BRITISH K-POP FANS ATTITUTES TOWARD THE CONVENTIONAL
BEAUTY STANDARDS OF K-POP MALE IDOLS.
Nguyen Thi Bao Chau
Faculty of Technology
Tóm tắt nghiên cứu – Nghiên cứu này khám phá khái niệm về 'nam tính mềm' (soft masculinity)
và ảnh hưởng của nó đến cái nhìn của người Anh Quốc nói chung và fan K-pop tại Anh Quốc nói
riêng với các thần tượng Nam tại Hàn Quốc. Mục đích của bài nghiên cứu này là khảo cứu khái
niệm ‘nam tính’ trong bối cảnh giao tiếp liên văn hóa để so sánh và tìm ra điểm khác biệt trong
định nghĩa về sự ‘nam tính’ ở Hàn Quốc và Anh Quốc. Kết luận của nghiên cứu chỉ ra rằng mặc dù
hầu như các ứng viên tham gia phỏng vấn đề nhận ra sự khác nhau trong quan niệm về ‘nam tính’
ở Hàn Quốc và Anh Quốc, nhưng điều này không ảnh hưởng đến cách họ nhìn nhận và đánh giá
sự nam tính của những nghệ sĩ nam tại Hàn Quốc.
Abstract - This article explores the concept of Korean “soft masculinity” and how it affects affect
the way British K-pop fans and British, in general, behave toward Korean male idols. The purpose
of this paper is to examine the concept of masculinity from the intercultural communication point
of view to see differences in the definition of masculinity between Britain and Korea. The article
concludes that most of the interviewees were aware of the differences in the definition of
masculinity between Britain and Korea; however, it does not affect the way they view and judges
the manliness of these Korean male idols.
I. Introduction
The cultural construction of sexual orientation, especially the concept of masculinity and
femininity, has long been discussed in cultural and media studies (Edwards 2004; Nayak and Kehily
2013; Aston and Vasquez 2013). However, these researches have been limited to the influence of
media, culture, and society on how we view men and women; less is known about the impact of
intercultural communication on masculinity and femininity ideology. This research, therefore, will
explore the relationship between the masculinity ideology of a culture and the gender-related
attitudes and behaviors of its communities toward conceptions of masculinity of other cultures.
Furthermore, Korean pop (K-pop) popularity, in recent years, has been exploding in the global
market for its extraordinary performance and, especially, its carefully manufactured images (Ota
2015). According to Ainslie (2017), Korean “soft masculinity” has made a significant contribution
to changing the stereotypical portrayals of men across the Asia region. This study, therefore,
inspires me to study the attitudes of British K-pop fans toward the conventional beauty standards
of South Korean pop stars to gain a deeper understanding of how culture affects the way we
communicate within a variety of cultural groups.
II. Research question
Do the differences in the definition of masculinity affect the way British K-pop fans behave toward
their favorite Korean male idols?
III. Literature review
1. Masculinity from the intercultural communication point of view
The definition of masculinity has been the subject of debate among academic disciplines and
culture scholars for a long time (Jandt and Hundley 2007). However, for the study purpose, this
paper will only look at the history of masculinity from the intercultural communication point of
view.
In the article named “Intercultural Dimensions of Communicating Masculinities”, Jandt and
Hundley (2007) argues that the concepts of masculinity vastly “differ among cultures, including
time, location, ethnicity, and sexual orientations”. It means that the definitions of ‘masculinity’ are
quite diverse and can be affected by several factors including intercultural communication.
Hare-Mustin and Marecek (1988) in “The Meaning of Difference: Gender Theory, postmodernism,
and Psychology” also suggest that “most human sex-linked behavior is learned” which means that
the way people view men and women can be affected by communication activities.
2. Flowerboys and Korean “soft masculinity”
In the book “Korean Masculinities and Transcultural Consumption”, Jung (2011) argues that,
contrary to the tough guy images in gangster and detective films in the 80s and 90s, the media
representations of men after the mid-1990s in South Korea are a lot ‘softer’. She goes so far as to
suggest that the pretty boy images or so-called ‘kkonminam’ (literally, ‘men beautiful like flower’)
represent a new kind of masculinity in South Korean contemporary music.
