Welcoming Difference or Reinforcing the Status Quo? The Influence of Multicultural Television Viewing on Multicultural and Gender Attitudes in South Korea

Drawing on the nascent literature on multiculturalism in Korea, this study explores the influence of viewing South Korean multicultural television content on two attitudinal measures: support for multiculturalism and opposition to sexism. Conducting a survey of South Korean citizens (N = 500) revealed that although heavier viewing of multicultural television content has no significant effect on support for multiculturalism, it does significantly correlate with greater acceptance of sexism. Our quantitative results lend support to the findings of recent qualitative studies that have identified essentialist and sexist tendencies in South Korean multicultural television portrayal of immigrants. Implications of the findings are discussed.