Asan Poll

2013NOV04
Asan Daily Poll

Societal Contribution by Occupation

  • Issue/Region :
    Culture and Society/Korean Peninsula
  • By.
    Kim Jiyoon / Research Division, Karl Friedhoff / Chicago Council on Global Affairs

ASAN POLL- The Asan Institute for Policy Studies

THE ASAN PUBLIC OPINION BRIEF

Public Opinion on Social Division
SOCIETAL CONTRIBUTION BY OCCUPATION
July 19-21
How much do the following jobs contribute to society?
(%)

Societal Contribution by Occupation

Respondents believed workers in agriculture/forestry/fishery, the military, homemaking, and blue collar labor contribute greatly to society and professions in religion or politics contribute the least. When asked about the societal contribution of fifteen occupations, 80.6% responded that workers in agriculture/forestry/ fishery contribute “very greatly” or “generally greatly” to society. Next highest in positive responses were, in descending order: Military (75.5%), Homemaker (74.6%), Blue collar worker (74.5%), and Scientist (71.8%).

  Jobs perceived as contributing relatively less to society were in Politics (22.9%), Religion (32.3%), Legal profession (41.4%), and Journalism/Media (45.9%). The respondent’s low opinion for jobs in politics and religion may be explained by the public’s lack of trust in these professions. In June, the Asan Daily Poll found that less than 20% of Koreans express confidence in the legislative branch, judiciary branch, and media. Societal contributions by Doctors (64.2%), Businessmen (63.6%), Teachers (63.1%), White collar workers (59.6%), Civil Servants (51.0%), and Artists (50.6%) were perceived around average.

METHODOLOGY

  • The sample size of each survey was 1,000 respondents over the age of 19.
  • The surveys were conducted by Research & Research, and the margin of error is ±3.1% at the 95% confidence level.
  • All surveys employed the Random Digit Dialing method for mobile and landline telephones.

3-day rolling average?
The sample size of each survey was 1,000 respondents over the age of 19. The surveys were conducte d by Research & Research, and the margin of error is ±3.1% at the 95% confidence level. All surveys employed the Random Digit Dialing method for mobile and landline telephones.

This brief is a product of the Public Opinion Studies Center at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies.

Contact Karl Friedhoff at klf@asaninst.org.

About Experts

Kim Jiyoon
Kim Jiyoon

Research Division

Dr. KIM Jiyoon is a senior fellow in the Public Opinion Studies Program at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. Previously, Dr. Kim was a postdoctoral research fellow at Université de Montréal. Her research interests include elections and voting behavior, American politics, and political methodology. Her recent publications include “Political judgment, perceptions of facts, and partisan effects” (Electoral Studies, 2010), “Public spending, public deficits, and government coalition” (Political Studies, 2010), and “The Party System in Korea and Identity Politics” (in Larry Diamond and Shin Giwook Eds., New Challenges for Maturing Democracies in Korea and Taiwan, Stanford University Press, 2014). She received her B.A. from Yonsei University, M.P.P. in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley, and Ph.D. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Karl Friedhoff
Karl Friedhoff

Chicago Council on Global Affairs

Karl Friedhoff is a fellow in public opinion and Asia policy at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. He was previously a Korea Foundation-Mansfield Foundation US-Korea Nexus Scholar and a member of the Mansfield Foundation’s Trilateral Working Group. Friedhoff was previously based in Seoul where he was a program officer in the Public Opinion Studies Program at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. His writing has appeared in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, among others, and he has been a frequent guest on both TV and radio to discuss US foreign policy in Asia, South Korea’s politics, and international relations in East Asia. Friedhoff earned his BA in political science at Wittenberg University and an MA in international commerce at Seoul National University.

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