Resentment toward those who are considered to be out-groups in societies seem to be growing, possibly intensified by social comparison and media portrayal of the 'out-groups'. In Europe and North America, these 'out-groups' tend to be those who are racially and cultural different, whereas in East Asia, somewhat surprisingly, there seem to be divisions by age, region, perceived social class and so on which hamper cohesion and tolerance for others. In particular, resentment toward the elders and the privileged amongst young people in Japan and South Korea seems to be strong, as young people in these countries struggle to find satisfaction with life. Observing such attitudes, we investigated the experience and emotions of young people applying scenario testing method. University students in South Korea and Japan rated scenarios on the (un-)fairness and accompanied emotions for different groups (by age and perceived social class). While the results are mixed, we certainly found that out-group perceptions (judged by perceived dissimilarity) are related to feelings of resentment. Our exploratory study has implications for how resentment and out-group perceptions operate in these cultural contexts, and ramifications of such emotions for the wellness of their citizens and the societies. The findings of our study have an important meaning, as one seldom finds studies that focus particularly on Asian countries and social phenomena within these contexts. We argue that more cultural and cross-cultural analyses are necessary for the betterment of the fast-changing Asian societies.

Authors:
Miriam Sang-Ah Park, Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom
Nobuhiko Goto, Kyoto Notre Dame University, Japan
Stephen Badham, Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Miriam Sang-Ah Park is a University Associate Professor/Senior Lecturer at Nottingham Trent University in United Kingdom

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