Myung-koo Kang

Myung-koo Kang

Assc Professor

Weissman School of Arts and Sciences

Department: Political Science

Areas of expertise:

Email Address: myung-koo.kang@baruch.cuny.edu

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Born and raised in South Korea, I served in the military before coming to the United States to pursue my doctoral studies at the University of California, Berkeley. My academic focus was on International Relations, Comparative Political Economy, and East Asian Studies. I have conducted extensive research on financial crises and government responses to cope with them, with a particular emphasis on the cases of Japan, South Korea, and China. Currently, I teach courses on political economy, the rise of Asia in international affairs, and US-Asia relations.

Education

Ph.D., Political Science, University of California, Berkeley

M.A., Political Science, University of California, Berkeley Berkeley CA

M.A., International Relations, Seoul National University Seoul South Korea

B.A., International Relations, Seoul National University Seoul South Korea

SemesterCourse PrefixCourse NumberCourse Name
Fall 2024POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2024POL4900Political Science Capstone Sem
Fall 2024POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2024POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2024POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2024POL4900Political Science Capstone Sem
Fall 2023POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2023POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2023POL6002HHonors - Political Science II
Spring 2023POL4900Political Science Capstone Sem
Spring 2023POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2023POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2022POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2022POL4900Political Science Capstone Sem
Fall 2022POL6001HHonors - Political Science I
Fall 2022POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2022POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Spring 2022POL5010New York State Assembly and Se
Spring 2022POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2022POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Fall 2021POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2021POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2021POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Fall 2021POL4900Political Science Capstone Sem
Spring 2021POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2021POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2020POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2019POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Spring 2019POL5000Independent Study POL I
Spring 2019POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Spring 2019POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Spring 2019POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Spring 2019POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Spring 2019POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2019POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2019POL6002HHonors - Political Science II
Fall 2018HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2018AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2018POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2018POL6002HHonors - Political Science II
Fall 2018POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2018POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Fall 2018POL5000Independent Study POL I
Fall 2018POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Fall 2018POL6001HHonors - Political Science I
Spring 2018POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2018POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Spring 2018POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Spring 2018POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2017POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2017POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2017POL3999Spec Top In Pol Sci
Fall 2017POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Fall 2017AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2017POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Spring 2017AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2017HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2017POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2017POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2017POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Spring 2017POL5452Field Work Govt Pol
Fall 2016POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2016POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2016AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2016POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Spring 2016AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2016POL5000Independent Study POL I
Spring 2016POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Spring 2016POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2016POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2016HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2015POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2015POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2015POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2015POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2015POL6002HHonors - Political Science II
Spring 2015AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2015HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2015POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2015POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Fall 2014AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2014HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2014POL6001HHonors - Political Science I
Fall 2014POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Fall 2014POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2014POL5000Independent Study POL I
Spring 2014POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Spring 2014POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2014HIS3346The Rise of Asia World Affairs
Spring 2014IDC6002HHonors IDC Thesis II
Spring 2014AAS3346The Rise Of Asia World Affairs
Fall 2013POL3346The Rise Of Asia-World Aff
Fall 2013POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2013IDC6001HHon Idc Thesis I
Spring 2013POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2013POL3103Political Economy
Spring 2013POL5000Independent Study POL I
Fall 2012POL3103Political Economy
Fall 2012POL3103Political Economy

Journal Articles

Kang, M. (2018). Financial Transformation in South Korea: The role of U.S.-trained Technocrats. Asian Survey, 58(4). 635-659.

Kang, M. (2018). The Confidence Trap: Japan's Past Bubble and China's Recent Bubble. New Political Economy, 23(1). 1-26.

Kang, M., & Ha, E. (2015). Government Responses to Financial Crises: Identifying Patterns and Policy Origins in Developing Countries. World Development, 68. 264-281.

(2014). The Politics of Bank Bailout in Japan: A Cognitive Capture and Leadership View. The Pacific Review, 27(2). 193-215.

