Precarious Elderly Workers in Post-Industrial South Korea

This article examines how the combination of immature welfare state and expansion of the service economy, in particular, contributes to the precariousness of the elderly labour market in South Korea where nearly half of the elderly live below the poverty line. It completes an empirical analysis of how elderly workers in Korea are participating in the labour market and examines their situation using a conceptualisation of “precariousness.” It is explained how the elderly in an immature welfare state are pushed into bad jobs resulting in a large number of precarious “elderly workers” in an economically advanced country. Results of the statistical analysis suggest that, due to severe precariousness, the Korean elderly are unable to escape from poverty even though they work. Also, gender segregation of precariousness in the service industry has been exacerbated in the elderly labour market. Structural change such as the rapid transition to a service-oriented economy has a greater impact on elderly women than middle aged or elderly men because elderly women tend to have lower skill levels and shorter careers, mainly entering service occupations where the bad jobs are concentrated.     

Aids, Policy and Politics: East Africa in Comparative Perspective

Policy analysis in developing country contexts poses special challenges. Very little is known about the policy process in these countries. Trying to rein the cultural, organizational and political factors that affect problem solving becomes an inductive search beyond the logic of conventional models of analysis. Using the AIDS issue as a case study, this article tries to throw light on the policy process in the three East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda with a view to highlighting the challenges of policy analysis in developing country contexts.     

Bureaucratic politics and the new fighter aircraft decisions

Abstract. According to the bureaucratic politics approach to policy making, an appreciation of competition and conflict among bureaucrats is considered to be critical for an understanding of decision outcomes. In this paper, we employ the bureaucratic politics model to assess the outcomes of the initial phase of the Canadian government's new fighter aircraft (NFA) program, which began in March 1977 with cabinet approval of the procurement and ended in April 1980 when cabinet announced the selection of the McDonnell Douglas F-18A Hornet. This paper examines the interests of the three departments responsible for furnishing cabinet with recommendations - National Defence, Supply and Services, and Industry, Trade and Commerce. We examine instances of conflict among the bureaus involved, but conclude that, overall, conflict was relatively muted in this case. Three reasons are offered to explain why conflict between departments was not endemic to the NFA program, and several broader conclusions are drawn about the applicability and utility of the bureaucratic politics approach. Sommaire. D'après l'approche de politique bureaucratique en matière d'élaboration de politiques, l'on considère qu'il est très important d'évaluer les rivalités et les conflits existants entre les bureaucrates pour comprendre les conséquences d'une décision. Dans le présent article, les auteilrs se servent du modèle de politique bureaucratique pour évaluer les conséquences de la phase initiale du programme fédéral Nouvel avion de chasse (NAC). Cette phase a débuté en mars 1977 lorsque le conseil des ministres a approuvé l'acquisition d'un tel avion et s'est teminée en avril 1980 avec la sélection du F-18A Hornet de McDonnell Douglas. Cet article examine les intérêts des trois ministères chargés de présenter leurs recommandations au cabinet, à savoir: la Défense nationale, Approvisionnements et Services, et Industrie et Commerce. Il étudie les cas de conflits entre les services concernés mais conclue que dans l'ensemble, dans le cas en question, les conflits étaient pratiquement inexistants. Les auteurs donnent trois raisons expliquant pourquoi il n'y a pas eu de conflits endé miques entre les ministères à propos de ce programme NAC et ils tirent plusieurs conclusions plus générales au sujet de I'applicabilité et de l'utilité de l'approche de poli tique bureaucratique.     

Characteristics of migrants within the framework of current migration direction in the United States: Some evidence from micro-data analysis

In recent years, there has been growing interest in the phenomenon of an apparent population distribution reversal in the United States. This paper examines the characteristics of migrants participating in such moves between 1969 and 1977, based on data from a longitudinal nationwide household sample survey conducted by the University of Michigan. The data show that the amount of ruralward migration outweighs that of urbanward migration. While the ruralward migration was particularly prevalent in the Northeast, the direction of migration in the South was predominantly urbanward. Ruralward migrants appeared to be young single people and young married people without children, as well as stable families. The most ruralward migrants tended to be from the most highly urban environments. This new pattern of migration is independent of both white suburban flight and the sun-belt phenomenon. The findings suggest an important societal reorganization towards a newer post-industrial and less urban population distribution.     

Entrapment,Culpability, and Legitimacy

Law and Philosophy - In this paper, I offer a novel account of entrapment. This account suggests that the wrongness of pursuing punishment in cases of entrapment consists of two distinct...     

DJnomics and the transformation of the developmental state

Since the Asian financial crisis, the Korean state under Kim Dae Jung has witnessed significant challenges from foreign capital as well as from organized labor. Regime transition has influenced the social and political relations between the state and big business (chaebol). The traditional developmental state has gradually eroded as the power and capacity of the state was increasingly affected by economic globalization. The Korean economy has been transformed from a traditional developmental state model characterized by a hierarchical and authoritative relationship between the government and conglomerates into the market-oriented economic model.     

新韩国常识问答

跟以往相比，带着各种不同目的访问韩国的外国人迅速增加。体验过韩国的文化的外国人对于韩国的生活方式既感觉吸引又感觉困惑。韩文的字母到底有何特征？为什么韩国人不用刀而用剪刀切肉呢？对于以上这些问题，作者试图为韩国的日常生活和文化提供一个掠影式的解答。     

The Representation of Two Competing Visions on the Fundamentals of Copyright: A Content Analysis of Associated Press News Coverage on Copyright, 2004–2009

The importance of the public's understanding of copyright has increased in the digital age, and mainstream media play a significant role in informing the public of copyright law and policy. This study identifies two competing visions on the fundamentals of copyright—the private property vision and the public policy vision—and examines which vision is more predominantly covered by mainstream news media via a quantitative content analysis of Associated Press wire service stories on copyright. The findings suggest that, although the number of sources favoring copyright users’ rights has somewhat increased in the most recent two years, overall the private property vision has been more dominantly covered than the public policy vision in the AP news stories. The study concludes that the mainstream media coverage on copyright needs to move toward a more balanced point where both sides of the debate have an equal chance to present their views.     

Getting a Job in China

正Not too long ago, the idea of migrating from Europe to China for work would have seemed remote or even bizarre. Today, it seems a trend on the rise among Westerners unable to find jobs in recession-ridden home countries. A few weeks ago, I became one of the many young Europeans moving to Beijing to try to seize professional opportunities unimaginable back home.