Sixty-one percent of South Koreans hold favorable views on North Korea’s participation in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, a survey shows. The Korea Press Foundation (KPF) media research center announced results on Jan. 31 from a survey of 1,074 male and female South Koreans over 20, who were asked about their awareness of information on the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, their preferred medal count method, predictions for competition outcomes, and issues regarding North Korea’s participation.
The results showed two-thirds of respondents, or 66%, saying they believed the Pyeongchang Olympics would contribute to peace. Sixty-one percent expressed positive views on North Korea’s participation, while 53% predicted that inter-Korean relations would “improve as a result of the Olympics.” Fifty-eight percent expressed approval of joint cheering, while 54% said they supported use of the Korean Peninsula flag. Seventy-seven percent of respondents said the Olympics would also contribute to cultural advancement, while 70% said they anticipated a positive impact on IT development, 62% on economic development, and 48% on the environment.
Different age groups showed different perceptions on the Olympics. Predictions that the Olympics would contribute to peace were highest among respondents in their forties and fifties at 73%, followed by those over 60 at 62% and those in their twenties at 57%. Predictions that they could contribute to culture, IT, and the environment increased with respondent age groups. In the case of contribution to economic development, predictions were highest among respondents in their twenties at 65% and declined with higher age groups.
42.3% of respondents said they preferred a calculation of country rankings by total number of medals, while 40.9% favored an approach emphasizing gold medals. As events that they hoped to watch, respondents named figure skating (32.2%), short track speed skating (24.8%), and speed skating (11.6%). The most common prediction for South Korea’s medal count was nine to eleven, made by 36.8% of respondents. 55.8% predicted the US would top the total medal rankings.
For the survey, a quota sample was selected from a panel for polling company Market Link, taking into account age group (20 to over 60) and region of residence. The survey lasted four days from Jan. 23 to 26. The response rate was 15.3% (1,074 final responses completed for 7,000 emails sent) and the margin of error was ±3.0 percentage points with a 95% confidence level.
By Park Jun-yong, staff reporter
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