South Korea.