(2014). Democratic Transition and Intra-Party Politics: The Distribution of Key Party Positions in Democratizing South Korea. The Journal of Korean Studies, 19(1). 7-36.

Kang, M., & Ha, Y. (2011). Creating A Capable Bureaucracy with Loyalists: The Internal Dynamics of the Korean Developmental State, 1948-1979. Comparative Political Studies, 44(1). 78-108.

Kang, M. (2010). Is Japan Facing a Public Debt Crisis? Debt Financing and the Development of the JGB Market. Asian Politics and Policy, 2(4). 557-582.

(2009). Too Fast To Adjust: The Sequence and Consequences of Bank Restructuring in South Korea. Asian Survey, 49(2). 243-267.

Book Chapters

Kang, M. (2016). A Unified Financial Supervisory Model in South Korea: Origins and Evolution. In Yung Lee, H., & Kim, S. (Eds.), The Changing Role of Korean State: In the Post Developmental Era (pp. 73-92). Logos Verlag Berlin.

Kang, M., & Haggard, S. (2015). The Politics of Growth in South Korea: Miracle, Crisis, and the New Market Economy. In Lancaster, C., & van de Walle, N. (Eds.), Oxford Handbook on the Politics of Development (p. 15 pages). Oxford. Oxford University Press.

Kang, M. (2015). Fiscal Performance in South Korea (1970-2012): Growing Non-Budgetary Indiscipline. In Park, G., & Ide, E. (Eds.), Shifting Fortunes: Deficits and Debt in the Industrialized Democracies (pp. 116-145). New York, NY. Routledge.

Kang, M. (2014). South Korea's Foreign Economic Policies and Government Policies. In Ravenhill, J., Foot, R., & Pekkanen, S. (Eds.), Oxford Handbook of International Relations in Asia (pp. 199-216). Oxford University Press.

Kang, M. (2014). Government Intervention for Resolving Non-Performing Loans in Japan and South Korea, 1998-2006. In Yung Lee, H. (Ed.), A Comparative Study of East Asian Capitalism (pp. 45-77). University of California, Berkeley. Institute of East Asian Studies.

Kang, M. (2011). Global Financial Imbalances and Asia’s Strategic Choice. Beyond National Boundaries: Building a World without Walls (pp. 251-285). Seoul,South Korea. The Academy of Korean Studies.

Media Contributions

Kang, M. (2021). Benchmark the Trans-Atlantic Alliance (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). Save the Goose that Lays the Golden Eggs (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). In the case of Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal” (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). Reforming the National Assembly: The New Politics for a New Era (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). John Bolton’s Memoir and American Exceptionalism (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). The Future Prediction: Hedgehog vs. Fox (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). The Failure of the U.S. Government's cope with the COVID-19 Pandemic (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). A More Bold Fiscal Policy Is Necessary.

Kang, M. (2020). Economy precedes fiscal rules.

Kang, M. (2020). Can the Biden Administration Restore the Liberal International Order? (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). Trump Is Gone, but Trumpism Remains (in Korean).

https://www.nuac.go.kr/pblcteBbs/list.do?bbsId=NABSMSTR000000000009

This essay explores the U.S. election result, focusing on the question of why people Trump support was so high and how it will have impacts on the U.S. domestic politics.

Kang, M. (2020). Now is the Time to Discuss the Disaster Basic Income (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2020). The Coming U.S. Election and Iran, North Korea Issues (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2019). After the Nuclear "No Deal" between the US and North Korea (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2019). The Negotiation of Military Cost-sharing between the U.S. & South Korea (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2019). What should be done to cope with the economic slowdown? (in Korean).

(2019). CGTN America.

(2019). CGTN.

(2019). China Global TV Network.

(2019). China's Global TV Network.

(2019). CGTN America.

(2019). CGTN America.

(2019). CGTN America.

(2019). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN america.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). Russian Television.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). CGTN America.

(2018). Russian Television.

(2018). Chinese Global TV Network.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

(2017). CGTN America.

Government Reports or Monographs

Kang, M. (2021). US-ROK Alliance for More Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. pp.38-55.

