Democracy Cluster

Title

In Search of Democratic Development Policies for Building Sound Governance

Topic

    Over the past three years (April 2022 – June 2025), the Democracy Cluster has worked to explore the conditions and pathways for a paradigm shift in Korean democracy, while also striving to disseminate the outcomes of its research and activities. Its efforts have centered on a broad range of initiatives: from research on the current state of democracy worldwide, to inquiries into the directions and methods for institutional reforms in Korean politics; from the development and implementation of surveys designed to reassess Koreans’ perceptions of democracy, to activities promoting democratic innovations and deepening civic education. In the process, the Cluster has organized numerous academic conferences, seminars, workshops, and lectures, while also engaging actively in international conferences, conducting youth mock elections and democracy perception surveys, and publishing special issues in academic journals.

    Looking ahead, the Democracy Cluster aims to build on its achievements and develop more systematic research and activities on timely and important academic and policy themes. In particular, it seeks to identify solutions for revitalizing the public sphere and realizing “good governance” amid a multilayered crisis of democracy characterized by partisan politics and polarization, distrust in political institutions such as parties and the judiciary, distortions in the media ecosystem, and a fragile civil society. More concretely, the Democracy Cluster will pursue research and activities on five key themes. First, three ongoing themes—“Survey on Perceptions of Korean Democracy,” “Reform of Korean Political Institutions,” and “Democratic Innovations and Civic Education”—have been consolidated through the Cluster’s work over the past three years, and will be further advanced through sustained research, educational activities, and refinement over the next three years. In addition, two new themes—“Technological Development and Democracy” and “Democratic Governance Beyond the Developmental State”—have been newly planned. Through this expansion, the Cluster will foster discussions on the impact of rapidly evolving information and communication technologies on contemporary democracy, as well as on new forms of governance that move beyond the particularities of Korea’s past developmental state model.

Director

 교수
JeongHun Han Professor (SNU Graduate School of International Studies)
  • - Ph.D. in Comparative Politics, Political Methodology, University of Rochester, USA (2007)
  • - Professor, Graduate School of International Studies, SNU

Researcher

한정훈 교수 Photo
Cluster Leader

JeongHun Han

Cluster Leader, Professor
Graduate School of International Studies, SNU
Research Field :
Comparative Politics, Korean Politics, European Politics, Elections and Parliamentary Politics, Party Politics
강명훈 부교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Myunghoon Kang

Associate Professor
Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, POSTECH
Research Field :
Political Institutions, Political Behavior, Energy and Environmental Politics
권형기 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Hyeong-ki Kwon

Professor
College of Social Sciences, SNU Department of Political Science and International Relations
Research Field :
Comparative Politics, Political Theory, European Politics, Comparative Political Economy
금현섭 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Hyunsub Kum

Professor
Graduate School of Public Administration, SNU
Research Field :
Distributive Policy, Welfare Policy, Policy Evaluation, Methodology
김주형 부교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Joohyung Kim

Associate Professor
College of Social Sciences, Department of Political Science and International Relations, SNU
Research Field :
Contemporary Political Thought, Democracy Theory, Social Theory
김현섭 교수 Photo

Hyun-Seop Kim

Professor
College of Humanities, Department of Philosophy, SNU
Research Field :
Ethics, Political Philosophy, Legal Philosophy
모경환 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Kyung-Hwan Mo

Professor
College of Education, Department of Social Studies Education, SNU
Research Field :
Social Studies Education and Civic Education
엄석진 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Seok-Jin Eom

Professor
Graduate School of Public Administration, SNU
Research Field :
Historical Analysis of Korean Administration, History of Korean Public Administration, Conflicts and Debates in Administrative Theory, AI Government and Governance
윤광일 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Kwang-Il Yoon

Professor
College of Social Sciences Department of Political Science and International Relations
Research Field :
Political Behavior, Political Psychology, Political Culture
이상신 선임연구위원 Photo
Participating Researcher

Sangsin Lee

Senior Research Fellow
Korea Institute for National Unification
Research Field :
Political Psychology, Political Behavior, American Politics, Public Opinion Polling
임경훈 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

KyungHoon Leem

Professor
College of Social Sciences, Department of Political Science and International Relations, SNU
Research Field :
Comparative Politics (Political Change, Russia), Post-Communist Transition, Democracy/Dictatorship
전종익 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Jong ik Chon

Professor
School of Law, SNU
Research Field :
Constitution
정재은 교수 Photo
Participating Researcher

Jason J. Jung

Professor
School of Computer Science and Engineering, Chung-Ang University
Research Field :
Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Social Media

Footage

Democracy Cluster Inaugural Ceremony

Events

권력구조 개편방안: 정치학과 헌법학의 대화

Reforming the Power Structure: A Dialogue Between Political Science and Constitutional Law

  • Date : 2025-05-30
  • Location :
  • Host :
한국 민주주의의 개혁: 선거 경쟁에서 ‘의지 형성(will formation)’으로의 관점 전환

Reforming Korean Democracy: A Shift in Perspective from Electoral Competition to Will Formation

  • Date : 2025-05-22
  • Location :
  • Host :
4 19혁명 65주년 기념포럼: 개헌과 한국 민주주의의 위기 극복

65th Anniversary Forum of the 4·19 Revolution: Constitutional Reform and Overcoming the Crisis of Korean Democracy

  • Date : 2025-04-18
  • Location :
  • Host :
국가미래전략원 민주주의 클러스터 - (재)의회발전연구회 공동주최: 한국인은 어떤 민주주의를 원하는가

IFS SNU Democracy Cluster - Co-hosted by the (Re)Parliamentary Development Research Association: What Kind of Democracy Do Koreans Want?

  • Date : 2024-11-20
  • Location :
  • Host :
한국 민주주의의 회복탄력성

The resilience of Korean democracy

  • Date : 2024-05-16
  • Location :
  • Host : Democracy Cluster
국가미래전략원 민주주의 클러스터 학술회의: 우리 선거는 충분히 민주적인가?

Institute for Future Strategy Democracy Cluster Conference: Are our elections sufficiently democratic?

  • Date : 2024-04-16
  • Location :
  • Host : Democracy Cluster
한국 정치제도 개혁 대안의 모색

Searching for Alternatives to Reform the Korean Political System

  • Date : 2023-06-19
  • Location : Seoul National University Wooseok Economics Hall 223 Room 504
  • Host : Democracy Cluster
민주주의의 위기와 혁신

The Crisis of Democracy and Innovation

  • Date : 2023-06-09
  • Location : Seoul National University College of Social Sciences International Conference Room 16 Room 349
  • Host : Democracy Cluster, Korea Institute of Politics
민주주의 클러스터 출범 기념식 및 학술회의

Democracy Cluster Inaugural Ceremony and Conference

  • Date : 2022-06-21
  • Location : Seoul National University Wooseok Economics Hall 223 Room 107
  • Host : Democracy Cluster

Publication