This thesis investigated how Chinese language and culture education as supported by the Confucius Institutes is perceived by secondairy education students in the Netherlands and assesses whether...Show moreThis thesis investigated how Chinese language and culture education as supported by the Confucius Institutes is perceived by secondairy education students in the Netherlands and assesses whether these students experience Chinese influence on their education by conducting interviews. The analysis from the interviews concludes that students have a generally positive experience with learning Chinese, that there is a lot of attention paid to culture education, and that students do not appear to experience any Chinese influence on their education.Show less
This thesis is situated in the current debate on how Soft power can be utilized in policy making and aims to understand the relations between Soft and Hard power. By analyzing the Expo 2030 in...Show moreThis thesis is situated in the current debate on how Soft power can be utilized in policy making and aims to understand the relations between Soft and Hard power. By analyzing the Expo 2030 in Busan bid, this paper will investigate how Soft power is employed to advance economic Hard power in the Republic of South Korea. With social media analysis, focusing on data and content, as well as content analysis of Yet to Come in Busan concert materials, this work will show that Soft power can be successfully implemented for policy making, thus providing a tool for middle power states to improve their international presence. Hence, by exploring the relations between Soft and Hard power in South Korea, this thesis paper will also contribute to understanding how power relations and new forms of public diplomacy are both of international and regional importance. Throughout the case study this paper will argue that by understanding and interacting with social media audiences, Korea follows a two-way communication approach, thus employing Soft power to increase economic Hard power.Show less
In preparation for the 2022 Philippine presidential election, K-pop fans nationwide united to campaign for presidential candidate Leni Robredo. The most crucial organisation that set this in motion...Show moreIn preparation for the 2022 Philippine presidential election, K-pop fans nationwide united to campaign for presidential candidate Leni Robredo. The most crucial organisation that set this in motion, K-pop Stans 4 Leni, created a community to talk politics, campaign for Robredo, and spread truthful information concerning the election. Through interviewing a member of this organisation and circulating a survey, this research aims to research how and why Filipino K-pop fans used K-pop as a tool for their political expression and activism during the 2022 Philippine presidential election and, therefore, how K-pop can be political. Results show that the participants in the organisation are politically active in character. The organisation became a political force using K-pop mechanisms to mobilise many fans swiftly. This research concludes that the organisation used K-pop since it effectively mobilises a large demographic who support their goals. Furthermore, this thesis concludes that K-pop fandom can be political, as shown by KS4GG. However, it cannot be concluded that all aspects of K-pop are political due to a lack of political participation. As this research primarily analyses participants involved with the organisation K-pop Stans 4 Leni, this should be noted as a limitation and allows for further research to be done.Show less
The Great Translation Movement is a digital activity organised by Chinese diasporic netizens, having launched during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The movement seeks to translate the...Show moreThe Great Translation Movement is a digital activity organised by Chinese diasporic netizens, having launched during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The movement seeks to translate the ultranationalist, pro-Russian and anti-Western sentiments, as well as the ongoing discussion about the social events from the China online discourse and show them to the broader audience in the West. In fact, what lies behind online comments such as "Putin the Great", "US is demeaning China," and " the system is fatally broken" is the phenomenon of digital nationalism in China. Thus, this paper examines the two sides of digital nationalism. On the one hand, by promoting nation-patriotism online, the authoritarian regime of China increased support by the Chinese people worldwide. But on the other hand, nation-building in the age of ICT is a complex process that produces unpredictable outcomes, especially under the circumstances such as polarised online discourse and social discord. Thus, this paper examined the most recent data curated by the GTM, aiming to comprehend GTM's participant's ideas and behaviour and the consequences of CCP's engagement in the digital nationalism process.Show less
Hallyu still charges forward as a new and evolved version of itself, dubbed Hallyu 2.0. Adapting to the digital world and expanding online, it is still increasing the spread of South Korean culture...Show moreHallyu still charges forward as a new and evolved version of itself, dubbed Hallyu 2.0. Adapting to the digital world and expanding online, it is still increasing the spread of South Korean culture and the Soft Power of South Korea. One often overlooked sector of this phenomenon is the gaming sector. Despite being by far the most profitable sector, it falls behind music, dramas, movies and other categories when it comes to spread and impact, especially in Europe. This thesis aims to research this discrepancy in financial success and longevity in order to find out why Korean games are relatively unknown in Europe. Discoveries include bad reputation, lack of recognizable attributes, looked down upon mechanics in Korean games and the preferences of European players not being met. This work aims to open the door to future research about the topic.Show less