Presentations

Kang, M. (2025, January 17). A Better Future for the US-ROK Alliance. 2022 RINSA Security Forum. Seoul, South Korea: The Center for Security Studies, The Korea National Defense University.

Kang, M. (2025, November 23). A Transformation Era: The Biden Administration's foreign policy toward the Korean Peninsula. The Great Shift: Continuity and Change in World Politics. Seoul, South Korea: The Korea National Defense University.

Kang, M. (2020, December 1). The future of the US-ROK Alliance after the 2020 US presidential election. 2020 U.S. Presidential Election and the Future of U.S.-ROK Alliance. Virtual Zoom meeting: Former Members of Congress: The Congressional Study Groups.

Kang, M. (2019, May 2). Three Critical Issues in US-ROK Alliance. ROK-US Track 2 Strategic Conversation. Washington, D.C.: Sejong Institute, Brookings Institution.

Kang, M. (2019, May 25). The Collapse Thesis of North Korea and Its Critiques. Institutionalization of the Peace Process on the Korean Peninsula. Washington, D.C.: Korea Law Research Institute & Law School of American University.

Kang, M. (2019, June 19). Revisiting the Collapse Thesis of North Korea: The Origins and Its Evolution in the U.S. Policymaking Community. The Korean Peninsula and US-ROK Alliance: Credibility, Connectivity, and Practicality. Washington, D.C.: Korea Economic Institute of America.

Kang, M. (2019, September 23). Promoting regional consensus on the path toward peace in Korea. Seoul-Washington Forum Fall 2019. Washington, D.C.: Council of Foreign Relations & Sejong Institute.

Kang, M. (2019, September 24). Cost-sharing issues in US-ROK relations. ROK-US Alliance Cooperation International Conference. Washington, D.C.: Sejong Institute & Hudson Institute.

Kang, M. (2018, April 7). The Historical Origins of the One-Man Dominance (Chongsu) in Korean Chaebols: A Financial Control Thesis. 59th Annual Convention. San Francisco: International Studies Association.

Kang, M. (2018, May 24). Emulation: A Korean Model of Economic Development. University of California, San Diego: School of Global Policy and Strategy(GPS)’s Korea-Pacific Program.

Kang, M. (2018, April 6). Monetary Spillovers to Developing Asia. 59th Annual Convention. San Francisco: International Studies Association.

Kang, M. (2018, August 30). A Captured State: Big Business and Its Network Politics in South Korea. Annual Meeting. Boston: American Political Science Association.

Kang, M. (2016, March 1). Japan's past, Korea's future? A Korean model of financial liberalization and its consequences. : The Center for Korean Studies (University of Washington).

Kang, M. (2016, November 17). A Novel Solution or Mimicry? A Korean Model of Financial Liberalization. Kim Koo Forum on Korea Current Affairs. Harvard University: Korea Institute.

Kang, M. (2015, June 27). Diffusion, Institutional Templates and Mutation: The Korean Case of Financial Liberalization. Yeosu Summer Conference. Yeosu, South Korea: Korea Association for International Studies.

Kang, M. (2015, December 15). A Korean Institutional Template: A Conceptual Framework. Workshop on Korean Politics. Seoul, Korea

Kang, M. (2015, December 11). China's Asset and Credit Bubble: Is it different from Japan's one?. Annual Conference. Seoul, South Korea: the Korea Association for International Studies.

Kang, M. (2014, May 25). Is China’s Bubble Different? Lessons from the Japanese Bubble Economy of the 1980s. 10th Shanghai Forum. Shanghai, China: Fudan University.

Kang, M. (2013, August 12). Fiscal Performance in Korea. Explaining Fiscal Performance: An International Study. Los Angeles: Loyola Mary Mount University.

Kang, M. (2013, January 6). The Politics of Fiscal Performance in Korea. Explaining Fiscal Performance: An International Study. Tokyo, Japan: Keio University.

Kang, M. (2013, June 29). Addiction to Uncertainty: Regulatory Rush and the Exceptional Growth of Financial Derivatives Markets in South Korea. Annual Fellow Program. Seoul, South Korea: East Asia Institute.

