Research labs at Korea's QS Top 10 universities including SNU, KAIST, and Yonsei.
Professor Sungman Kang's research lab focuses on behavioral and institutional economics, with a particular emphasis on financial inclusion, crowdfunding mechanisms, and the socioeconomic impacts of crime on vulnerable populations. The lab investigates how funding models in microfinance platforms influence borrower and lender behavior, and examines the long-term mental health consequences of victimization among older adults. Using large-scale, real-world datasets, the lab combines empirical econometrics with policy-relevant analysis to address pressing social and economic challenges.
Professor Je-Hung Ryu's research lab specializes in political behavior, public opinion, and international relations, with a focus on how domestic political elites and social dynamics shape public attitudes toward sensitive national security issues and international institutions. The lab investigates the interplay between elite discourse, social desirability bias, and public support for nuclear weapons, as well as the delegitimization of international organizations through populist rhetoric. Using innovative survey methodologies such as list experiments and survey experiments, the lab aims to uncover unbiased public preferences and the mechanisms driving attitude formation in democratic societies.
Professor Seojeong Oh's research lab specializes in socio-cognitive and behavioral aspects of sustainability and mental health, with a focus on understanding how individuals process complex information and make decisions in high-stakes societal contexts. The lab investigates multimodal emotion recognition through cognition-inspired frameworks, explores the psychological and social determinants of suicidal ideation among caregivers, and examines the role of information quality and cognitive load in shaping climate knowledge and sustainable consumption behaviors. A central theme is the interplay between individual cognition, social context, and systemic challenges in climate action and mental well-being.
Professor Minwoo Kim's research lab focuses on health policy, psychopharmacology, and public health communication, with a strong emphasis on real-world data analytics and innovative health messaging. The lab investigates antidepressant prescribing patterns across diverse populations using national health claims and electronic health record data, while also comparing regulatory and clinical guidelines across major healthcare systems. A key innovative direction involves designing and evaluating ambient outdoor public service advertisements to promote health behaviors, such as mask-wearing, using creative, environment-integrated media. The lab further explores emerging trends in digital advertising, particularly the integration of AI and immersive technologies in advertising strategies.
Professor Yupeng Wei's research lab specializes in Chinese language education, with a focus on Chinese character pedagogy, discourse analysis, and the sociolinguistics of digital communication. The lab investigates the historical and contemporary uses of Chinese characters—particularly 'xizi' (character deconstruction) and network-based linguistic phenomena such as homophonic wordplay and visual wordplay—within both traditional and digital contexts. It also examines curriculum development, vocabulary instruction, and language learning outcomes in international and Korean Chinese language education settings.
Professor Sumin Yu's research lab specializes in classical Chinese literature, with a primary focus on the interplay between mythological archetypes, gender roles, and political ideology in Ming dynasty vernacular novels. The lab explores how literary figures—particularly female characters such as the 'fox spirit' and 'wicked woman'—are constructed through layered cultural and religious discourses, especially within the cosmological framework of the *Fengshen Yanyi* (Investiture of the Gods). The lab investigates narrative strategies that reflect and reinforce sociopolitical ideologies, employing theories from cultural studies, ritual theory, and comparative mythology.
Professor Yuseung Jang's research focuses on the critical examination of classical Korean literary collections (munjip) and their textual transmission, emphasizing the impact of textual accumulation, forgery, and editorial interventions on historical and literary scholarship. His work explores the authenticity and provenance of manuscripts, particularly those related to prominent Confucian scholars such as Jeong Mun-bu, Sim San, and Shin Gwang-soo, while also investigating the historical and cultural significance of private archives and genealogical collections. He further examines traditional Korean naming practices, tracing their roots in Neo-Confucian divination texts and their enduring influence in modern society. His research bridges textual criticism, literary historiography, and cultural studies with a strong emphasis on source-based verification and the deconstruction of scholarly assumptions.
Professor Dongseok Kang's research focuses on the emergence and development of complex social organizations in the Korean Bronze Age, particularly examining settlement patterns, social hierarchy, and ideological mechanisms in regional communities. His work emphasizes multi-scalar interactions through heterarchical frameworks, political power strategies, and spatial network analysis to understand how social complexity evolved beyond simplistic, vertical models. He integrates archaeological data with social network analysis and ideological landscape studies to reconstruct dynamic processes of social integration and control.
