A new wonderland of Asian migration: Does symbolic politics trump utilitarian politics?

Despite the wave of scholarly enthusiasm over the rising number of foreigners and migrants in Korean society, the public’s side of the story has not been clearly articulated. Against this background, this article – guided by ideas of the symbolic politics and the utilitarian politics approaches – taps into survey data to fully investigate the demand side of determinants contributing to the popular disapproval of the rise of immigrants. Unlike other studies, this article finds that individual immigration preferences reflect multifaceted utilitarian calculus and symbolic predispositions. While affective orientations toward multiculturalism and assimilation ideology influence public attitudes toward immigration policy, scholars have downplayed utilitarian self-interest induced immigration attitudes. Ordered Logit analysis of 2003 Korean National Identity Survey data demonstrates a link between an individual’s utilitarian interests and immigration preference. This analysis suggests that concerns over job security drive negative attitudes regarding the increase of immigrant inflows. Low-skilled respondents are more likely to prefer restricting the rise of migrants. Second, perceived cultural threats are related to negative views toward newcomers. Those supporting multiculturalism are inclined to support increasing immigration. These findings suggest that the factors driving immigration preferences are multifaceted.