Report on the Results of the 2nd Korea-Japan Public Perception Survey: Comparative Analysis of Korea and Japan

Survey Overview

The East Asia Institute (EAI), a private think tank in Korea, and the Media and Information Functions Enhancement Organization (言論NPO), a public non-profit organization in Japan, conducted a survey on the mutual perceptions of the Korean and Japanese publics from May to June 2014. The objective of this survey is to closely examine the current status and changes in the understanding and perceptions of each country's public towards the other, with the aim of resolving perceptual differences and promoting mutual understanding between the two nations.

The results of this survey are scheduled to be announced at the Korea-Japan Civil Dialogue (2nd Korea-Japan Future Dialogue: scheduled for July 18, 2014), established in May 2014 by the two organizations with the goal of improving Korea-Japan relations.

The public opinion survey in Korea was conducted through face-to-face interviews by surveyors from June 10 to June 25, targeting men and women aged 19 and above nationwide. The number of valid responses collected was 1,004. The final educational attainment of respondents was as follows: elementary school or below: 8.9%, middle school: 7.3%, high school: 34.4%, some college/dropout (including junior college): 5.2%, college graduate: 31.8%, and graduate school: 2.5%.

The public opinion survey in Japan was conducted using the self-administered, mail-back method from May 31 to June 22, targeting men and women aged 18 and above nationwide (excluding high school students). The number of valid responses collected was 1,000. The final educational attainment of respondents was as follows: elementary/middle school: 12.4%, high school: 48.4%, junior college/vocational school: 19.3%, college graduate: 17.3%, and graduate school: 1.2%.

Separately from these public opinion surveys, the East Asia Institute and 言論NPO conducted a survey among experts (有識者) in both countries from early to late June. In Korea, questionnaires containing 25 questions extracted from the public opinion survey were distributed via email to approximately 5,000 intellectuals, and responses were received from 424 individuals.

The Korean side distributed questionnaires online to EAI members and affiliates, receiving a total of 393 responses. The Japanese side distributed questionnaires to approximately 6,000 individuals, including opinion leaders in Japan who had participated in past 言論NPO activities, and received responses from 633 individuals. These respondents were considered representative of the average intellectual in Japanese and Korean society, and their responses were intended to complement the findings of the public opinion surveys in both countries by providing a comparative perspective on the perceptions of the general public.

1. State of Mutual Perceptions between Korean and Japanese Publics

1-1. Impressions of the Other Country

Although Koreans' impressions of Japan have slightly improved compared to last year, 70% still hold negative views. Meanwhile, Japanese perceptions of Korea are rapidly deteriorating.

The proportion of Koreans who responded that their impression of Japan is "good" or "generally good" was 17.5% this year, an increase of 5.3 percentage points from last year, but still below 20%. Conversely, the proportion of Koreans who answered "bad" or "generally bad" decreased by 5.7 percentage points from last year to 70.9%, indicating that over 70% still hold negative perceptions of Japan.

The proportion of Japanese who responded that their impression of Korea is "good" or "generally good" was 20.5%, a decrease of 10.6 percentage points from last year. The proportion who answered "bad" or "generally bad" increased by 17.1 percentage points to 54.4%, indicating that a majority hold negative perceptions of Korea... (continued)