Asian values and democratic citizenship: exploring attitudes among South Korean eighth graders using data from the ICCS Asian Regional Module

Abstract

Utilizing data from the 2009 IEA International Civic and Citizenship Study Asian Regional Module, this secondary analysis explores the relationship between traditional Asian values and democratic citizenship. Findings identify two dimensions of Asian values: Asian civic values and obedience to authority. Among South Korean students, Asian civic values have a positive association with democratic citizenship, while obedience to authority displays an inverse relationship. However, attachment to obedience to authority is much weaker. The overall findings suggest the possibility of reconciliation between traditional Asian values and democratic citizenship.

Keywords::

• democracy
• Confucianism
• ICCS
• culture
• civic engagement

Notes

^1. The first, of five, variables measuring plausible values of civic knowledge were used in this study (pv1civ).

^2. For Example: The World Values Survey, Asian Barometer, EuroBarometer, AfroBarometer, Latin Barometer.

^3. The eigenvalues for the unobserved constructs were 2.29 for obedience to authority, and 0.96 for Asian civic values. The third unobserved construct had an eigenvalue of 0.18 and was not extracted.