Research Project – hellokpop and KPK: Kpop Kollective on K-pop fan research
Have you ever wondered what fans think about the groups they support? How are SONEs different from Blackjacks? Who exactly are fans of Aziatix? Why are there TripleChanjos, fans of SS501 and Shinhwa?
This is your chance to find out and be part of the process! iFans: Mapping K-pop’s International Fandom is an academic research project that seeks to understand fan opinions and collects information on global fandoms. It is conducted by Dr. Crystal S. Anderson, Ph.D. (aka CeeFu, friendly neighborhood Editorial Writer and Assistant Chief Editor for hellokpop). Dr. Anderson is working with hellokpop, the only K-pop media outlet partnering with academics as part of The Hallyu Project.
Readers can participate in the iFans project in two ways. First, you can be a part of the Case Studies survey, which seeks to understand the attitudes and activities of fans of 12 selected K-pop groups. If you are a fan of 2NE1, Aziatix, BigBang, Epik High, f(x), MBLAQ, SHINee, Shinhwa, SNSD, SS501, Super Junior, and/or TVXQ, click here to take a 10-15 minutes survey about why you like these groups and how you show your support.
Second, you can contribute to the Fandom Directory, a resource that collects information on websites/blogs, forums, Facebook pages, Twitter and Tumblr fan communities for all K-pop groups. If you want your favorite online communities to be included, send the name and the link to: kpopkollective@gmail.com.
You can see the progress of the iFans project at any time by visiting the site here.
Please support hellokpop and KPK: Kpop Kollective in The Hallyu Project by participating in future surveys, questionnaires, polls and interviews that will provide more insights of the Hallyu and Korean culture around the world!
Image: Dream in Blue
Can’t Stop Loving You: Fans Find Happiness, Solace in K-pop
By Crystal S. Anderson, PhD
Elon University (U.S.)
Whether it’s excited yelling by fans or crying by K-pop artists, emotions run deep in K-pop. While some focus on obsessive emotional attachments and behaviors by fans, research shows that fans themselves describe a range of emotional responses to K-pop. 100 responses by 18- to 30-year-olds show that fans find K-pop to be a source of happiness, hope and motivation. These responses are part of a five-year study on international fans of K-pop housed at KPK: Kpop Kollective.
Some writers tend to characterize fan activities and emotional expressions in negative terms. Patricia of Seoulbeats describes emotional expressions of appreciation for K-pop as bordering on obsessive: “I think there’s something to be said about my stance on the emotional toll that idol fandom takes on its devotees. That’s why I become so alarmed when I see these SHINee fans writing these intense emotional outpourings about how SHINee has changed their lives, or how much SHINee means to them. It breaks my heart to hear fans say that they turn to K-pop as a distraction for real life because their friends and family can’t offer them the same comfort that K-pop idols do.”
Adeline Chia writes that such emotions translate into obsessive behaviors: “Then there is K-pop’s effects on listeners. It turns functional people into crazed addicts, acting in robotic idolatry. . . . K-pop is also unique in inspiring extreme behaviour from fans and generating psychosis. Cyber-bullying and online smear campaigns are common practices by anti-fans who target a certain entertainer they hate. Sometimes, anti-fans turn into stalkers or criminals.”
To view entire “Can’t Stop Loving You” infographic, click here.
However, fans talk about the emotional appeal of K-pop in more positive terms. Some talk about overall emotions that go beyond the lyrics. One notes, “Kpop has the power to touch people even for those like me who don’t understand the lyrics. I think [it] is the r[h]ythm, the emotion in the voices, the dances. Kpop is like a best friend, it is here for you whenever you are happy or sad. Powerful stuff.” Another said: “The music is more touching and you can feel the emotions of the singers when they sing regardless of what genre.” Others link emotions to performances: “They sing and perform with passion and emotions, so even if you can’t really understand the lyrics you will get to know what it’s about by just listening. Kpop is not just another type of music it’s much more, that I can’t describe it with words” (Anderson).
