Korean University Students Losing Interest in Politics
Park Eun-myo
Park Eun-myo. 2002. “Korean University Students Losing Interest in Politics.” The Korea Herald, October 11, 2002.
orean college students’ interest in politics is alarmingly low, according to a survey released yesterday.
The survey, conducted by sociologists Hong Doo-Seung of Seoul National University and Seol Dong-Hoon of Chonbuk National University, found that 753, or 43.9 percent, of 1,719 students who participated in the survey were not interested in politics.
Titled “A Study of the Thoughts and Lives of Korean University Students,” the survey asked questions ranging from consumer spending to political attitudes and career plans.
“The study shows that university students pay much less attention to politics than they did before, say during the 1980s,” Prof. Seol said. “But the number is still higher than people of the same age in the workforce.”
A total of 349 students, or 30.3 percent, said they were interested in politics. Most of them were students majoring in humanities and social sciences. Students concentrating in engineering and mathematics were less likely to be interested in politics, followed by students of arts and athletics.
The major reason 344 students, or 36.6 percent of respondents did not care about politics was because they felt their interest would not make any difference. A total of 233 people, or 24.8 percent, said politics gave them a headache.
Yet, 87.3 percent of respondents indicated that they would vote in the presidential election in December.
More than half of students classed themselves as liberal, with 56.7 percent saying they were somewhat liberal, and 6.2 percent saying they were very liberal. About 11 percent felt they were somewhat conservative, and 0.4 percent said they were ultraconservative.
Television was the main source of political news, constituting 41.8 percent. Newspapers were the second most popular source with 28.9 percent, and the Internet was next with 15.1 percent.
The survey also found that one third of respondents had purchased expensive brand-name goods. The majority of students, 85.7 percent, said they were worried about getting a job after graduation. By Park Eun-myo (kep21@koreaherald.co.kr). Staff reporter.
