The Role of Confucian Cultural Values and Politics in Planning Educational Programs for Adults in Korea

Abstract

Program planning activities are not culturally neutral but are replete with various cultural values and affected by them. This qualitative study was conducted in Korea and examines how cultural values influence educational planning in Korea. Specifically, the study was to examine how Confucian cultural values play out in educational planning in terms of negotiating power and interests. In-depth interviews were held in a variety of settings with 13 program planners. There were two primary categories of findings: (a) planners’ embedded Confucian values, such as group harmony, respect of hierarchy, propriety, face, bond of affection ( jeong), and distinctive gender roles, were reflected in the everyday actions of planners and (b) these Confucian values, especially those of age, gender, and group harmony, influenced the exercise of power and negotiation of power and interests.