These responses echo what scholars have discovered about emotional responses to music that transcend cultural differences. In a study with Western listeners listening to Hindustani ragas, Laura-Lee Balkwill and William Forde Thompson find that it is possible for music to travel cross-culturally: “According to our model, this indicates that the psychophysical cues for joy, sadness, and anger were salient enough to enable listeners to overcome their unfamiliarity with culture-specific cues and to make an accurate assessment of the intended emotion. . . . That naive listeners demonstrated such a high level of agreement with expert listeners, who were deeply familiar with the culture-specific cues embedded in the music samples, is remarkable” (58). In other words, listeners from other cultures can identify emotionally with music of a different culture, and this may shed light on why global fans identify with K-pop emotionally.
This emotional response runs the gamut. Many respondents describe how they find K-pop to be fun and happy. One notes, “Cause the music is always so free and fun to dance to. It simply makes me happy.” Another adds, “The songs are really refreshing, and listening to it puts me in a happy mood because of their lyrics and beats.” Other respondents link the happiness they feel from K-pop to their lives in general: “It always puts me in a good mood and makes me feel energized. Kpop sometimes can make you feel like your part of something bigger. It’s hard to explain but the feeling it gives you is great” (Anderson).
Others related K-pop to more somber emotions. One respondent says, “Because it’s very different and the music touches something in me, I mean this is not superficial, there are feelings in every song, this could be happiness or some sad feelings.” Another notes, “When I listen to sad songs I find that it have feelings in it and it will touched me too.” One says, “There’s an upbeat to the music that sometimes make you want to dance other times depending on where you heard it from makes you sad” (Anderson).
Some fans talk about how K-pop helps them through hard times. One respondent notes, “It was introduced to me at a hard time in my life and it has been the only music I listened to help me get through it.” Another says, “Kpop appeared in my life all of a sudden. I was really depressed back then and it helped me get out of my miserable state, pulled me out of the worst” (Anderson). Music can have the therapeutic effect these respondents describe. Annemiek Vink explains therapy methods, such as Guided Imagery in Music, which is “based on the assumption that the most appropriate music can be selected for healing purposes.” She further finds that the choice of music impacts the therapeutic results of GIM: “In all aspects, carefully selected music based on the person’s preference and personal background was far more effective than standard relaxation music” (153, 154).
This range of fairly positive emotions challenges negative characterizations of their emotional expression. These responses come from adults rather than young teenagers, so it is less convincing to describe them as obsessive along the lines of Chia. She refers to incidents involving K-pop celebrities, but respondents speak about their emotions mostly in relation to the music. When they do comment on the artists, it is often in terms of the positive relationship they have with fans. One notes, “The singers are so dedicated to their music and their fans. They put their real emotion into every word” (Anderson).
This emotional connection that some K-pop fans feel also translates into a discourse of protection, the desire to protect their group or artist from mischaracterizations. The Triple S Pledge encourages fans of SS501 “To support and shield them through hard times…To ignore rumors.” The same sentiments can be seen in the “Prom15e to Bel13ve and 10ve” philosophy held by some fans of Super Junior, which acknowledges every member regardless of current status or sub-group membership.
These findings suggest that emotion plays a role in the attitudes and opinions of adult global K-pop fans, often in a positive way.
Images
Anderson, Crystal. Infographic. “Can’t Stop Loving You.” 14 Dec 2012. Web.
European Kpop Fans. Digital Image. WeHeartIt. Originally posted on european-kpop-fans.blogspot.com. 14 Dec 2012.
Sources
Anderson, Crystal S. “Data Set: Hallyu Kpop Survey 2 and Kpop Kollective KiFs Survey 2, 18- to 30 Year Olds.” Korean Popular Music International Fanbases Project. 29 Apr 2011 – 15 Apr 2012.
Balkwill, Laura-Lee and William Forde Thompson. “A Cross-Cultural Investigation of the Perception of Emotion in Music: Psychophysical and Cultural Cues.” Music Perception 17. 1 (1999): 43-64.
Chia, Adeline. “Sick Cult of K-pop.” Originally published on Straits Times. 8 Dec 2011. SGSJELFs & SupershowSG. Web. 8 Dec 2012.
Patricia. “Fans Love Oppa, But Oppa Is Uncomfortable With Such Feelings.” 24 May 2011. Seoulbeats. Web. 8 Dec 2012.
TS Pledge. Triple S: The States. Web. 8 Dec 2012.
Vink, Annemiek. “Music and Emotion.” Nordic Journal of Music Therapy 10.2 (2001): 144-158.
Reprint of “Can’t Stop Loving You: Fans Find Happiness, Solace in K-pop” © 2012 Crystal S. Anderson, KPK: Kpop Kollective, used under a Creative Commons Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
The ‘K’ in K-pop: Research Finds Korean Language, Culture Appeals to Global Fans
By Crystal S. Anderson, Ph.D
Elon University (U.S.)
Most people identify K-pop by its use of Korean language and culture. Some see these as obstacles to the spread of K-pop worldwide. However, 142 responses by 18-to 30-year-olds show that Korean culture, and especially Korean language, appeals to global fans. These responses are part of a five-year study on international fans of K-pop housed at KPK: Kpop Kollective.
To view entire “The ‘K’ in K-pop Infographic, click here.
Writers often point to the use of English as crucial to the success of K-pop in non-Korean speaking countries. Miketastic argues: “Many would say that the single biggest obstacle is the language barrier. . . . For K-pop artists, it’s going to be much tougher as very few of them can really speak English well enough to win the hearts and minds of America.”
Academics like Jaime Shinhee Lee also write about how important English is for K-pop: “K-pop provides discursive space for South Korean youth, either artists or audiences, to assert their self-identity, to create new meanings, to challenge dominant representations of authority, to resist mainstream norms and values, and to reject older generations’ conservatism” (446). In other words, Korean artists tend to use English for specific purposes. Lee also says that the use of English decreases the importance of Korean to a certain degree: “English makes K-pop less nationally marked and more regionally accepted” (447).
Some K-pop fans echo this idea. They say that they do not need to understand the Korean language in order to like K-pop. One notes: “Because of the songs that can touch you, even though you don’t understand what they are singing.” Another responds: “I like to sing along in Korean even though I don’t always understand what the lyrics means” (Anderson).
However, research suggests that global fans find the Korean language and culture important. A majority of respondents say that they listen to K-pop, in part, because of the Korean language. Several like the qualities of the Korean language itself. One respondent says, “I love being able to learn songs that aren[‘]t in English and I find Korean to be such a beautiful language,” while another “like[s] the sound of Korean language.” Others indicate that the Korean used in K-pop songs encourages them to learn the language better: “I also like being able to learn small words and phrases in Korean. It is a lot more fun than trying to learn a foreign language in the usual way” (Anderson).
Others link K-pop to Korean culture in general, despite its incorporation of American culture: One respondent explains: “Moreover, I love the US influence but its remains the “Korean detail” that makes this kind of music different.” Another notes, “I got dragged into KPop. . . because of Korean culture. Their culture is very addictive” (Anderson).
Global fans also learn about Korean social relationships through the way members of K-pop groups interact: “I am also fascinated by the whole Kpop culture which would refer to many things such as “stars relation” – the senior-junior (sunbae-hoobae) relationship; the start training system; some unwritten rules in the business; the variety shows just to name a few.” Another respondent says: “Not only the music, dancing and other talent, but with this K-Pop culture it teaches audiences to respect elders and their peers – also to respect themselves because of the Asian culture.”
Others note the impact of Korean cultural products, such as variety shows, which feature a combination of language and culture: “I also like the language more, but the reason I fell in love with K-Pop is the personalities of the Idols. If they weren’t all those variety shows, I wouldn’t have been that interested in K-Pop” (Anderson). For example, Shinhwa provides entertainment to audiences by playing a game where knowing the words to a Korean song is key on Happy Together:
Asian American respondents also find the use of Korean language and culture appealing. One noted: “I think that it is really relatable. I’m Asian-American, so I don’t see Asians much in entertainment. I like seeing people like me doing something cool like rapping, singing, and dancing.” Another explained the appeal of Korean culture in K-pop as a source of pride: “Being a[n] adopted Korean American (adopted in the 80′s) it was a way for me to discover my cultural roots when Korean people did not accept me because of my lack for Koreaness.’ Also in the 90′s and early 2000′s it was a way to show ‘Azn Pride’ as we called it” (Anderson).
This research may reveal the impact of conscious efforts by the Korean government to use K-pop as a vehicle for spreading Korean culture. Korea.net, the official website of the South Korean government, maintains a section devoted to Korean Wave in the K-Culture section of its website. In 2012, the Korean Cultural Center in Washington DC hosted a Hallyu Camp “designed to give fans of Korean pop culture in the Washington DC region a deeper understanding of the country, people, and society from which Korean pop culture originates.” Activities included “a variety of interactive workshops, lessons, discussions, and creative projects related to Korean traditional and pop culture, led by professional instructors and cultural experts” (Han Cinema).
Such use of Korean culture represents an example of soft power, defined by Joseph Nye as “the ability to get what you want through attraction rather than coercion or payments. It arises from the attractiveness of a country’s culture, political beliefs, and policies” (x). The Korean government uses K-pop to spread Korean culture in an effort to get other populations to engage with it. Doobo Shim also writes: “Motivated by the phenomenal success of Korean popular cultural products abroad, the government designated ‘cultural technology’ (meaning the technologies that produce television drama, film, pop music, computer games, animation, etc.) as one of the six key technologies along with IT and BT (Bio –technology) that should drive the Korean economy into the 21st century” (28).
Global locations like the United States do not have a tendency to embrace foreign-language musical culture. This has led some to speculate that K-pop must use English to be successful. However, these findings show that K-pop has already gained success with global fans as a result of K-pop’s use of Korean language and culture.
Images
SHINee. Digital Image. “16 KPOP Idols and Groups Dressed for Chuseok.” 30 Sept 2012. Ningin. 11 Dec 2012.
Anderson, Crystal. Infographic. “The ‘K’ in K-pop.” 11 Dec 2012. Web.
Sources
Anderson, Crystal S. “Data Set: Hallyu Kpop Survey 2 and Kpop Kollective KiFs Survey 2, 18- to 30 Year Olds.” Korean Popular Music International Fanbases Project. 29 Apr 2011 – 15 Apr 2012.
Crystalis0324. “(Eng Sub) 040930 [H@p py][T0g 3th er]- Shinhwa (4/5).” 26 Sept 2010. YouTube. 11 Dec 2012.
“Hallyu Camp 2012: Exploring Korean Pop & Traditional Culture.” 22 July 2012. Han Cinema. 7 Dec 2012.
Lee, Jamie Shinhee. “Linguistic Hybridization in K-pop: Discourse of Self-Assertion and Resistance.” World Englishes 23.3 (2004): 429-450.
Miketastic. “[OP-ED] Will K-pop Make It in America?” 23 Jul 2012. allkpop. 11 Dec 2012.
Nye, Jr., Joseph. Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics. Cambridge: Perseus Books, 2004.
Shim, Doobo. “The Growth of Korean Cultural Industries and the Korean Wave.” In East Asian Pop Culture: Analysing the Korean Wave. Ed. Chua Beng Huat and Koichi Iwabuchi. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2008. 15-31.
Reprint of “The ‘K’ in K-pop: Research Finds Korean Language, Culture Appeals to Global Fans” © 2012 Crystal S. Anderson, KPK: Kpop Kollective, used under a Creative Commons Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Noona, unnie, oppa, hyung: research shows adults like K-pop for the music
Academic research suggests adults like K-pop for a variety of reasons, the chief of which is music. These findings complicate assumptions about the identity of international K-pop fans and their preferences. According to 638 responses among 18 to 30-year-olds from around the world, other top reasons include choreography and idols.
Youth is a major lens through which many view K-pop. Not only do commentators focus on the age of the performers, they also assume that all fans of K-pop are teenagers. The Wikipedia entry states that K-pop “has grown into a popular subculture among teenagers and young adults around the world.” Commentators like Kim Ji-myung often begin media stories about K-pop with an observation about the age of its fans: “I find it surprising and also fun to see so many European and American youngsters dance and sing in unison with Korean tunes (in Korean!) on the streets and in parks” (italics mine).
Scholars echo this focus on K-pop’s younger fans. In the edited collection Hallyu: Influence of Korean Popular Culture in Asia and Beyond, Do Kyun Kim and Se-jin Kim assume that Asian youths make up the primary audience for K-pop: “Korean pop music has emerged as a predominant trend among young Asians over the last decade. Its strong beats mixed with unique rhythms have appealed greatly to numerous teenagers in China, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and other Southeast Asian countries” (italics mine, 28).
While teenagers may be the most visible fans, adult fans are part of the international K-pop fandom. K-pop appeals to them for a variety of reasons. Most respondents list multiple reasons for their preference for K-pop: “Addictive music, perfect dancing, unique dance routine, unique style, idols with great personalities.” Even so, the analysis of these responses reveals several recurrent themes in the preferences of adult fans of K-pop. [See Note 1]
The Music Matters
One of the common critiques of K-pop involves the music, as Fatouma, a writer for seoulbeats, shows: “Manufactured music soon become the norm and with the inclusion of teen idols, entertainment companies could now make music and sell it as a commodity. . . . the Korean music scene would be predominantly void of original material.” However, music emerges as the top reason cited by adults for their preference for K-pop. Instead of describing the music as formulaic and manufactured, adult fans indicate a variety of aspects of K-pop that speak to the quality and creativity of the music.
Some respondents describe the music as “catchy” and “fun.” Others cite specific elements of the music itself, including songs, lyrics and beats. One respondent writes, “KPop has very addictive beats with simple melodies that make it easy to enjoy music.” Another notes: “The music and beats are similar, but, instead of the lyrics being perverse and violent (like music is in the U.S.), the lyrics are often about love, friendship, or happiness.”
Still others compare K-pop to other musical genres to reveal its quality and creativity: “The beats and rhythms of the music have an old school R&B feel to them with a modern twist.” Another comments: “I really love group harmonies and while Kpop is mostly pop, my favorite groups collaborate on a range of genres, from funk, soul, and R&B. The lyrics are often more poetical with great imagery, and the music more complex than American pop.”
These comments also suggest that adult fans find the blending of American musical genres such as American pop, R&B and soul with Korean culture in the form of lyrics appealing. This hybridity is a hallmark of K-pop in the Hallyu era, and can be seen in Park Hyo Shin’s performance of Sting’s Shape of My Heart and Maroon Five‘s This Love:
Park Hyo Shin demonstrates the same level of performance in his own work, Standing There (그곳에 서서):
In addition to aspects of the music itself, other individuals explain that they like K-pop because it is different from the music in their country or other forms of popular music. Several subjects indicate that K-pop is different from the popular music in Britain, France, Germany, Canada, and the United States. Others write that K-pop is different in regions as varied as Europe and South America.
Some point to the content of K-pop as being less sexual and materialistic than modern pop music, as these series of responses show:
I’ve gotten tired of American music, the lyrics are always about partying, sex, cars, drugs, and money.
I feel like kpop is a safe, comfortable, fun environment that’s cute and silly and ever so slightly sexy without usually making me question whether it’s appropriate.
It doesn’t contain any sexual references or bad words like those in English pop.
There’s a variety, and it’s not about sex, money, or drugs. I come from America where most songs are about those three things.
These set of responses suggest that adult fans find K-pop appealing because they find it unique. They point to another key difference, namely, the near absence of what some see as offensive content in contemporary pop music.
Will You Dance With Me?
Some critics describe K-pop choreography in negative terms. Adeline Chia includes choreography in a litany of negative characterizations of K-pop, and later suggests that the “synchronized dance moves” are just part of a formula for success.
However, many respondents indicate that choreography plays a large role in the appeal of K-pop. Frequently, the dances complement the music, and adult fans like that they can do some of the dances themselves: “The songs are great to listen to and I love to dance so since most Kpop songs have their own choreography, I frequently try to learn the moves and dance to the songs for fun.” This interest in performing the dances is reflected in fan activity. While many of the cover dances that grace YouTube feature teenagers, this video featuring the members of the ZN Dance School Mother’s Class dancing to BigBang‘s Fantastic Baby shows that adult fans also like to perform the dances:
Other respondents are impressed by the level and quality of the choreography: “As a dancer, I really appreciate and marvel at KPOP’s talent as musicians, performers, and dancers. Their (KPOP performers) talent, precision, and effort put into dance is outstanding. It makes me excited to see such a popular unit of entertainment giving such a focus to dance.”
Idols
K-pop is very visually oriented, especially with idols, who are K-pop artists who engage in activities beyond music performance, including modeling, hosting television programs, endorsing products and acting in Kdramas. In a recent article, Jeff Yang describes K-pop idols based on their appearance, including “curvaceous crooners like Lee Hyori or BoA” and “floppy-haired dreamboats like Rain or Kim Hyun Joong.”
Adult fans often comment on the attractiveness of the idols; however, it is rarely the sole reason for the appeal of K-pop. Several respondents indicate that the variety and reality shows on which idols appear contribute to the way they perceive idols and their personalities. One respondent notes: “Kpop idol got many abilities..they act, they do musical[s], they host show (MC), they modelling (sp) and [have] many others talent..some of them can speak many languages and [are] good in lots of things such as martial arts..they [are] also good in variety show[s]..they are funny..they knows how to make you laugh.” In addition to being attractive, others find idols to be multi-talented and have appealing personalities: “The fact that many idols are multitalented (sp) also help to prove that they have the skill to back up their looks, unlike many other artists.”
Overall, adult fans see the idol persona in a positive light.
It may be that in kpop you still have girl bands and boy bands which is something we no longer seem to prize in the American music industry (individualism) but with kpop and their groups you get to see a collective identity.
Plus, aside from being extremely good-looking and talented, Kpop idols were also been asked to show and set a good example to the fans.They were trained for quite a long time and some Kpop idols were actually trained to polished their skills in singing, dancing and acting since they were in middle – and even elementary school! That’s why I salute them. They put so much effort and determination in each and every work they are doing.
Some scholars suggest that the appearance of idols on such shows only contributes to what they describe as the manufactured nature of K-pop. Sun Jung suggests that appearing on such shows “is considered crucial for rookie idol groups because it enables them to reveal their seemingly genuine selves to the audiences, which greatly enhances the connections between viewers and the idol groups.” She cites media critics who see this as a form of manipulation: “The images displayed in reality shows are nothing but the fabricated popular products empowered by the capitalist desires of their management companies” (168).
Such characterizations by media critics fail to recognize how audiences construct their own meanings out of such images in ways that management companies cannot predict or control. Scholars of audience theory, like David Morley, suggest that previously, “audiences were considered as passive consumers. . . . it was then discovered that this was an inaccurate picture because, in fact, these people were out there. . . being active in all kinds of ways–making critical/oppositional readings of dominant cultural forms, perceiving ideological messages selectively/subversively, and so on.” Now, media studies scholarship assumes “that the audience is always active” and “media content is always polysemic, or open to interpretation” (13). In other words, while corporate entities may promote such shows for a certain effect, fans make their own meaning out of them.
