• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.20
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• pp.113-148
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• 2010

This paper examines the American role in shaping South Korean nation-building during the early Cold War by considering how the United States attempted to form South Korea's education and how Koreans responded to these efforts. It looks at education as an arena where "American" ideas such as democracy and liberalism were received, transformed, and utilized by Koreans. This study pays particular attention to the gap between American intentions and Korean expectations, as well as to the competition between American and Japanese systems, which explains the contradictory role America played in South Korean nation-building. In order to better assess the role of the United States in shaping South Korean education, this article considers the complex dynamics between the Japanese legacies, American influence, and Korean actors. Americans had exerted a great effect on Korean education since the beginning of their relationship. American missionaries, U.S. military government, and educational mission teams had all contributed to the expansion of educational opportunities for Koreans. Through the educational institutions that they established or helped establish, Americans tried to spread "their" ideas. In this process, Americans had to struggle with two obstacles: Korean nationalism and the legacies of Japanese colonialism. Many Koreans used American missionary schools for their own purposes and resisted U.S. military government's policies which ignored their desire for self-determination. American education missions had limited effect on Korean education due to the heterogeneous Japanese system that was still influencing South Korea even after liberation. The ways in which Americans have influenced the democratization of South Korea have not been simple. Although "American" democratic ideas reached Koreans through various routes, Koreans understood the "American" idea within their own historical context and in a way that fit their existing socio-political relations. Oftentimes suspicious of "American" democracy, Koreans developed their own concept of democracy. The overall American influence on Korean democratization, as well as on Korean education, was important but limited. While Americans helped Koreans build educational infrastructure and tried to transfer democratic ideas through it, Koreans actors and Japanese colonial legacies limited its impact.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.1-12
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• 2004

This study aimed to explore how India madras fashion was diffused in the American women's costume of the different social levels from 1960 to 1975, by using fashion illustrations such as photographs, drawings and advertisements collected from fashion magazines. The purpose was to obtain data for high fashion(Vogue), mainstream fashion(Mademoiselle) and college newspapers for youth fashion. The data were incorporated from 439 clothing items classified by different categories over the 16-year period. The results indicated that the appearance of madras in the American women's fashion in all social classes supported the idea that fashion change during this period accompanied a concurrent change in social environment. In America during the 1960s when there was strong influence of youth counterculture and interest was high on Indian culture, this corresponded to the time of maximum popularity of madras observed in American fashion in general from 1965 to 1971. Though the Indian influence on fashion in the sixties was often ascribed solely to youth counterculture, it is evident that different social groups-high and mainstream social classes, responded to the appeal of Indian culture in different ways.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.11-19
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• 2005

As the world becomes more globalized thanks to the fast development of the Internet, a national identity becomes more important than ever before. Based on this, the study searches for the identity of modern American architecture through exploring the influence of modem American fine arts on the contemporary architecture. It was found that the concepts and the attributes of modern American fine arts obviously transferred into the contemporary architecture. The main concept was elimination of any kind of illusion for maximization of reality, and it was rooted Into American culture, the way of life and thinking. With the concept, the attributes were divided into two extreme poles: materiality and morphology: the former was evolved from Abstract Expressionism and Post-Minimalism and transferred into Los Angeles Avant-Garde architecture; the latter was from Pop Art and transferred into Postmodern architecture and Pop Architecture.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.277-296
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• 2023

The South Korean ethnic diaspora US lobby shows efficacy as an interest group in generating influence in American foreign and domestic public policy making. The persuasive portrayal of South Korea as a critical Cold War US ally reinforced US amenability to pro-South Korea lobbying. Also, the South Korean US diaspora is a comparatively recent immigrant group, thus its lingering resistance to assimilation facilitates its political mobilization to lobby the US government. One source of this influence includes the foundational legacy of proselytizing Western and particularly American religious social movement representatives in Korean religiosity and society. US protestant Christianity acquired a strong public association with emerging Korean nationalism in response to Japanese imperialism and occupation. Hostility towards Japanese colonialism followed by the threat from Soviet-sponsored, North Korean Communism meant Christianity did not readily become a cultural symbol of excessive external, US interference in South Korean society by South Korean public opinion. The post-Cold War shift in US foreign policy towards targeting so-called rogue state vestiges of the Cold War including North Korea enhanced further South Korea's influence in Washington. Due to essential differences in the perceived historical role of American influence, extrapolation of the South Korean development model is problematic. US hegemony in South Korea indicates that perceived alliance with national self-determination constitutes the core of soft power appeal. Civilizational appeal per se in the form of religious beliefs are not critically significant in promoting American polity influence in target polities in South Korea or, comparatively, in the Middle East. The United States is a perceived opponent of pan-Arab nationalism which has trended towards populist Islamic religious symbolism with the failure of secular nationalism. The pronounced component of evangelical Christianity in American core community nationalism which the Trump campaign exploited is a reflection of this orientation in the US.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.45-54
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• 2008

This study examines the influence of acculturation level and ethnic groups as a fashion reference group on Korean-American consumer attitude toward luxury fashion brands. Of interest is the role of Korean culture, which emphasizes luxury brand consumption due to the Confucion value of 'face', on Korean-American attitudes toward luxury brands. Data were collected from 108 young Korean-Americans living in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and multiple regressions were conducted for the analysis. In general, the respondents had relatively negative attitudes toward luxury fashion brands. Even though the acculturation level did not have a significant influence, attitudes toward luxury fashion brands were influenced by Korean reference groups. Age at immigration did not have a significant relationship with attitudes toward luxury brands. Korean-Americans who maintain ties with Korean culture are more likely to have a positive attitude towards luxury fashion, regardless of familarity with American culture.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.565-573
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• 2013

