Job Search and Network Dynamics: The Socioeconomic Transformation of Koreans in Japan

Abstract

As interest in ethnic groups and their entrepreneurial activities has grown in recent years, economic sociology, immigration and ethnic studies, and economic geography have come to emphasize . the importance of, ethnic social structures as the source of economic action to propel business growth. The Polanyian-Granovetterian concept of embeddedness is among those often used in this respect. The debates about embeddedness highlight the short-term benefits within co-ethnic networks, but do not illuminate the effects of network dynamics over time and the broader formal networks.
This article illustrates how job search networks are diverse and transformative in an ethnic community. It concerns the extent to which Korean networks for job searches are embedded in their social relations, and at the same time considers formal networks beyond co-ethnics. The research is based on a questionnaire survey of the Korean community in the Osaka metropolitan area conducted by the author in 1998. Unlike new immigrants, recently the legal status of established Koreans in Japan has been changed to a category called “special permanent residents.” They are, however, basically treated within the same legal framework of policies toward foreigners in Japan.
Findings from this study indicate that for some subgroups economic action is deeply embedded in co-ethnic informal networks, while for other subgroups it is not so deep. That is, the extent differs with respect to occupation, gender, and generation. Among various occupations, the self-employed tend to rely strongly on family ties. They are mostly male family members whose self-employed status evolved through generational succession. These findings also show that many employees gravitate toward co-ethnic companies, and most of them rely on relatives and ethnic ties. These employment tendencies have allowed the establishment of an ethnic economy.
On the other hand, it was found that women and younger generations rely less on co-ethnic networks and instead rely more on formal networks. Therefore, their occupations became more diverse and they tend to be less dependent on self-employment. The implication is that their networks are geared toward a wider society or social space.
These various networks result in different outcomes in employment. The divergence and transformation in job networks can be explained by their better education as well as the institutional relaxation of discrimination against foreign employees. Thus it seems likely that the economic life of the Korean community will gradually become embedded in wider Japanese society.
The conclusions suggest that networks for job search can vary over time, can change differentialy for different segments of the resident community, and therefore can have disparate effects on embeddedness. These emprical findings show that it is necessary to consider the network dynamics in order to understand the forms of socioeconomic adoptation and mobility. The findings also have implications for the trajectory of other immigrant incorporation into the host society.