Book Talk: Late Industrialization, Tradition and Social Change: The Emergence of Neofamilism in South Korea

This book starts with a paradox in Korea’s economic development: an ultra-modern industrial economy has been achieved, yet traditional networks of obligation and solidarity, such as blood, school, and regional ties have persisted, and even become more deeply reinforced, profoundly affecting the fundamental aspects of Korean politics and socio-economic relations. This book contends that this paradox is not accidental, and that the course of Korea’s late economic development shaped and entrenched these “primordial” ties into Korea’s politics, society, and economy. Thus, the persistence and predominance of these ties, what I call “neofamilism,” requires an explanation as to when, why, and how it arose. As such, this book is about the social consequences of late industrialization. While much has been written about the economic success stories of late industrialization, the analysis of changes in social relations engendered by late industrialization has been strikingly absent. This book is an attempt to narrow the gap between political economy and sociology in the study of late industrialization.

This talk is free and open to the public. Please RSVP here.

About the speaker:

Yong-Chool Ha is a Russia and Korea specialist and the Korean Foundation Professor at the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. He is also Professor emeritus of Seoul National University. He has visited North Korea three times, has written on North Korea, South Korea, East Asia and Russian foreign policy. Beyond writings on international issues, he has a broader academic interest in comparative study of late industrialization and social change. His research interests are community building and international relations theories, late industrialization and IR. He is also interested in changing elite-mass relations in late industrializing countries. His recent publications include: The Dynamics of Strong State (SNU Press, 2006), Late Industrialization, the State and Tradition: the Emergence of Neofamilism in Korea (2007, CPS), Colonial Social Change (ed.)(U. of Washington Press, 2013), The International Impact of the Colonial Rule in Korea (UW Press, 2019), and Late Industrialization, Tradition and Social Change in South Korea (U. of Washington Press, 2024).