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Global Business Cultural Analysis: Republic of Korea

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Submitted By finisonds
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Global Business Cultural Analysis: Republic of Korea

Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to provide information to business professionals about the Republic of Korea, the Korean culture, and the peculiarities of conducting business in this country. The topics discussed include a brief historical background about the nation, its dimensions of culture, how these elements are integrated by Koreans, and a comparison between these characteristics and American culture and business practices. The paper examines the implications for US firms wishing to do business in Korea using Hofstede’s Dimensions of culture, a SWOT analysis, and FDI analysis. Keywords: culture, religion, Confucianism, innovation, export, KORUS FTA

Historical Background of Korea
The Republic of Korea (ROK) is commonly known as South Korea. For the remainder of this paper, the ROK will be synonymous with "Korea". Korea is located in northeast Asia on the Korean peninsula between the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan. It borders the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), also called North Korea (nK), immediately to the north, across the 38th parallel. Korea's total land area is nearly 62,000 miles, slightly larger than Indiana (www.cia.gov). It has an ethnically homogeneous population of over 49 million people, 83% of which live in urban areas (www.cia.gov).
According to legend, Korea's birth as a nation was in 2333 BC with its early inhabitants coming from and heavily influenced by China (Kim, 2012). Mark Peterson, associate professor of Korean Studies at Brigham Young University summarizes Korea's early history with the following description: “periods of war were relatively few, and the intervening spans of peace were long. Dynasties in Korea were long-lasting and transitions between dynasties were remarkably smooth” (Volle, 2013). "Korea suffered six years of war in over

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