Arambam (2019) even goes further to describe the two main characteristics of the ‘kkonminam’
phenomenon as being excessively concerned with looks1 and not being afraid to show cute
expressions and emotional sides. Therefore, with an aim to study intercultural effects on the
definition of masculinity in the British K-pop fan community, this paper will focus on these two
factors and use them as a guide to design the online interview questions (see appendix A).
However, it is admitted that ‘soft masculinity’ is not the only media representation of Korean men
nowadays. There are a lot more ideals of manliness in Korea modern society such as hegemonic
masculinity (Park 2007; Kim 2014), global masculinity (Jung 2011), corporate masculinity
(Elfving Hwang 2017), and superman masculinity (Praptika 2016). Nevertheless, due to the time
constraints, this study chooses to focus on ‘soft masculinity’ as it has drawn a stark contrast with
the well-muscled masculinity in the West (Park 2007).
IV. Research Methodology
To study the behaviors and beliefs of a community in its natural environment, an ethnographic
approach is used in this research as its method and data collection techniques enable the researcher
to avoid biased questions and improve the credibility of the data (LeCompte and Schensul 2010;
Riemer 2012).
1
K-pop artists not only using make-up for the live broadcasting but also using skin care product for their daily life; and
they are also fashionably dressed (Hwang 2011).
A theory-testing approach is also used to support the application of a semi-structured interview as
it gives the researcher a lot of useful information to set up an in-depth and open-ended interview to
address the ways in which the stereotyped portrayal of British men affects British K-pop fan’s
behavior toward K-pop male idols.
The dataset includes personal information such as age, gender, job, the participant’s engagement
with K-pop culture, their definition of ‘masculinity’, their opinion toward the appearance of K-pop
male idols, and how they reflect K-pop beauty standards in their daily life (see appendix A).
The online interview was conducted via Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp for approximately 20
minutes and was recorded by the researcher’s mobile phone.
It is worth noting that, due to the anticipation of the stay-at-home orders and quarantines of
COVID-19, the researcher was forced to do an online interview. As a result, the researcher was
unable to observe the participants in their daily life activities. Therefore, to make sure the data
collection is accurate and to avoid untruthful answers from the participants, an online observation
guide is used to analyze the verbal behavior of participants during the online interview to support
the data analysis (see Appendix B).
Participant profiles
In this research, seven British K-pop fans (2 males, and 5 females) who currently live in the United
Kingdom (see Appendix E for the participant profiles) were analyzed. The fans had been interested
in K-pop for between 1 year to 8 years which means the research had a wide range of fan
engagement with K-pop culture when comparing the influence of K-pop culture on them. All of
the participants were recruited through a participant recruitment form which was posted on 3
different groups for British K-pop fans on Facebook2 (see Appendix C).
The majority of participants were students from 22 to 33 years old (4 undergraduate students, 2
postgraduate students, 1 freight forwarder). The overwhelming demographic of the participants is
students might possibly be because K-pop is more popular with the young generation (Kim 2017).
V. Findings
Overall, most of the interviewees were aware of the differences in the definition of masculinity
between Britain and Korea; however, it does not affect the way they view and judges the manliness
of these Korean male idols. Some respondents even confess that they tend to focus on the music
rather than the appearance of these Korean male idols. Interestingly, the more these British K-pop
fans engage with K-pop culture the more they are open-minded about Korean ‘soft masculinity’.
1. Korean male idols defy the visual stereotypes of British masculinity
1.1. Soft masculinity
Generally, more than half of interviewees (n = 4) responded that they feel K-pop male idols, in
general, look more feminine than the stereotype of Western masculinity. During the online
2
Namely: KPOP UK, BU KPop Society 19/20 and Kpop Fans UK.
interview, a lot of time, they used words to describe a woman when describing K-pop male idols
such as “baby-faced”, “pretty”, “well-dressed”, “innocent”. These findings further support Jung’s
(2011) work saying that ‘soft masculinity’ is the most common man’s image in the Korean
contemporary music industry.