Kang, M. (2013, April 12). Fiscal expansion vs. Austerity: A Comparative Analysis of Fiscal Policy Shift in the United States, Germany, Britain, and Japan. Annual Meeting. Chicago: The Mid-West Political Science Association.

Kang, M. (2011, December 21). Freer Markets, Unrealized Gains: The Consequences of Capital Market Liberalization in Korea. Critical Issues in Korean Political Economy. Berkeley, CA: Center for Korean Studies.

Kang, M. (2011, February 18). Government Responses to Financial Crises: Identifying Patterns and Policy Origins. The first Southern California Comparative Political Science conference. Riverside, CA: Dept. of Political Science, U.C. Riverside.

Kang, M. (2011, September 4). Government Responses to Financial Crises: Identifying Patterns and Policy Origins. APSA Annual Meeting. Seattle: American Political Science Association.

Kang, M. (2011, November 6). Politics after Democratization. Seoul National University Brain Network Workshop. Los Angeles, CA: Seoul National University Alumni Association.

Kang, M. (2010, February 27). A Financial Hub in East Asia: Is it Possible and Desirable for Korea?. Symposium on "Contemporary Korea: Problems and Prospects". Los Angeles, CA: Center for Korean Studies, UCLA.

Kang, M. (2010, September 29). Global Financial Imbalances and Asia’s Strategic Choice. The 2010 Global Forum on Civilization and Peace. Seoul, Korea: The Academy of Korean Studies.

Kang, M. (2010, October 29). Economic Ties between Japan and Korea. The Future of Korea-Japan Relations: Economics, Culture and History. Los Angeles, CA: The Korean Studies Institute, USC.

Kang, M. (2009, February 27). The Irony of Korean Financial Reforms: Why Does Korea Suffer More?. Korean studies colloquium series. Berkeley, CA: Center for Korean Studies, U.C. Berkeley.

Kang, M. (2009, March 28). Government Intervention for Resolving Non-Performing Loans in Japan and South Korea, 1998-2006. Conference on East Asian Capitalism. Berkeley, CA: Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley.

Kang, M. (2009, May 5). Global Financial Crisis and the Systemic Risk in the Korean Banking Sector. Academic Paper Series. Washington, D.C.: The Korea Economic Institute.

Kang, M. (2009, June 22). Cross-border Banking and Financial Regulatory Reforms in South Korea. Korea University, Seoul, Korea: The Academy of Korean Studies and the Institute of East Asian Studies at U.C. Berkeley.

Kang, M. (2009, October 10). Surgical vs. Non-Surgical Intervention: Two Ways of Resolving Non-performing Loans. The Rising stars in Korean Social Sciences. Los Angeles, CA: The Korean Studies Institute, USC.

Kang, M. (2009, September 4). Public Debt and Fiscal Consolidation in Japan: An Analysis on the JGB Markets. APSA Annual Meeting. Toronto, Canada: American Political Science Association.

Kang, M. (2008, November 22). Financial Liberalization, the Crisis and Recovery in Korea. Workshop at "Strengthening Korean Studies". Berkeley, CA: Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley.

Other Scholarly Works

Kang, M. (2024). A Tale of Two Koreas: From Reunification Dreams to the Two State Reality. The New Paradigm: A Magazine of Global Perspectives.

Kang, M. (2020). The Lesson of the Brexit (in Korean).

Kang, M. (2019). The Trump Risk and US-North Korea Nuclear Talks. 6.

Reviews

Kang, M. (2017,August 1). A Korean Model of Development: Sustainable and Transferrable. Cambridge University Press: Journal of Asian Studies.

Kang, M. (2013,February 1). Review of Asia’s Unknown Uprisings. New Political Science.

Kang, M. (2010,January 1). Review of East Asian Regionalism. Journal of East Asian Studies.

Kang, M. (2008,April 1). Review of Korea in Asia: East Asian Integration and the China Factor. Journal of East Asian Studies.

Kang, M. (2006,April 1). Review of Japan's Financial Crisis:Institutional Rigidity and Reluctant Change. Pacific Affairs.

Research Currently in Progess

Kang, M.(n.d.). Chasing Emulation: A Korean Model of Financial Development. In Progress.

