South Korea Socio-cultural Report

Essay by Anonymous UserCollege, UndergraduateA+, March 2008

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South Korea and the United States are similar when it comes to the government. South Korea as well as the United States follows the presidential system. This separates the power between different groups. Although South Korea and the United States are similar when it comes to the government there are also many differences.

South Korea in the 1950's depended on foreign aid. Military leadership grew in the 1960's and during the decades after their economy grew. In 1997 South Korea was forced to take $57 billion from the International Monetary Fund. They were finally at a good point economically when entering the 21st century (South Korea, 2006).

The United States is different from South Korea because of economic power. The United States is the world's greatest economic power in terms of gross national product. The United States has many rich natural resources. It also has only 5% of the world's population and contributes 10% of the world's total in exports (United States, 2006).

South Korea's society underwent a big transformation after the Korean War. From the end of the war to the 21st century the population doubled, modern education developed, commercial and industrial enterprises developed, and communication media grew. The biggest change was the emergence of a middle class. With education and the expansion of the economy the landholding class disappeared. Another big change for Koreas was the decline of the extended family system. Rural to urban migration broke the traditional family living arrangements. Women during this time fought for the right to be equal and they won the ability to own property (South Korea, 2006).

The United States also went through the same achievements and problems as South Korea but the United States did it earlier than South Korea. The United States as well as South Korea all faced...