Title : Possibility of change in historical awareness by cultural contacts and exchanges between the Koreans and the Japanese

Author : Sohn, Aelee (HK Research Professor)

Publication : vol.17 no.2 (May, 2014)

Abstract 

This study aims to empirically examine the relation of the growing cultural contact and the history awareness in the individual level of Korean people and Japanese people respectively. Recent controversies between korea and Japan have aggravated the bilateral relation, which doesn't look like getting better for a while. Considering that individual citizens who experience Japanese culture or Korean culture not embraced by national discourse and culture can increase mutual understanding and self-reflection, this article suggests an increase in cultural contact and exchange as a clue. Its effect is confirmed as below.

The first, the respondents who have ever visited another country than who have never visited showed the significant difference in mutual impression, mutual trust and an awareness of the importance of bilateral relation. The second, the respondents who have foreign friends and acquaintances than who don't have are confirmed to have stronger significant difference in the attitude toward one another and in history awareness. The third, the mutual impression and the prospect of relation appeared to vary depending on the degree of information-acquisition of another country.

These results tells the cultural contacts and exchanges such as visiting, acquaintances and the degree of information-acquisition are closely connected with the mutual attitudes and history awareness between the Koreans and the Japanese. So para-public Programs such as students exchange and city partnership need to be increased qualitatively as well as quantitatively.