Completing a full manuscript, while looking for publishers.

Kang, M.(n.d.). Diverging Perceptions: U.S.-ROK Alliance and the North Korean Nuclear Crisis. In Progress.

This is a book project and I have applied for the Woodrow Wilson Center for a 9-month residential fellowship from Fall 2021 to Spring 2022.

TitleFunding Agency SponsorStart DateEnd DateAwarded DateTotal FundingStatus
Revisiting the Regime Collapse Thesis: The Case of the North Korean Nuclear CrisisPSC-CUNY 4907/01/201806/30/201904/15/20183499.52Completed
Revisiting the North Korean "Regime Collapse Thesis": The Origins and Its Evolution in the U.S. Policymaking CommunityKorea Institute for International Economic Policy12/01/201805/31/201911/30/201831500Completed
Unconventional Monetary Easing Policies and Their Global Spillover EffectsPSC-CUNY 4807/01/201706/30/201804/14/20173499.02Completed
In China's Bubble Different? Comparison with the Japanese Bubble Economy in the 1980sPSC-CUNY 4707/01/201606/30/201704/15/20163500Completed
Honor / AwardOrganization SponsorDate ReceivedDescription
Postdoctoral fellowshipStanford University (Asia Pacific Research Center)2006A post-doc fellow for the Shorenstein Asia Pacific Research Center.
Scholarship for foreign studiesThe Korean Foundation for Advanced Studies1998Scholarship for 5 year Ph.D. study (full tuition with living expenses)

Department

Committee NamePosition RoleStart DateEnd Date
Assessment Coordinator2/1/2021Present
Making Internship Blog & Maintenance11/1/20168/31/2019
New Recruitment for IR/Comparative PoliticsAttendee, Meeting9/1/201611/30/2016
Online Course Development Coordinator3/1/20152/28/2016
Honors program, Second reader1/1/201412/31/2014
New recruitment for European politicsCommittee Member10/1/201411/30/2014

College

Committee NamePosition RoleStart DateEnd Date
Assessment CoordinatorCommittee MemberPresent
Assessment CoordinatorPresent
Awards CommitteeCommittee Member4/3/2024
Awards CommitteeCommittee Member4/5/2023
Comparative Politics Recruitment CommitteeCommittee Chair5/15/2022
Making Internship Blog & Maintenance8/31/2019
Honors Thesis CommitteeCommittee Member7/31/2019
Curriculum CommitteeCommittee Member5/31/2019
Global Governance series seminar, The Weissman Center for International BusinessSpeaker4/12/2018
New Recruitment for IR/Comparative PoliticsAttendee, Meeting11/30/2016
Online Course Development Coordinator2/28/2016
Global Studies Minor ProgramAttendee, Meeting10/31/2015
Honors program, Second reader12/31/2014
New recruitment for European politicsCommittee Member11/30/2014
The Weissman Center for International BusinessSpeaker11/20/2014
College For a Day ProgramFaculty Mentor10/25/2013

Professional

OrganizationPosition RoleOrganization StateOrganization CountryStart DateEnd DateAudience
Manuscript reviewer: The British Journal of Political Science, Journal of Political Studies, Review of International Political Economy, Governance, Journal of Politics and Policy, New Political Economy, Asian Survey, Socio-Economic Review, The Journal of the Society for Social Studies, Journal of Asian Studies, Democratization, Current Sociology, The Journal of Japanese Political Science, Asian Politics and Policy, Political Studies, Journal of Government and Opposition, Journal of Contemporary Asia, Journal of East Asian Studies1/1/2011Present
Workshop Organizer, "A Korean Institutional Template: A Conceptual Framework"12/15/201512/15/2015
Panel Discussant, The Mid-West Political Science Association4/1/20134/30/2013
Panel Co-Organizer, American Political Science Association9/1/20099/30/2009

Public

OrganizationPosition RoleOrganization StateOrganization CountryStart DateEnd DateAudience
Kyunghyang Shinmun (Korean daily newspaper)Columnist10/3/20198/15/2021International
TV Commentator for Korea & East Asian affairsCGTN America4/1/20172/28/2020