Mass Politics and Culture in Democratizing Korea

How has Korea achieved one of the most successful transitions to democracy during the past decade? This pioneering book offers a dynamic and global account of Korea's place in the current third wave of democratization. Drawing on a unique sample of six national surveys conducted in Korea since 1988, the book carefully examines the evolution, contours and consequences of Korean democratization from the perspective of Korean people themselves and their experiences throughout the entire course of democratic change. Richly comparative, the book considers emerging democracies in East Asia, and in Europe and Latin America, in light of the Korean experience. Notably, it presents non-Western alternatives to institutional and cultural democratization, characterizing and distinguishing Korea as a non-Western and Confucian model of democratization.

“'This is by far the best study in the literature of Korean democratization. It will be of value to a large global audience interested in democratic transitions.' Bruce Cumings, University of Chicago”

'This is by far the best study in the literature of Korean democratization. It will be of value to a large global audience interested in democratic transitions.' Bruce Cumings, Professor of International History and East Asian Political Economy, University of Chicago 'This is an exciting work, and quite the best study to date of the public opinion and political-cultural dimensions of the democratic transition and consolidation in Korea.' Professor James Cotton, School of Politics, Australian Defence Force Academy 'This is an outstanding book on Korean democratization by one of the best authorities on Korean politics. Original, comprehensive, thorough, insightful, and extremely compelling, this book will easily constitute a must for anybody interested in democratic politics in Korea.' Sunhyuk Kim, Department of Political Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles ' ... a valuable addition to the literature on democratisation. It can be read with interest by those who want to learn about Korea's political system.' Law Society Journal

University of Illinois, Springfield

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