A total of nine research teams from Ajou University have been selected for the Fundamental Research on the Humanities & Social Sciences of the Korean Ministry of Education and the National Research Foundation (NRF). Established to provide systematic support for academic activities in the humanities and social sciences, the program selects beneficiaries by research method and researcher growth level and awards research grants.

From Ajou University, five research teams were selected in the “Individual Research Group – Mid-career Researcher Support Sector”: ▲ Prof. Kang Min-hyeong (eBiz) – “A Study of Factors Impacting the Survival of New Users in Crowd-sourcing Websites and their Evolutionary Path: Application of Machine Learning Technique” ▲ Prof. Kang Joo-young (eBiz) – “An Experimental Study on the Impact of Robotic Autonomy, Sentiment, and Personification on Resistance and Attitude of Consumers using Unmanned Services” ▲ Prof. Lee Han-soo (Politics & Diplomacy) – “A Macro-Study on Changes in Party Politics in Korean Voters” ▲ Prof. Kim Eun-ha (Psychology) – “A Study on the Feeling of Unfairness among Baby Boomers: An Identification of Causes and Results and Development of Group Counseling Program” ▲ Prof. Jang Ji-won (Financial Engineering) – “Anomaly – Underreaction and Overreaction in the Stock Market and New Factor Model.” The research period is from 12 to 24 months.

Two teams were selected in the Young Researchers Sector. Prof. Lee Eun-sang (Law School) will conduct a study on regulatory law principles in medicinal safety and ways to improve the current legal system, while Prof. Park Min-jae (e-Biz) will conduct research on AI governance and socio-economic system dynamics.

In the General Joint Research Sector, Prof. Lee Wang-hwi (Politics & Foreign Relations) was selected to participate in a joint study on the politics and economy of China-Japan relations in the aftermath of the US-China dispute on the theme of supply networks for automobiles and semi-conductors. This sector supports joint research by at least two researchers and aims to develop rational methods to resolve problems for states and societies.

In the Professor Sector of the Humanities and Social Studies Academic Research that supports academic research, Research Prof. Lee Hyun-joo was chosen to undertake a study on power structure based on the network of marriages and relatives of royal families from the Silla Dynasty era to the Early Goryeo era. This sector was installed to institutionally support non-tenure researchers outside the university so they can continue research and education.

The Ministry of Education and NRF sponsor programs to support research in the Humanities and Social Sciences (including Arts and Sports), notably Basic Research on the Humanities and Social Sciences, Promotion of Humanities, Social Sciences Research Support, Popularization of Humanities, and International Exchange.