Koreans in Their 20s More Patriotic

Awareness of national security among Koreans in their 20s has been increasing year after year and is currently higher than among those in their 30s.

The finding topples the received wisdom that people get more conservative as they get older.

The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs polled 1,000 Koreans last year, and 65.9 percent of respondents in their 20s said the security situation in Korea is very serious, more than 57.2 percent in their 30s and 57.3 percent in their 40s.

When the Ministry of Public Safety and Security carried out a survey on whether people are willing to volunteer in a war or play a supportive role, 78.9 percent of those in their 20s said yes, as against 72.1 percent in their 30s.

In an identical survey in 2010, only 69 percent in their 20s said yes compared to 81.1 percent in their 30s.

Kim Seok-ho, a sociology professor at Seoul National University, said, "People in their 20s did not receive an anti-communist education and are politically apathetic. But because they experienced the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan and shelling of Yeonpyeong Island in their teens or early adulthood, they may have developed conservative and nationalistic views."