Social media and videoblogging, or vlogging, are taking over the internet and North Korea is joining this trend. While doing so, the state is reaching out to the international community through...Show moreSocial media and videoblogging, or vlogging, are taking over the internet and North Korea is joining this trend. While doing so, the state is reaching out to the international community through relatable media content and soft power tools. One of the examples, in which North Korea reached out to the international viewer, is the Youtube channel ‘Echo of Truth’. This research aims to answer the question as to how soft power tools are applied in the videos of ‘Echo of Truth’. By using a qualitative visual discourse analysis, it analyzes the videos of ‘Echo of Truth’ to answer this question. This thesis argues that soft power tools, such as cultural and culinary diplomacy, are applied in the videos in order to make these videos more relatable to the international audience. However, not all the videos were found to have used these soft power techniques as traditional propaganda videos were still uploaded to the channel. The sheer differences found in the channel’s videos raised the question of a power dilemma the channel seemed to be facing.Show less
The Covid-19 pandemic has altered how countries project and gain soft power. Within the context of this global crisis, most researchers followed the conventional trend to investigate soft power as...Show moreThe Covid-19 pandemic has altered how countries project and gain soft power. Within the context of this global crisis, most researchers followed the conventional trend to investigate soft power as a resource (i.e., health diplomacy). Yet, scant studies have approached soft power as an outcome. The present thesis fills this gap by examining how countries’ (i.e., United States’ and New Zealand’s) Covid-19 response affected their attractiveness abroad (i.e., in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands). In order to address this inquiry, the theoretical lenses of rational and social attraction are amplified with socio-psychological literature on the Similarity-Attraction Theory. The theories are tested by means of minimalist process-tracing, combined with a cross-case analysis. The findings support the proposition that (in)competencies (demonstrated through the Covid-19 response) sparked rational attraction (or aversion) among foreign audiences. While support indicating the presence of social attraction (or aversion) is detected, it warrants a more cautious interpretation due to case-specific alternative explanations. The findings challenge the assumption that “likeness goes with liking”, by underscoring how dissimilarities tied to success appeared to elicit attraction. Further research should investigate whether this effect is still present when the scope condition is not met.Show less
“Hanban’s website reveals that Confucius Institutes are present all over the world, with 135 institutes in Asia, 187 in Europe, 20 in Oceania, 61 in Africa, and 138 in America and specifically 75...Show more“Hanban’s website reveals that Confucius Institutes are present all over the world, with 135 institutes in Asia, 187 in Europe, 20 in Oceania, 61 in Africa, and 138 in America and specifically 75 in the U.S. In 2009, the website reveals that the institutes offered 9,000 Chinese courses on a worldwide scale, reaching a total enrollment of 260,000 people. However, Confucius Institutes are increasingly surrounded by worldwide criticism due to their affiliation with the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP. Many U.S. politicians and academics are raising concerns about issues regarding academic freedom and more recently of a potential political agenda being carried out by the party through the institutes. The NGO Human Rights Watch reported in January 2020 that 22 CIs have closed in the U.S. since August 2018 after the ‘John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019’ was signed by the Congress (Legerwood, 2020).”Show less
How did the Qing dynasty attempt to legitimize its position in China through means corresponding to aspects of the fourteenth century theory by philosopher Ibn Khaldun? This thesis explores the...Show moreHow did the Qing dynasty attempt to legitimize its position in China through means corresponding to aspects of the fourteenth century theory by philosopher Ibn Khaldun? This thesis explores the content and practical application of this anachronistic theory to the first half of the Qing dynasty as it consolidates its power as a conqueror dynasty.Show less
Since the initial commercialization of the men’s Chinese professional football league, Chinese actors have started investing increasingly more resources in the foreign football sphere. Players,...Show moreSince the initial commercialization of the men’s Chinese professional football league, Chinese actors have started investing increasingly more resources in the foreign football sphere. Players, coaches, trainers and even clubs from all over the world have all been the subject of Chinese investment over the last few decades. Although spending has increased exponentially, the level of both the Chinese professional competition as well as the men’s national team have not improved at the same rate. This study uses existing literature from both academic sources as well as marketing and news reports on the subject to better understand the reasons to why investing in globalized resources has increased while also providing possible explanations to why the level of competitiveness has not been influenced as much. The study suggests that through the frameworks of soft power and state corporatism we can understand the levels of spending as larger state-driven strategy to both stimulate the football industry as well as to improve China’s soft power through international competitions. This study also suggests that based on the current academic and professional discourse surrounding Chinese competitive football, the reason for professional Chinese clubs’ relative low level of performance is due to a lack of incentive for the clubs to invest in future talent development. Although this study’s conclusions remain to be theories based on the interpretations of other academic researchers and experts, it still confirms that there is still much urgency for further research on this subjectShow less
