Was "Confucianism" important to the Economic Development of Japan and South Korea?
The rapid growth of the Asian "Tiger" economies gave rise to the idea of an Asian development model, one which consists, perhaps, of a cultural component that is uniquely Asian.
Confucianism, an existential and political philosophy that originated in China and spread through east and southeast Asia, is often mentioned as one such possible component.
More broadly, the interplay between culture and development has fascinated economists and sociologists for generations and is addressed in many of the classics of both disciplines 1. As two relatively closed societies and as Asia's only two large-scale economies to attain the status of developed countries, Japan and South Korea offer an interesting case study for the examination of the importance of Confucianism.
In this short essay, we will provide a working definition of Confucianism; locate it within the broader debate concerning a possible Asian Development Model; gauge the influence, if any, of Confucianism on the economic development of Japan and South Korea, and look briefly at other factors that may have been more significant in explaining the economic development of Japan and Korea.
It should be stressed that our purpose is not to pin down the role of Confucianism in the development of both countries, but to examine wether Confucianism can be considered a substantive factor, both in terms of its particular influence and in light of other, possibly more significant, aspects. Historically, we will focus on the 19th and 20th - the eve of Japanese and Korean industrialization.