Soohyun Lee

Dr. Soohyun Lee is a Senior Lecturer in Korean and East Asian Political Economy at King's College London, based in the Department of European & International Studies within the School of Politics & Economics. She holds a BSc from Ewha Womans University (South Korea), an MSc from the London School of Economics, and a DPhil from the University of Oxford.

• Affiliations:
  • European Politics and Society Research Group
  • King’s Korea Initiative

Her research focuses on the comparative political economy of welfare states, particularly in East Asia and Europe, with an emphasis on labor market dualization, social policy reforms, and family policies. She has explored how countries address welfare challenges and the conditions for successful welfare state reforms. Her work has been published in leading journals such as World Politics, Comparative Political Studies, and Journal of Contemporary Asia.

Dr. Lee teaches courses on the political economy of East Asian development, welfare state models, and capitalism. She supervises PhD students on topics related to welfare states, labor markets, and East Asian political economy.

Grants & Projects:

• Learning to Reform the Welfare State and Labour Market: Korean Labour Market and Social Policy-Making in Comparative Perspective (Korea Foundation, 2020–2022)
• Welfare Reform and Social Progress in South Korea: Effective Social Policies for a Low-Fertility and Ageing Society (Korea Foundation, 2019–2020)
• Welfare States in Transition: International Policy Lessons for South Korea (Korea Foundation, 2018–2019)

Recent News & Events:

• Her work on economic insecurity and right-wing populism was highlighted in news outlets (2024).
• Contributed to discussions on fertility and job security (2023).
• Presented at the SASE Annual Conference (2022).