“Smuggled Refugees”: The Social Construction of North Korean Migration

In this paper, I demonstrate the identity transformation of North Korean women in interaction with state and non-state actors and domestic and regional structures, which I formulate for the purposes of this paper. From a state-centric social constructivist perspective in politics and international relations, I examine how the identities and interests of North Korean women are constituted and reconstituted in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the People's Republic of China and five South-East Asian countries along their migration routes before they reach the Republic of Korea – the so-called “Seoul Train in the Underground Railway”. Back in their country of origin, North Korean women are socially constructed as Confucian communist mothers. In China, the most frequently depicted images of North Korean women are trafficked wives. By paying for smugglers to cross borders to neighbouring South-East Asian countries, North Korean women finally become the agents of their own destiny, refugees in waiting to be transferred to South Korea.     

Home and away: modern Korean identities and minorities

ABSTRACT

South Korea is an evolving country that encourages immigration, and which presents itself as a multicultural country. Nevertheless, multiculturalism has not gone as smoothly as the government would like us to believe, and discrimination and racism are serious issues, especially due to Korea’s self-imposed ideology of Korean purity and homogeneity. This complicates Koreans’ sense of identity, both at home and abroad, issues dealt with in this special issue, which features three articles that deal with the complexities of ethnicity and identity in the twenty-first century. These articles look at the transformative notions surrounding Korean identity in Korea, and how the lingering legacy of colonial history negatively frames this identity in Japan. Finally, there is an examination of Korean immigrant entrepreneurship in Argentina, looking at the Korean community there in a very different socio-historical reality, where people negotiate their identities beyond the structures of Japan’s colonial legacy.     

A Korean Gay Man in the United States:

An increasing number of Koreans are immigrating to the U.S. Little information exists for human service professionals to draw from to help Korean gay men adjust to living in America. This discussion provides a historical overview of homosexuality in Korea with insights into contemporary Korean culture. An interview with a young Korean gay man living in the U.S. illustrates the concerns and problems these men experience as they struggle to adapt to gay life in this country. Racism from the gay community and alienation from the Korean American community are salient characteristics of the problems experienced by Korean gay immigrants. To better serve the needs of these men, helping professionals must develop relationships based on trust and friendship, understand Korean attitudes toward homosexuality, and be knowledgeable of how Confucian gender ideology influences same sex relationships involving Korean gay men living in this country.     

The gendered contours of North Korean Migration: sexualized bodies and the violence of phenotypical normalization in South Korea

This article examines the gendered and sexualized contours of North Korean experiences in South Korea at a time when nearly 70% of the North Korean emigrants are women. South Korean television shows – e.g. reality programs – and marriage matchmaking organizations seek to portray North Korean women in a ‘positive’ way to the South Korean public, although, as this article will illustrate, these representations are of a very particular, sexualized kind. These representations are sometimes negative, and there is stigma attached to North Korean women, in which South Koreans assume, for example, that they are victims of human trafficking or that they have had relations with Chinese men during their migration. Furthermore, poor nutrition and other forms of structural violence in North Korea have molded North Korean bodies; there are often physical disparities between North and South Koreans. In South Korean society where short height is viewed as undesirable and where idealized, surgical notions of beauty dominate, the violence of gendered phenotypical normalization mark North Korean bodies as smaller, foreign, and strange. Based on ethnographic research in South Korea, this article argues that these gendered contours of North Korean migration amount to a different sort of structural violence in South Korea.     

Narratives of ‘mixed race’ youth in South Korea: racial order and in-betweenness

South Korea has long been regarded as a country with a single ethnicity. Honhyeol, which literally means ‘mixed blood’ in Korean, exemplifies this orientation. In recent years, the number of ‘mixed race’ children in the country has been on the rise due to the increase in international marriages, particularly between Korean men and foreign women. Drawing on the personal narratives of 56 youths (aged between 9 and 17) obtained from three essay contests, this article examines how, why, and in which contexts the racial hierarchies of ‘mixed race’ children in Korea are constructed. Narratives of ‘mixed race’ children and their peers show that a ‘hierarchical racial order’ – characterized by a color-coding system that simultaneously operates along the lines of national origin – is channeled into ‘mixed race’ people’s everyday lives, thus shaping their identity constructions.     

The Estimation of the South Korean Government's Diplomacy for Its Opposing Public North Korea

Based on the influence of the contingency factors of inner organizational and external situational factors, contingency theory of accommodation provides a good explanation for the real public relations practices. A recent series of experimental studies supports the idea that the theory is also applicable in the public's estimation pattern regarding an organization's public relations practices. This survey study is theoretically important when examining and sorting out significant factors in the real population of a notable public diplomacy domain. That is, this research examines how the South Korean people perceive the contingency factors and how people estimate the South Korean government's stance toward its opposing public, North Korea. The regression model of perceived contingency factors and stance estimation was generalizable in the population of this study (R ² = .279). The most influential perceptual predictors in the model include: the North Korean leader's preference for the South Korean president, the relative power of South Korea, the level of commitment of North Korea, the South Korean president's preference for the North Korean leader, the US government's support for the South Korean policy toward North Korea, the South Korean government's certainty to deal with the North Korean military threat, situational difficulties, the South Korean government's knowledge and skill to deal with the threat, the situational duration of threat, and the South Korean president's relation-oriented leadership. Finally, this study discussed practical implications for the government practitioners.     