This study focused on the cultural differences between South Korea and the U.S. in terms of male consumers' sex role attitude and its influence on grooming and apparel shopping behavior. Purposive samples of American and South Korean males aged between 20 and 40 years were surveyed. The sample sizes were 219 and 233 for American and South Korean consumers, respectively. The data were analyzed by structural equation modeling and ANOVA using SPSS 12.0 and AMOS 14.0. The results indicated that only grooming was influenced by the perceived femininity in the case of South Korean men; however, the model for American men indicated a significant positive influence of femininity on grooming and recreational apparel shopping behavior. In other words, American male consumers who perceive themselves feminine were more likely to be engaged in grooming and recreational apparel shopping behavior. On the other hand, for South Korean men, recreational apparel shopping behavior was not influenced by their sex role attitude, or whether they considered themselves feminine or masculine. This means that recreational apparel shopping behavior is a gender-specific behavior in the U.S., but not in South Korea. The findings of this study indicated that culture has influence on consumers' approach to shopping and appearance. South Korean male consumers were more likely to acknowledge themselves as being feminine, enjoy apparel shopping and grooming compared to American male consumers.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.139-178
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• 2003

This study investigates Koreans respondents' perception of American society, American people and its influence in Korea and the world. These analyses have been conducted to provide the psychological, social and cultural basis for understanding the anti-American sentiments among Korean junior high school students, university students and adults. American influence is further divided into American influence on Korean society, on North-South Korean unification, and in the world. In addition, respondents' knowledge of the USA, their satisfaction with the current political functioning, and background information were obtained. A total of 763 respondents (171 junior high school students, 250 university students, and 342 parents of junior high school students) completed a survey questionnaire developed by the first two authors. The overall results indicate that the respondents had a negative view of the USA and its influence in Korea and the world. Majority of respondents perceive American society as being commercial, exclusionary, and ethnocentric. Some respondents perceive American society as being democratic and advanced. As for American people, they are perceive them as being selfish and at the same time independent and carefree. The trust for American society is very low. As for American influence in Korea, it is perceived it as creating dependency and less likely to be perceived as promoting progress and development. As for North-South Korean relations, respondents perceive the USA as interfering with the unification of two Koreas. Finally, respondents perceive the USA as a superpower with imperialistic and dominating tendencies and they were less like to perceive the USA as promoting democracy and justice. Significant differences across the age groups have been found with the junior high school students holding the most negative view about the USA and their parents holding the most positive view of the USA. University students had mixed views of the USA. holding both positive and negative views of the USA. Those respondents with greater dissatisfaction of the political system and with less knowledge about the USA has more negative views of the USA.

• Journal of the Korea Furniture Society
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.324-336
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• 2007

Throughout the twentieth century, American furniture was subject to a number of influences-both domestic and foreign. Especially, in the first half of the twentieth century, there were strong foreign influences compare to the later half of the century. Therefore, this study aimed for discussing foreign influences and for addressing issues such as attitudes toward materials, ornamentation, and technology. As a result, this study suggests how American furniture becomes instinctive moving away from strong foreign influences from the second half of the century. The twentieth century was a period of rapid and dynamic change for American furniture design. In many ways, the designs throughout the century were reflective of the social, political, and economic culture of the time. With the birth of the modern movement in Europe and a strong influx of foreign immigrants, American design in the first half of the century was characterized by a reliance on European and foreign influences. However, after the two world wars, strong domestic influences came into play. The two world wars provided the essential catalysts for change: new materials, developing technology, and changes in life style and consumer values. A historical examination of design trends and individual designers illustrates how American furniture design evolved during this period.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.37
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• pp.157-183
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• 2014

Although Marguerite Yourcenar, a representative French woman writer, lived 47 years in the United States from 1939 to 1987, the American influence on her life has not been studied either at home or abroad. The purpose of this study is to examine chronologically the American influence on the following three literary works of Yourcenar: The Little Mermaid (1942), River Deep, Dark River (1966) and Recluse (1982). The Little Mermaid is a drama, presented in musical format, about the identity crisis and inner conflict of Yourcenar. Unlike the little mermaid who burst like a bubble in Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, Yourcenar associates her death with the image of ascension. River Deep, dark river is a translation of the Negro spiritual expressing the suffering of African Americans. Recluse, her last novel, deals with the life story of a simple man living in nature on a small island. This novel shows Yourcenar's desire for a pure world that is not defiled by human greed. Yourcenar sponsored major human rights organizations and environmental groups in her life, and donated her entire fortune for human rights and the protection of Wild Fauna and Flora. The American influence on the literary works of Yourcenar can be summarized as a "great turning point", because she was transformed from a humanistic writer into an intellectual actor.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.213-220
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• 2007

Purpose. The purpose of this review is to explore cultural influences on the experiences of Korean, Korean American, and Caucasian American family caregivers caring for frail older adults in terms of the selection of a primary caregiver, caregiving motivation, support/help-seeking, and negative emotional responses (depression and burden). Methods. Seven electronic databases were searched to retrieve studies from 1966 to 2005. Thirty-two studies were identified. Results. This review supported cultural influences on the selection of primary caregiver, caregiving motivation, and support/help-seeking among the three caregiver groups. In Korean caregivers, the major primary caregivers were daughters-in-law while among Korean American and Caucasian American caregivers, the major primary caregivers were daughters or spouses. As a major caregiving motivation, Caucasian American care￢givers reported filial affection while Korean caregivers and Korean American caregivers reported filial obligation. Korean caregivers reported higher extended family support, while Caucasian American caregivers reported higher utilization of formal support. Korean caregivers showed the highest levels of depression followed by Korean American caregivers and Caucasian American caregivers. Conclusion. In order to develop culturally appropriate interventions and policies, more research is needed to further explain these differences among the three groups, especially regarding support/help-seeking and negative emotional responses.