Research on Korean Internet Culture within the Context of Cyber Control

Abstract

This article discusses the methodological issues that arose during the research process relating to my PhD dissertation in the aftermath of the 2008 Candlelight Protest, an anti-government protest against the Korean government's Free Trade Agreement with the US government in 2008. I adopted three methodological approaches for data collection, namely, policy analysis, online community observation and interviews. Specific issues relating to the difficulties that arose during the field research, including the research design, will be explained. Examples include difficulty obtaining permission to take part in an online community which did not welcome researchers due to political sensitivity, as well as problems in continuing participation on sample sites that were threatened with or faced closure when the number of visitors declined dramatically following pressure from the Korean government. The article also explains difficulties that I faced when trying to contact interviewees from governmental bodies and the Korean web portal industry. This article will delineate how I overcame these limitations. Overall, a multi-sited approach was useful in investigating how political institutions, including Korean web portals, were influenced by Korean Internet users and how this led to a reformation of their online power relationships.

locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles