Korean Women in Leadership

Yonjoo Cho, Gary N. McLean, Yonjoo Cho, Gary N. McLean

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9783319642703
• eBook ISBN: 9783319642710
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Human Resource Management
• Index: Business

The book focuses on the historical, political, economic, and cultural elements of Korea and the strong influence these have on women leaders in the nation. It examines challenges and opportunities for women leaders as they try to balance their professional and personal lives. A team of leading experts familiar with the aspirations and frustrations of Korean women offer insight into the coexistence of traditional and modern values. It is an eye-opening look at the convergence and divergence across Korean sectors that international leadership researchers, students, and managers need to know in order to realize and appreciate the potential of Korean women leaders.

Part IIntroduction

© The Author(s) 2018

Yonjoo Cho and Gary N. McLean (eds.)Korean Women in LeadershipCurrent Perspectives on Asian Women in Leadershiphttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-64271-0_1

Begin Abstract

1. The Status of Women Leaders in South Korea: Challenges and Opportunities

Yanghee Kim¹ and Yonjoo Cho²

(1)

Center for Gender and Leadership, Seoul, South Korea

(2)

Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

Yanghee Kim

Yonjoo Cho (Corresponding author)

Dr. Yanghee Kim

is the president of the Center for Gender and Leadership, Seoul, Korea , which provides se rvices for research on women in leader ship, leadership development programs, and consulting on the topic. She has conducted research on women’s issues at the Korean Women’s Development Institute between 1989 and 2008. Her research topics include gender egalitarianism, gender mainstreaming, and eco-feminism. She has published two books (Women, Leadership, and Women Leadership and Gender Differences in Leadership in Korean Firms) and multiple articles in Korean. She serves as an advisor for the Ministry of Ge nder Eq uality and Family, and teaches women leadership in universities. She has served as a board member for the Korean Association of Women’s Studies and the Korean Society for Woman Psychology. Dr. Kim received her Ph.D. degree in Applied Social Psychology from Loyola University, USA.

Dr. Yonjoo Cho

is an associate professor of Instructional Systems Technology focusing on HRD at Indiana University. She worked as an HRD professional in South Korea, in business, non-profit, and academic sectors , for more than ten years. Her research interests include action learning in organizations, the interdisciplinary nature of HRD /Instructional Technology, and women in leadership. She has published a book entitled Trends and Issues in Action Learning Practice: Lessons from South Korea with Routledge (Cho & Bong, 2013). She serves as an associate editor of the Human Resource Development Review and also serves on the editorial board of the Human Resource Development Quarterly, European Journal of Training and Development , and Action Learning: Research and Practice. She has served as the chair of the Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD)’s Korea Special Interest Group (SIG) and the president of the Korean Academy of Human Resource Development in Americas (KAHRDA), a Korean community of HRD scholars and students affiliated with the AHRD. Currently, she is serving on the Board of the AHRD . She received her Ph.D. in Instructional Technology from the University of Texas at Austin.

End Abstract

The topic of women in leadership is gaining attention in South Korea (Korea, hereafter). Daily newspapers introduce women leaders who have succeeded in taking leadership positions in diverse sectors because such women are rare. Universities and public and private corporations provide leadership development programs, and create women leaders councils and committees to strengthen their voices and networking and learning opportunities. In politics, where local contexts require political activities that affect people’s quality of life, women’s leadership is in high demand. As local councils deal with everyday issues in the community and directly affect the quality of women’s lives, women’s representation in local councils is higher (22.9%) than in Congress (17%).

In both public and private sectors, a male-dominated, authoritative culture has been prevalent in Korea for a long time. However, as globalization has become a norm, a culture of diversity has become necessary to help society adapt to change. When faced with a competitive global market, companies are required to adjust their marketing strategies to correspond with ever-changing customer needs. As women’s buying power has increased—women now make up 70%~80% of all consumer purchase decisions on home appliances, computers, cars, and houses—business strategies are expected to adjust to meet women buyers’ needs.

Traditional male-dominated, paternalistic leadership is based on command and control, and is not effective in tackling challenges in an age of globalization. Among others, the most important task is to bring gender diversity into leadership so that organizations can be more agile and inclusive. Attention to women in leadership in Korea reflects such recent changes and demands. In this uniquely Korean context, we review the literature on women in leadership, discuss the status of women leaders in diverse sectors, examine challenges women leaders face in the gendered workplace, and introduce the government’s women-friendly policies and programs designed to bring about more opportunities for women leaders.

Review of the Literature

The study findings of research undertaken on women in leadership in Korea since the mid-1980s are not as consistent as expected. Discussion on women in leadership (Chang, 2004; Kang, 1998, 2014; Kim & Kim, 2000) includes four research topics: women leaders, women’s leadership, feminist leadership, and gender differences in leadership.

Women Leaders

Women leaders are defined as those women that take leadership roles . Interest in women leaders revolves around how many women have succeeded in taking leadership positions and what leadership styles women leaders bring in. Because men hold most leadership positions, leadership is understood as being related to male characteristics. The alienation of women from leadership affects the evaluation of women leaders. Kim and Kim (2000) emphasized that, to evaluate women leaders fairly, we need to examine the context they face because even when women leaders take the same leadership positions as men, their career paths and work experiences are fundamentally different from those of men.

Women’s Leadership

Women’s leadership means that leaders’ behaviors and leadership styles reflect traits that are associated with women (Loden, 1985). Communication skills, caring, unauthoritative, and relational leadership styles are among the characteristics of women’s leadership; these characteristics are not necessarily inherent but, rather, are learned by socialization. To some extent, most women possess characteristics that are not necessarily attributes found only in women. An emphasis on women’s leadership is prone to designate women as a single group, solidifying the dualism between men and ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• Part I. Introduction
• Part II. Barriers and Challenges
• Part III. Signs of Hope
• Part IV. Sector Perspectives
• Part V. International Perspectives
• Part VI. Closing
• Back Matter