Understanding the economic development of Korea: An assessment of Francis Fukuyama's view of cultural and human factors in economic life from the theological ethics

What does culture (or cultural factors) have anything to do with economy or economic growth? This dissertation deals with this question of relationship between culture and economy, confirming that economic matters cannot afford ignoring the (direct or indirect) influence of cultural factors over economic development. It is crucial in understanding global economic issues that the social, cultural, and human factors behind (and sometimes obscured by) the political and economic dramas that capture the headlines must be considered. Its thesis is based upon the confirmation that since human beings are the real actor of all social changes including economy, it is indispensable to analyze the human person and human relationships for seeking solutions to economic problems. Unfortunately, the human/cultural aspects have long been disregarded or underestimated by economists and politicians in their efforts for economic development. In this regard, this work is to maintain that the formulation of a responsible global economy requires a sociological (focusing on Francis Fukuyama's work on cultural and economy) and theological (focusing on Paul Lehmann's concept of humanization) analysis of the structure of human relatedness.;In order for the discussion to be concrete and practical, this dissertation develops its argument in references to the South Korean economy in terms of its developmental characteristics, current difficulties, and solutions for the future, seeking for a more balanced, promising understanding of it. In a word, the current troublesome economic situation of Korea is not merely a matter of political arrangements or of economic policy but also that of cultural factors mainly from Korean Confucian teachings. This suggests that in order to solve the current problems of Korean economy (and of the global economy) the characteristics cultural factors, which hinder the practice of economic plans, should be primarily considered. Underneath the economic growth culture works.