Translations (🇺🇸→🇰🇷, selected)
I am Ji-won Lee (이지원, 李志遠), a Ph.D. Candidate in Sociology at the University at Albany, State University of New York. I expect to graduate by December 2025.
Utilizing theoretical perspectives from political and economic sociology, I study social development, social inequality, social reform, status and group consciousness, and qualitative and historical methodology.
My research examines the complex relationship between social mobility and social solidarity. Individuals and groups naturally seek to advance their interests, yet determining the best path forward is rarely simple. This raises key questions: Why do people see their interests or their group's interests aligned with some but not others? What structural and contextual factors shape these perceptions? And how does the pursuit of self interest lead to either greater inequality or, sometimes unexpectedly, more equitable outcomes?
Overall, my research examines how societies can become more inclusive, even as individuals particularly those with power act to maximize their own exclusive advantages.
I study these theoretical interests through empirical subjects, such as Korean and American discourses on the COVID-19 pandemic and anti-Asian racism (*Sociological Perspectives, Sociological Inquiry*), diverging attitudes of Asian American ethnic groups towards race-conscious college admissions (Sociology of Race and Ethnicity), and the political history of egalitarian education reform in post-1945 South Korea (the dissertation project).
I am currently working on translating the methodological discussion in US sociology (e.g., Qualitative Literacy) into the context of Korean society.
Additionally, I am working on reconstructing the hidden and scattered methodological traditions in South Korean qualitative sociology.
I have been involved with several academic community-building efforts, including the Problem-Solving Sociology network, the Association of Korean Sociologists in America (AKSA), and the two organizations under the umbrella of the American Sociological Association (ASA): the Korean Sociologists in America (KSA) Community (KSA) and the Sociology of Development Section. If you have any interest in or questions about any of these initiatives, please let me know.
📧 Email: [email protected] | [email protected]
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