Page 24 - IJPS-6-2

Impact of 2018 winter Olympics on the Korea Wave

food, brands, and popular culture – has grown (Onishi, 2019). Hallyu has been successful across Asian countries, such as
Japan, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Thailand, and has recently spread to the Middle East, South America, Africa,
and the United States (Shim, 2006). This global success cannot be achieved without public interest and an affinity for
Hallyu.
Whether an individual likes a particular object is a reliable indicator of their attitude and future behavior. The audience’s
favorability toward Korean culture has some expansion effects. In particular, the favorability of Korean culture, such as
Korean celebrities and dramas, has led to a better image of Korea as a nation held by consumers in other countries, which
in turn has led to a preference for Korean products and travel destinations (Lee, Ham, and Kim, 2015). Hallyu can be
indirectly used as a promotion for Korean brands (Hong and Liu, 2009). Sports have been continuously attractive and
appreciated by viewers around the world. Especially in the case of mega-sport events such as the Olympic Games, the
host nation’s traditions and popular culture can be positively shaped through the overall image of the country (Florek,
Breitbarth, and Conejo, 2007).

1.3.3. Influence of Hallyu in the US
Popular culture has traditionally flowed from the West to the rest of the world (Schiller, 1971). American media have
been especially dominant on the screens of many countries (Hoskins and Mirus, 1988). As a result, it has directly and
indirectly influenced other countries’ cultures. However, with the development of the internet and other emerging media,
the boundaries of culture transferred through media have become blurred (Tunstall, 2008). In that regard, the spread of
Hallyu through emerging media has also affected viewers across borders (Jung, 2009). Based on the above discussion,
this study proposes the following research question to evaluate the impact of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang
2018 on Hallyu.
Research Question 1: Did the 2018 Winter Olympics affect the audience’s perception of cultural soft power,
involvement, favorability, and influence?

1.4. The Impact of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 on US and Korean Viewers
The image of a country is determined by the way people from other countries view it. A mega-sport event that can
show many positive aspects of the host country to audiences around the world is an opportunity to build national
identity (Gorokhov, 2015). To measure the effects of large events and the impact on other countries’ perception of
host countries, researchers have sought to find differences in the effects of large events according to the viewer’s
nationality. For example, previous studies have described the change in perceptions of China among foreigners,
such as Americans and Koreans, following the 2008 Beijing Olympics (Kim, Kang, and Kim, 2014). Another study
investigated the impact of the Sydney Olympic Games in four countries and found that the features used to describe
Australia had a significant impact on the perceptions of other countries’ citizens (Rivenburgh, Louw, and Loo,
2004). For example, the South African press portrayed Australians in a negative way, and as a result, Australia’s
positive image diminished there after the Games. Based on this point, the second research question is proposed as
follows:
Research Question 2: Are there differences in perceptions of Korean cultural content before and after the Olympics
among Koreans and Americans?

2. Method

2.1. Data Collection

To answer the research questions and assess the impact of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 on Hallyu, this
study conducted two (pre- and post-) online panel surveys among residents of South Korea and the United States. Pre-
and post-event impact assessment is a widely accepted research design to test the impact of an event (Ritchie, Shipway,
and Cleeve, 2009). Survey invitations were emailed to a nationally representative group maintained by online research
companies in Korea and the United States. The first wave of data was collected for a week beginning 2 weeks before the
Olympics and ending a week before the opening ceremonies. For the second wave of data collection, the research team
repeated the survey immediately after the Olympics ended, and it also ran for a week (February 26, 2018-March 3, 2018).
In the first wave, each research panel company distributed the survey links to 2500 people. We received 1057 responses
from Korea and 1012 from America. In an effort to secure at least 500 responses among the second wave participants in
each country, we aimed to collect double the size of the sample. For the second wave, 798 Koreans and 517 Americans

18 International Journal of Population Studies | 2020, Volume 6, Issue 2