“They have a very unique style, I mean, different to… what is considered to be the popular
Western male look. The main thing that stands out in their look is the baby-faced look and
the make-up, which isn't really popular on Western platforms. I think that people would
traditionally consider this to be a 'feminine' appearance, I know growing up at schoolboys
were made fun of for looking young or being interested in feminine things such as makeup so
I think for some people it might not be a look that is popular in the UK.” – Interviewee 7.
From this sample answer of interviewee number 7, we can further note that there is a gap between
the conventional beauty standards of men between Britain and Korea which happens because some
characteristics of Korean male idols such as fresh youthful faces and make-up are thought to be too
feminine for man in British traditional society.
The minority (n = 2), who were unsure about their answer whether K-pop male idols look more
feminine or masculine, all agreed that K-pop male idols did have feminine traits. Evidence can be
seen in the sample answer below:
“I think to what people think, the rest of the world, of what a man looks like. I mean a lot of
time, they (K-pop male idols) wear make-up then people can see it as being more feminine,
but I wouldn’t really say that because a lot of time, you look at them, they are generally …
like they are jacking (a freestyle dance move), they look quite masculine even though they
are, sometimes, having feminine traits, like make-up, you know… like that.” – Interviewee 5.
Among seven participants of the research, there was only one interviewee (Interviewee 1) who said
that K-pop male idols look manly, he stated: “I would say they are masculine”. However, after
analyzing his verbal and non-verbal behavior during the interview as follow the online observation
guidance, we suggest that this answer is unreliable as the participant was uncertain about his answer
and he, then, explained that “I don’t really pay attention to what they look like”.
In conclusion, most respondents were aware of the softer masculinity of Korean male idols
compared to the Western traditional stereotype of manliness.
1.2. Heavy makeup looks
In many countries, a man wearing make-up on the street might feel uncomfortable because of the
unwelcome glares from other people toward his manliness or even his gender. However, in South
Korea, it is totally normal to do so as Korea is so used to the image of K-pop male idols wearing
heavy make-up on stage. In the United Kingdom, on the other hand, it does not seem to be that
normal for a manly man to wear make-up on the street. One male participant strongly stated that:
“I would probably say... For me, personally, a guy who uses makeup is not a real man. Too
girly. But men are becoming more and more girly. So that's probably normal now.” –
Interviewee 4.
From the statement above, we suggest that, in British culture, make-up is subconsciously noted as
a sign of femininity. Despite the fact that all of the participants (n = 7) agree that make-up can be
worn by any gender, there are still some people (n = 4) concerned that wearing make-up might
affect a man’s masculinity. Evidence can be seen in one sample answer as below.
“Personally, I think make-up can be worn by any gender and it shouldn’t affect ‘masculinity’,
but I think more generally in society it would be perceived as less masculine to wear
makeup.” – Interviewee 6.
Interestingly, for those participants (n = 2) who have more than 7 years of experience been a Kpop fan, they seem to be more open-minded about Korean men's beauty culture. Take interviewee
number 5 for example:
“Not at all. I think it isn’t enhancing anything, you know. A lot of … I think it is better that
K-pop idols are more honest about the fact that they are wearing make-up. Everyone, like
every man, in UK and America and stuffs they still wear makeup on TV, it just they just don’t
talk about it. Whereas, you know … I think for me it is more attractive that guy, is like … okay
with wearing make-up and kinds of stuff. It doesn’t take away from their masculinity, I think.
They just enhancing what they had.” – Interviewee 5.
Different from the two previous answers (which were from the two K-pop fans who have less than
2 years of experience with K-pop), it is seen that this statement (from interviewee 5) goes beyond
the gender equality point of view to encourage every man to wear make-up. Consequently, it shows
a possibility that K-pop beauty standards (in particular: make-up) can affect British fans’ attitudes
toward British traditional beauty standards of what is called masculinity.