Migrant careers and well-being of women

This article deals with the psychosocial adjustment of Latin American female migrants in the US. The analysis focuses on how changes in employment, marital status, family structure, and life-style affect subjective assessments of well-being. Using qualitative and quantitative research methods, the role of these social factors was explored. The psycho-social well-being of migrant women was found to be worse than that of men. Never-married women were equally as demoralized as married women. The disruption of social networks entailed in migration from one country to another may have a greater impact on unmarried than married women. The results of this study are offered as a contribution to the formulation of policy for relocated populations and to the design and implementation of support programs for women in the US regardless of national origin.     

Mental Health Conditions Among North Korean Female Refugee Victims of Sexual Violence

The study aims to examine the negative effects of sexual violence on North Korean (NK) female refugees in South Korea. Although the prevalence of sexual violence victimization is extremely high and mental health problems are serious among these refugees, little to no research has been done on the relationship between sexual violence and mental health among these women. The mental health conditions of two groups of women (sexual violence victims and those who have not experienced sexual violence) were compared using ANCOVA analyses. The results show that suicidal ideation and alcohol use are significantly more prevalent in the sexual violence group than in the non‐sexual violence group. The women who had experienced sexual violence in particular should be provided with more professional and sustained treatment and management services. The government must improve the effectiveness of existing policies related to suicide and the drinking culture in South Korea.     

The emergence of a health insurance system in a developing country: the case of South Korea

In an attempt to understand the social forces and the economic and political conditions under which new social policies emerge in developing countries, this study outlines factors affecting the introduction of the health insurance system in South Korea. The emergence of the South Korean health insurance system was influenced by changing labor needs of the industrial sector, increasing social expectations, external and international pressures, increasing medical costs, and class conflict. These pressures compelled the South Korean government to respond to demands for the introduction of new social welfare policies in the 1970s. In the case of South Korea, the new health insurance system resulted from the government's attempts to cope with political, economic, and social pressures rather than from an ideological commitment to the well-being of the population. The resulting insurance system was a way to maintain the social order and legitimacy of the regime, and a means to promote the health of groups important to defense or production.     

Experiences with the French aging males' symptoms (AMS) scale

Introduction.?The aim of this paper is to report on experiences gained from the application of the French version of the Aging Males' Symptoms (AMS) scale, to show correlations with other relevant scales and to provide population reference values for France.

Methods.?A representative survey based on an existing, representative population panel was performed in France (963 males, aged 15 + years). Other AMS data from Europe were then used for comparison. Mean scores of the French AMS scale do not systematically differ from the data of other European studies. The population reference values obtained for France strongly suggest that the scale measures can appreciate the level of well-being whatever the patients' age; however, some variables, such as age and family income, can influence the total AMS scores. Comparisons with the generic quality-of-life scale, SF-12, and a depression scale, HAD, have shown good correlations, as have comparisons with the ADAM questionnaire.

Conclusion.?The French AMS scale is a standardized, valid and simple health-related quality of life (HRQoL) scale, with results comparable to other published European findings. The results also indicate that the AMS scale can be used to measure and compare HRQoL in those less than 40 years of age.     

Invisibility and Temporary Residence Status of Filipino Workers in South Korea

This study concerns a group of Filipino immigrant workers–mostly trainees or undocumented workers–in Korea. It deals with the influence of immigration on family members and their relations. The stories of sending babies to the Philippines and talking on the phone show how the concept of transnational motherhood can be applied to immigrant workers in Korea. This study also discusses the meaning of invisibility and temporary residency as a two‐control mechanism of immigrant workers in Korea. Korean society keeps immigrant workers invisible and prevents their becoming members of society in many ways. Therefore, Filipino migrant workers do not belong to either their home country or Korea.     

How Does Divorce Affect Iranian Women's Sexual Well-Being?

Sexuality and divorce are two interwoven subjects with complex effects on women's sexual well-being in Iranian culture. Results of this exploratory study using focus group discussions and individual interviews revealed how the sexual well-being of women was influenced by the divorce experience through common patterns and recurring themes. A total of 26 women participated voluntarily in the study. They were approached through a selected social support group in a center in West Tehran in 2011, and all had been divorced for less than 10 years. For the majority, sexuality-related matters became complicated and jeopardized their overall well-being in postdivorce life. This finding, along with the fact that the majority were seeking financial and emotional support, implies that counseling women and providing economic support for postdivorce life might improve women's sexual well-being.     

