Class

Elite education pathways in South Korea: From English-medium preschools to prestigious universities

Colloquium in April 2026 Soo-yong Byun (Penn State University) Using data from the Korean Education Longitudinal Study of 2013, this stud examined how the “elite educational pathway” in South Korea—linking English kindergartens, private elementary schools, international middle schools (more precisely, private middle schools), specialized and autonomous private high schools, and Read more…

By KIRN, ago

Analysis the relationship between household income and fertility using administrative data: 2015–2023

Colloquium in January 2026 Bongoh Kye(Kookmin University) This study presents findings on the relationship between household income and fertility using administrative data. Although the relationship between income and fertility is of great importance in fertility research, data limitations have made it difficult to produce reliable findings on this topic. To Read more…

By KIRN, ago

Economic Backlash to Gender Equality Drives Young Men to Anti-democratic Attitudes: Analysis of Support for the 12.3 Martial Law Declaration in South Korea

Colloquium in October 2025 Han Il Chang (Kookmin University) This study develops a theory that the effect of economic hardship on anti-democratic attitudes—channeled through feelings of gender deprivation—varies across gender and generations. According to the theory, as democracy advances gender equality, it increases young women’s entry to the labor market Read more…

By KIRN, ago

Intergenerational Social Mobility and Demographic Behaviors in South Korea: How Do Relative and Absolute Social Mobility Matter in a Lowest-Low Fertility Context?

Colloquium in September 2025 Dohoon Lee (Seoul National University) How does intergenerational social mobility matter for family formation and childbearing? To address this question, this study (1) distinguishes between relative and absolute mobility; (2) conceptualizes intergenerational mobility as a central social contextual factor shaping demographic behaviors; and (3) empirically evaluates Read more…

By KIRN, ago

School Mobility and Academic Achievement in Standardized Education Systems: Evidence from South Korean Elementary Students

Colloquium in May 2025 Soo-yong Byun (The Pennsylvania State University, Professor of Education, Demography, and Asian Studies) Changing schools is a common experience for American students, but it often has negative consequences for academic performance. However, relatively little is known about school mobility and its effects in non-Western contexts. In Read more…

By KIRN, ago

From Growing Disadvantages to Strategic Adaptation: The Permanent Evolution of Asian American Men’s Socioeconomic Status, 1940 to 2018—22

Colloquium in March 2025 ChangHwan Kim (University of Kansas, Department of Sociology) Stereotypical images of Asian Americans have shifted from unassimilable aliens to the Model Minority, and Strategic Adaptation has been proposed as a key mechanism of their success. However, few studies have explored the origins and evolution of Strategic Read more…

By KIRN, ago

Varieties of Meritocratic Beliefs and Their Divergent Connections to Inequality Attitudes

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 Read more…

By KIRN, ago

Premarital Pregnancy in South Korea: Socioeconomic Disparities and Children’s Early Developmental Trajectories

Colloquium in November 2024 Won-tae Koh (CLIO Institute for Social Development Studies, Yonsei University) This study explores the possibility that the recent increase in premarital pregnancies may reflect differential demographic behaviors across social strata and examines whether this serves as a pathway for intergenerational inequality reproduction. Analysis using The Panel Read more…

By KIRN, ago