These responses show that adult fans like the television show appearances because they reveal a different side of the idols personality, not necessarily a more “real” aspect of their personality. More often, adult fans see the shows as an opportunity to see other aspects of idols, such as talent and work ethic: “All the groups are TALENTED and well-trained. You can see it from their performance. They gave first class performance. “ Another notes: “Every detail is paid attention to, to the point that idols work very hard, despite losing time for rest and relaxation. One can see the effort and energy the idols have placed in releasing an album, single, digital-released song, etc.” These observations suggest that adult fans find the shows appealing because they show other dimensions of the idols.
Overall, these findings suggest that adult fans find K-pop appealing in ways that complicate assumptions about the international K-pop fandom. Because music is the top reason for the appeal of K-pop to adults, commentators and scholars may want to pay more attention to the musical production of K-pop. The findings challenge repeated charges that K-pop is manufactured, fake, formulaic and appeals only to teenagers. They also reveal a degree of agency in the way adult fans construct meaning in relation to K-pop culture, which often may be different from the way agencies intend for them to engage with K-pop.
Written by Crystal S. Anderson, (PhD, Associate Professor, Elon University, NC, U.S.), who continues to gather data as part of an IRB-approved five-year research study on international fans of K-pop. For more information and to participate, visit Kpop Kollective.
Notes
1. This data is part of an IRB-approved five-year study on international fans of K-pop by Crystal S. Anderson (PhD). Responses were collected between April 29, 2011 and April 15, 2012. Subjects were asked the open-ended question: “Why do you like K-pop?” The responses were coded to reveal themes among the responses, and then analyzed using discourse analysis. The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers describes coding, a qualitative research method, as the process of assigning a code, or “a word or short phrase that symbolically assigns a . . . attribute for a portion of language-based or visual data” (3). Researchers then analyze the codes because “one of the coder’s primary goals is to find these repetitive patterns of action and consistencies in human affairs as documented in the data” (5). These patterns then form themes. In this study the themes are then analyzed using discourse analysis, often used in visual and cultural studies. Gillian Rose describes such analysis as the examination of “connections between and among key words and key images” and asking such questions as: “How are particular words or images given specific meaning? Are there meaningful clusters of words and images? What associations are established within such clusters? What connections are there between such clusters?”
Sources
Chia, Adeline. “Sick of K-pop Cult.” Straits Times. December 8, 2011. Web. Accessed January 26, 2011. <www.straitstimes.com/print/BreakingNews/…/STIStory_742588.html>
DarkGoth90210. “BIGBANG – Fantastic Baby Dance Cover By ZN Dance School (Mother’s Class A.M. A.” YouTube. March 23, 2012. Web. Accessed September 14, 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3gF-rWUKFM>
Fatouma. “No Individuals Allowed: Originality and K-pop.” seoulbeats. May 25, 2012. Web. Accessed September 13, 2012. <http://seoulbeats.com/2012/05/no-individuals-allowed-originality-and-k-pop/>
Jung, Sun. Korean Masculinities and Transcultural Consumption: Yonsama, Rain, Oldboy, K-pop Idols. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2011.
K-pop. Wikipedia. Accessed September 14, 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K-pop>
Kim, Do Kyun and Kim Se-Jin. “Hallyu from its Origin to Present: A Historical Overview.” 13-34. In Hallyu: Influence of Korean Popular Culture in Asian and Beyond. Ed. Do Kyun Kim and Min-Sun Kim. Seoul: Seoul National University Press, 2011.