Koreans in Central Asia – a different Korean nation

The main objective of this study was to illustrate the cultural changes that have taken place among Korean ethnic groups living in the Central Asian states of the former Soviet Union. Previous research on Korean minorities has demonstrated the impact of state intervention on the formation of ethnic identity. Despite a wide range of regional differences, those living in Korea in the nineteenth century belonged to one ethnic group. Once they left the northern part of the country for Russia, they began to adopt Russian culture relatively quickly. Following their deportation to Central Asia in the 1930s, they then experienced a largely Soviet model of inclusion into mainstream society. However, since the 1980s, when confronted with ‘original’ Korean culture, they now consider themselves to be dissimilar to other Korean groups. The differences are already so substantial that Koreans themselves now talk about belonging to different nations.     

Changes in Korean Immigrants' Gender Role and Social Status,and Their Marital Conflicts

Based on survey and ethnographic research conducted in New York, this paper shows how the discrepancy between Korean immigrant women's increased economic role and persistence of their husbands' traditional patriarchal ideology causes marital conflicts and tensions. While only a small proportion of married women participate in the labor force in South Korea, the vast majority of Korean immigrant wives work outside the home, most working long hours. Parallel to the increase in Korean women's economic role, their husbands' provider role and social status have significantly weakened with immigration. Despite Korean women's increase in their economic role, most Korean husbands have not modified a rigid form of patriarchal ideology brought from Korea because they are socially segregated from the mainstream society. A big clash between Korean women's active economic role and their husbands' traditional patriarchal attitudes causes serious marital conflicts in many Korean immigrant families. In addition, Korean partners' (particularly husbands') frustrations over their downward social mobility, the long hours spent together in the family store, and their midlife crisis are additional causes of marital conflicts. Other contemporary immigrant groups, mostly from non-European, Third World countries, seem to encounter lower, but similar marital conflicts caused by sudden changes in women's gender role.     

Comparing the Ethnic Identity and Well-Being of Adopted Korean Americans With Immigrant/U.S.-Born Korean Americans and Korean International Students

This study compared the ethnic identity and well-being of Korean Americans who were adopted internationally with immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans and Korean international students, as well as the relationship between ethnic identity and well-being for each group. One-hundred seven college students completed measures of ethnic identity and subjective well-being. Immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans had higher ethnic identity scores than the other two groups. Immigrant/U.S.-born Korean Americans also had higher positive affect scores than international students. Ethnic identity was positively correlated with positive affect for all three groups (r = .27 to .34) but was negatively correlated with negative affect for international students (r = –.44). Overall, the results suggest that ethnic identity, although slightly lower than in non-adopted peers, is relevant to the well-being of adopted Korean American college students.     

伊斯兰教与韩国的中东外交

韩国伊斯兰教因朝鲜战争中土耳其军队参战之故而正式重新传入,历经50余年的发展历程。韩国伊斯兰教在成立合法组织、修建遍布全国的清真寺、完成朝觐功课、翻译韩文《古兰经》以及成立伊斯兰经学院等方面著有成绩,穆斯林人数也有相当数量的增长。韩国中东外交也自1957年因与土耳其建交而开启,韩国主要在中东开展了经济、国际贡献①以及文化等领域外交,在中东地区已具一定的影响力。韩国伊斯兰教团体对于韩国的中东外交在不同层面多有参与,对于官方的中东外交是一种有力的补充。     

Everyone deserves quiche: French school lunch programmes and national culture in a globalized world

Globalization poses many challenges for national cultural unity, especially in Europe. Some doubt whether national cultures will be able to survive, but there are many counter‐trends pushing to maintain national cultural unity. I analyse the dual trends of global diversity and maintaining unity through an everyday manifestation of French culture: elementary school lunches. French school lunch programmes are part of the nation‐building process because they are designed to teach students how to eat, which is especially important in France where the art of gastronomy is a key source of identity and pride. I analyse cultural influences on over 11,000 school lunch menu items from eight municipalities across two French regions. I also conduct in‐depth face‐to‐face interviews with the people who design and approve school lunch menus. My inquiry is guided by three key questions. First, to what extent are foreign influences included? Second, does openness to foreign influences vary across different parts of France? Finally, how are foreign cultures represented? My results suggest that foreign cultures are deployed to nationalize difference. The limited foreign influences that appear in school lunches are strategically chosen to appeal to and to educate students, but in a way that reinforces the centrality of traditional French cultural norms. This article contributes to our understanding of the tension between national culture and a globalizing world.     

Works Councils and Firm Productivity in France

This paper utilizes establishment-level data to explore the impact of works councils on firm productivity in France. A variety of empirical techniques is employed, including fixed effects and regression discontinuity designs, to identify this impact. We estimate the works council effect on productivity in union and nonunion settings, and investigate the extent to which alternative forms of worker voice and information sharing might substitute for the works council’s impact in production. We find no evidence of a positive impact of works councils on firm productivity in any of our results, and some limited evidence of a negative effect in some of the findings. There is no indication that estimated impacts on productivity vary with union status. However, a notable finding is that worker voice and information-sharing human resource practices are prevalent in French firms regardless of works council status, and are found to have positive and statistically significant effects on firm productivity.