Concentrated Social Networks and Domain-Specific Meritocratic Perceptions in South Korea

• In Event: Inequality and Equality

Abstract

Why do individuals perceive their society as meritocratic? While prior research has documented the consequences of meritocratic beliefs, less is known about how such perceptions are socially formed. Building on recent network-based theories, this study examines whether concentration of social ties within institutionally stratified contexts shapes domain-specific meritocratic perceptions. Drawing on Mijs and Usmani’s model of societal segregation and Otero and Mendoza’s emphasis on reflexivity, we hypothesize that institution-based network concentration fosters meritocratic perceptions through conditioned attribution and constrained reflexivity.
Using data from the 2022 Social Relationship and Everyday Life of Koreans Survey (N = 2,744), we analyze how concentration of ties among school alumni, co-workers, and neighbors is associated with perceptions of the importance of talent and effort in three mobility domains: escaping poverty, entering the middle class, and becoming a millionaire. Ordinal logistic regression models reveal a consistent hierarchical ordering: neighbor concentration exhibits the strongest positive association with meritocratic perceptions, followed by co-worker and school alumni concentration. Moreover, effects vary across mobility domains, suggesting that individuals develop distinct inferential frameworks for different levels of economic achievement.
These findings provide individual-level evidence for the network-based formation of meritocratic perceptions and demonstrate that such perceptions are multidimensional rather than generalized ideological commitments. By situating meritocratic beliefs within institutionally structured social networks, this study advances research on social stratification and highlights how relational environments may contribute to the legitimation and reproduction of inequality.

Authors

• Chanki Yoo, University of Massachusetts-Amherst

• Kyeong-Jun Kim, Seoul National University