Kim Ji-Myung. “Serious Turn for ‘hallyu 3.0.” Han Cinema. August 3, 2012. Web. Accessed August 4, 2012. <http://www.hancinema.net/serious-turn-for-hallyu-3-0–45997.html>
Morley, David. “Active Audience Theory: Pendulums and Pitfalls.” Journal of Communication. 43.4 (1993): 13-19.
Rose, Gillian. Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to the Interpretation of Visual Materials. London: Sage Publications, 2005.
Saldana, Johnny. The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2009.
Shim, Doobo. “Hybridity and the Rise of Korean Popular Culture in Asia.” Media, Culture & Society 28.1 (2006): 25-44.
Shinwha. Digital Image. Photo Shoot for Cosmopolitan Korea. Bomba Soju. May 1, 2012. Web. Accessed September 11, 2012. <http://bombasoju.wordpress.com/2012/05/01/shinwha-para-cosmo-korea/>
Yang, Jeff. “‘Gangnam Style’ Viral Popularity in U.S. Has Koreans Puzzled, Gratified.” Speakeasy – WSJ. August 28, 2012. Web. Accessed September 11, 2012. <http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/08/28/gangnam-style-viral-popularity-in-u-s-has-koreans-puzzled-gratified/>
yoursnowbell. “Park Hyo Shin 110226 The Shape of My Heart/This Love Radio Live.” YouTube. February 11, 2011. Web. Accessed September 11, 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqWn0ZWHt3s>
Reprint of “Noona, Unnie, Oppa, Hyung: Research Shows Adults Like K-pop For the Music,” © 2012 Crystal S. Anderson, KPK: Kpop Kollective, used under a Creative Commons Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/
hellokpop and KPK: Kpop Kollective partner together for ‘The Hallyu Project’
hellokpop and KPK: KPop Kollective have agreed to work together on The Hallyu Project, an effort to engage fans in the scholarly study of the Korean wave. KPK is a group of research projects managed by Crystal S. Anderson (PhD), an associate professor at Elon University in North Carolina (U.S.). You may know her better as CeeFu, friendly neighborhood editorial writer and assistant chief editor for hellokpop.
hellokpop is the only K-pop media outlet working with academics who preserve and analyze Korean popular culture on the Internet. It will publish research results from surveys conducted by Dr. Anderson and help her to access research participants through its readership.
KPK research is not market research, which companies use to sell you things. Instead, Dr. Anderson does scholarly research, which analyzes culture in order to explain it and contribute to the overall knowledge about a subject. In the United States, university research involving people must have oversight by an Institutional Review Board. Such boards make sure that researchers are ethical when working with research subjects. Those ethics are based on three principles: respect for persons, beneficence (or risk assessment) and justice. Elon University’s Institution Review Board has approved all of Dr. Anderson’s research with fans.
People are already doing research on Korean popular culture, including music, film and Kdrama. But Dr. Anderson’s projects are different because they focus on international fans. Other scholars limit their research to fans in East Asia or Asian fans outside of East Asia. By talking to as many different fans as possible, Dr. Anderson seeks to understand fan attitudes towards Kpop in general as well as specific artists and groups.
Dr. Anderson has two research projects related to fans. One involves discovering fan opinions on K-pop and Kdrama through surveys. She will share results from these surveys on hellokpop. The other is an oral history of international K-pop fandom, which involves interviewing people who run online fan communities and write their own blogs and websites related to K-pop. She is also collecting digital fan objects, including fan photos, fanmade videos and fan art. The oral history and the fan object collection will be part of a digital exhibition, which will be available on the Internet. You can find out more information about both projects at KPK: Kpop Kollective.
Please support hellokpop and KPK: Kpop Kollective in The Hallyu Project by participating in future surveys, questionnaires, polls and interviews that will provide more insights of the Hallyu and Korean culture around the world!
Images: hellokpop logo, KPK logo, Sun Jung, Kyung Hyun Kim, Do Kyun Kim, Ben Chua,
Sources:
Institutional Review Board Guidebook, Introduction, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Human Research Protections
