From Passion to Pragmatism

To what extent do economic considerations depress support for unification in South Korea? Survey data consistently show a public supportive of unification, but research rarely captures to what extent the public considers the costs associated with this outcome, nor whether, when given the choice, they consider peaceful coexistence an acceptable alternative, especially given that South Koreans increasingly view North Koreans as not part of the same nation. Using an experiment embedded in a national survey, we find that not only does priming respondents to think of costs depress unification support, but surprisingly it also depresses support for peaceful coexistence. These patterns endure even when controlling for broader views of identity, contact, and beliefs about North Korea. The results suggest the extent to which views on the future of the Korean Peninsula may remain malleable.