While Russia usually uses soft power to gain influence in the post-Soviet space, it decided to extend its influence in Crimea through an annexation, a strategy that Russia has not used (as of yet)...Show moreWhile Russia usually uses soft power to gain influence in the post-Soviet space, it decided to extend its influence in Crimea through an annexation, a strategy that Russia has not used (as of yet) in other post-Soviet areas. This thesis seeks to explain what factors explain Russia’s decision to annex Crimea next to continuing its soft power strategy. This research uses a constructivist approach and argues that culturally and historically constructed relations shape Russia’s foreign policy, and therefore, Russia’s foreign policy varies within the post-Soviet space. This research uses explaining-outcome process-tracing and a most-similar case study comparison to uncover why Russia decided to annex Crimea. The evidence suggests that while the Russian World is an essential aspect of Russia’s soft power strategy, Russia did not annex Crimea because it seeks to unite all compatriots in the Russian World. Instead, the evidence suggests that Russia annexed Crimea because of Crimea’s historical significance to Russia and because Russia seeks to regain its former great power status in the post-Soviet space.Show less
This thesis examines the UAE’s nation-building effort in the context of the Saudi-led coalition’s military intervention to Yemen (2015-2018). In order to do so, a structuralist approach to...Show moreThis thesis examines the UAE’s nation-building effort in the context of the Saudi-led coalition’s military intervention to Yemen (2015-2018). In order to do so, a structuralist approach to International Relations and nationalism have been combined with a domestic approach to foreign-policymaking. The case study of the Khaleej Times newspaper explores, through a qualitative content analysis, how nation-building and nationalism have been flagged (sign-posted) in news items in the context of the Yemen war. The results show that while the UAE is heavily invested in its military intervention abroad, the news-making is focused on ‘softer’ subjects such as humanitarian aid. On the other hand, the approach of accounting for structural elements proves to be insightful. In a globalised, multipolar world, small states with enough resources can project power ‘above their leagues.’ To sum up, nation-building is certainly a continued effort in the UAE. The UAE relies heavily on its image to fulfil her geopolitical aims. What is apparent from the results of this study is that the UAE relies rather on soft power than “pure” hard power to achieve its foreign policy goals.Show less
In 2008, the same year Barack Obama got elected president, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was launched with the release of Iron Man 1. The launch of the MCU introduced a new era with regard to...Show moreIn 2008, the same year Barack Obama got elected president, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was launched with the release of Iron Man 1. The launch of the MCU introduced a new era with regard to super hero movies. Likewise, the election of Barack Obama promised a different direction for the United States foreign policy. Obama advocated using soft power and diplomacy in order to solve the challenges he had inherited from the George W. Bush Administration. This paper looks at the extent to which Phase One of the MCU reflects, and as such aids, the approach of the Obama administration to foreign policy.Show less
This paper examines the differences between marketing strategies of Japanese and Western entertainment giants The Walt Disney Company and The Pokémon Company. Specifically glocalization strategies...Show moreThis paper examines the differences between marketing strategies of Japanese and Western entertainment giants The Walt Disney Company and The Pokémon Company. Specifically glocalization strategies and media mix strategies are compared to gain a more in-depth understanding of underlying structures of globalization and soft power in the West and Japan. The findings present the uniqueness of marketing strategies used by The Pokémon Company.Show less
The increasing concerns about Confucius Institutes in Northwest-Europe continue to attract attention on a political level and in news media. This research hopes to provide a relevant contribution...Show moreThe increasing concerns about Confucius Institutes in Northwest-Europe continue to attract attention on a political level and in news media. This research hopes to provide a relevant contribution to the current understanding of the developments surrounding Confucius Institutes in Northwest-Europe. Moreover, it hopes to highlight the numerous disparities between different countries in terms of the development, functioning and recipience of Confucius Institutes. Additionally, this research aims to analyse the functioning of these institutes in China’s public diplomacy. It does so by using a case study analysis which researches the sending and the recipient side of public diplomacy activities of Confucius Institutes in Northwest-Europe.Show less