1.3. Acting cute and adorable
There are a few respondents (n = 3) who relate the cute actions of K-pop male idols with Britain
feminine traits; others (n = 4), however, think that they are so used to K-pop culture that it does not
affect them in such a way. For those who see cute actions as being feminine, they explained that,
in British society, particularly in the past, masculinity was defined by a man’s physical and
emotional strength, which was perceived to be beneficial in order to 'protect' and 'look after' a
woman which is obviously coming from a patriarchal and sexist origin. Therefore, a male who acts
cute and adorable is considered to be weaker and more feminine. Evidence can be seen below:
“I think cute is traditionally a trait associated with females and femininity due to the caring
and nurturing nature of a female and her role as a mother. I think traditionally, western males
dislike being associated with being 'cute' and 'adorable' due to them being reserved as
feminine descriptors and that having such descriptions attached to themselves diminishes
their masculinity. I think also they're traditionally words reserved for maybe describing
children, I think in terms of masculinity this association is traditionally going to make a male
seen as weak, as less of a man maybe. I think the rejection of having association with such
words all stems from the traditionally patriarchal society, with males as the head of the
household and the powerful figures in society, once again that femininity and females are
weaker or lesser than males. I think by acting 'cute' and not tough and strong, it opens a male
up to be seen with more vulnerability, which isn't a bad thing, but does not conform to
traditional societal gender roles.” – Interviewee 7.
Again, we will see a big difference in the way a 1-year K-pop fan and an 8-year Kpop fan view the
same problem as below:
[…] “Because I feel like, it just differs from what… you know, the society said a man should
be. But someone looking cute or you know, someone doing something to please someone else,
especially the friendship that they had … Like, I think it doesn’t take away any masculinity
of a person. I think some people can see it that way just because of, you know, what society
says, you know, this is what a man should be. But for me, it doesn’t take away anything. I
think as long as they see themselves as a man, see themselves manly.” – Interviewee 5
For this respondent, it is suggested that she is aware of the fact that the British traditional idea of
masculinity is differ from the norm of Korean male behaviors. However, she seems to not agree
with this traditional point of view. For the purpose of this assignment, we will not go too far to
explain the reason why she is opposed to the British traditional idea of masculinity. Due to the
small scale of the research, we will just suggest that it might be affected by K-pop culture through
intercultural communication activities. Further studies and research are needed to confirm this
theory.
2. Appearance does not make a Man a Man
In the previous parts, we discussed the attitudes of British K-pop fans toward the conventional
beauty standard of K-pop male celebrities. It can be seen that British K-pop fans are aware of the
differences in the masculinity ideology between the two cultures and it does not seem to affect their
love and support toward K-pop male idols. However, during the interview, the researcher realizes
an interesting fact that in most of the respondent’s minds (n = 6), masculinity is not directly linked
with appearance.
[…] “I think it is less to do with appearance and it is more about actions.” – Interviewee 1
“In our days, manly man in Europe is probably half naked with six pack and huge muscles…
Honestly, I think a real man should still take care of himself in terms of health, that includes
that he shouldn't be overweight, have an illness and not do anything about that, etc.” –
Interviewee 4.
Interviewee 5 even strongly claims that wearing a dress does not make a man look less manly, it is
his behaviors and attitudes that make him look masculine.
“Um, … manly is properly … I think more like confidence… I don’t know I think confidence
makes a man look manly. I mean I have seen some K-pop idols in a dress and some women
say that it is the most masculine thing in the world *laugh*. You know… I don’t know if you
have seen Jackson was running around in a dress, he still quite masculine, the way he acts
was quite masculine.” – Interviewee 5.
VI. Conclusion
All things considered, research has long shown that there is a big difference in the definition of
masculinity between Britain and Korean cultures. During the intercultural communication activities
through K-pop fan activism, the conventional beauty standard of Korean male idols has moved
from Korea to Britain and effect British K-pop fans. It is evidence that the more British K-pop fan
engages with K-pop culture, the more they are open-minded about K-pop soft masculinity.
However, due to the small scale of the sampling in this research, further studies are needed to test
the theory on a larger scale.
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