Professor Inkyung Choi's research lab specializes in advancing data interoperability and semantic standardization in biomedical and clinical data science. The lab focuses on developing and validating application profiles—such as the FAIR-MIND Application Profile (v3)—that map clinical, biomarker, medication, and provenance data to formal ontologies (e.g., SNOMED CT, EFO, PROV-O, CHEBI) for enhanced FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data management. Through rigorous validation using SHACL and SPARQL competency questions, the lab ensures machine-readability and query expressiveness in large-scale datasets like MIMIC-IV-ECG. Their work bridges clinical informatics, ontology engineering, and health data integration to support reproducible and scalable biomedical research.
Professor Jaeho Yoon's research lab specializes in media theory, documentary studies, and transmedial exhibition practices, focusing on how place-specific documentaries transcend traditional genre boundaries through immersive, sensory-rich environments. The lab investigates the materiality of screen-based media, spatial exhibition strategies, and the transformation of audience experience in hybrid cinematic and artistic installations. By integrating theories from scholars like Juliaiana Bruno, the lab explores how documentary works function as environmental media that reconfigure perception, space, and embodiment.
Professor Kee-Ju Kim's research lab specializes in endocrinology and hypertension, with a primary focus on primary aldosteronism—a treatable form of hypertension. The lab investigates the diagnostic accuracy and procedural challenges of adrenal vein sampling (AVS), particularly emphasizing the technical difficulties and failure rates in the right adrenal vein. Their work aims to improve the reliability of AVS to guide personalized treatment decisions in patients with aldosteronism. The lab also explores the pathophysiology and clinical implications of adrenal hormone excess, contributing to better patient outcomes through precise diagnosis and management.
Professor Tae-yul Kim's research lab specializes in translational biomedical research, focusing on cancer biology, hematological malignancies, and genetic factors in autoimmune diseases. The lab investigates molecular mechanisms underlying acute myeloid leukemia and psoriasis, with an emphasis on identifying genetic markers and improving treatment outcomes through targeted therapies. It also explores innovative regenerative medicine approaches using organoid technology for drug development and precision medicine applications.
Professor Jiwoong Kim's research lab specializes in financial regulation, corporate governance, and financial compliance, with a strong focus on capital markets law, anti-money laundering frameworks, and the legal implications of financial innovation such as virtual assets and convertible bonds. The lab investigates the interpretation and application of key financial statutes, including the Capital Markets Act and customer due diligence regimes, while analyzing judicial developments and international regulatory standards. Current research directions include the legal treatment of insider trading, the implementation of travel rules in virtual asset transactions, and the balance between formal corporate procedures and substantive fairness in shareholder rights. The lab also examines structural challenges in financial regulation, particularly in aligning domestic laws with international standards such as those set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Professor Dongil Han's research lab specializes in the historical and philosophical foundations of law, human rights, and natural law, with a particular focus on medieval and early modern European legal thought. The lab explores the evolution of key concepts such as persona, dignitas, syneidesis, and natural law across classical, Christian, and early modern legal traditions, emphasizing their enduring relevance to contemporary political and ethical challenges. Research directions include the intellectual history of human dignity, the development of conscience in ancient and medieval thought, and the legacy of Scholastic legal philosophy in shaping modern legal and political systems. The lab also investigates how historical legal frameworks inform current global governance and human rights discourse.
Professor Nak-hee Hyun's research focuses on civil procedure law, with particular emphasis on class action litigation, procedural fairness, and the right to a speedy trial in civil proceedings. Her work critically examines the structural and doctrinal challenges in collective redress mechanisms, especially in the context of securities litigation and the proposed general class action legislation in South Korea. She also investigates procedural rights related to deposits, execution, and the interplay between substantive and procedural law, often analyzing landmark Supreme Court decisions to inform legal reform. Her research bridges doctrinal analysis with practical judicial reform, aiming to enhance access to justice and procedural efficiency.
Professor Hyun Seong Kim's research lab specializes in clinical and sports medicine research, with a focus on performance analysis in collegiate athletics and the assessment of physical function in older adults. The lab conducts quantitative studies using statistical modeling and biomedical diagnostics to identify key performance indicators in university basketball and to validate objective measures like the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) for geriatric health. Additionally, the lab explores biomarkers in chronic disease, particularly cardiac troponins in end-stage renal disease patients, contributing to clinical decision-making in cardiology and nephrology.
