Colloquium in January 2025
Dongkyun Im (Seoul National University, Department of Sociology)
A wide range of studies and arguments suggested that meritocracy reinforces or justifies inequality, thereby solidifying a winner-takes-all system. In addition, criticisms have been raised that the rise of meritocracy leads individuals to obsess over a narrow definition of fairness.
However, meritocracy, or perceptions and beliefs about meritocracy, has highly multifaceted aspects. It can be anticipated that each aspect may relate to attitudes toward inequality or fairness in diverse ways.
This presentation draws on a social survey conducted in 2024 to differentiate individuals’ perceptions of meritocracy into various dimensions, analyze the factors influencing each of these dimensions, and examine how these attitudes relate to various perspectives on inequality.
Based on these findings, the presentation highlights the complex and, in some cases, counterintuitive patterns of meritocratic beliefs in Korean society and discusses their implications.
