Peer-Reviewed Publications
Moon, Minyoung and Hyejin Jeon*. 2025. “A Decade of Title IX Regulation Changes and University Responses from 2013 to 2023” Journal of School Violence, March, 1-15. doi:10.1080/15388220.2025.2478051. *collaboration with a graduate student
This study explores how university sexual assault policies evolved from 2013 to 2023 in response to Title IX changes across the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations. Analyzing longitudinal data from 40 large public universities, the study assesses compliance dynamics and their impact on policy, focusing on victim-centered approaches and due process protections. Results show varying compliance levels, with high adherence during the Trump era. Despite administrative changes, universities maintained strong victim-centered policies, which were even enhanced under Trump's Title IX regulations. However, Trump’s emphasis on due process, including mandatory cross-examination, posed challenges in preserving victim-centered approaches. This research underscores the intricate relationship between federal mandates and university policies, emphasizing the importance of balancing due process rights and victim protections.
Moon, Minyoung. 2025. “Division of Labor for Effective Coalitions in Gender Policy Campaigns in South Korea” Sociological Inquiry. https://doi.org/10.1111/soin.12650
This article examines what constitutes effective coalitions by comparing four different coalition-based gender policy campaigns in South Korea. The study analyzes how the composition of coalitions and the division of labor within them influenced the creation of strong versus weak coalitions. Drawing on archival and interview data, a theoretical model of a layered coalition structure is developed, consisting of three positions: initiator, coordinator, and supporter. While all coalitions shared this structural framework, their sustainability and mobilization capacity varied based on differences in the division of labor within this structure. The study argues that coalitions exerted strong influence on policy changes when initiated by locally embedded activists, coordinated by professional activists, and expanded through diverse supporters. Conversely, coalitions were less impactful when policy experts initiated the efforts and coordinators played minimal roles as bridge builders, resulting in less diverse supporter involvement.
Jung, Gowoon and Minyoung Moon. 2025. “”Feminism is Like a Light to Me.”: The Collective Process of Feminist Awakening Among Young Female College Students in South Korea” Asian Journal of Social Science, 53(1): 1-9. [LINK]
Amidst the growing resurgence and popularization of feminism and the increasing prominence of digital and neoliberal feminism, feminism in Korea has experienced a notable resurgence in popularity and a majority of Korean women in their twenties actively embrace feminist beliefs and ideas. Scholarly discussions on digital and neoliberal feminism among young women have reached a broader consensus on an individualized approach in the formation and practice of feminism. Examining this conceptual matter within a distinctive local Korean setting, the study delves into the collective journey of young female college students who actively participate in feminist practices and experience a transformative transition to feminists. The analysis demonstrates that female college students feel awakened as feminists by engaging in small practices in their daily lives and actively learning about feminism within the collective campus environment.
Moon, Minyoung. 2024. “Effective Movement Framing Strategies for Gender Policy Changes in South Korea” Contention: The Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Protest, 12(1): 52-78.
This article examines the impact of framing strategies on the political outcomes of feminist legislative campaigns in South Korea. Using qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), I analyze the interactive effects of frame qualities and nonverbal framing activities. The research fills a gap in the literature by emphasizing the combined influence of frame articulateness and empirically credible frames on political success. It also highlights the significance of nonverbal strategies such as strategic silence and the use of a broader identity in framing. By considering both verbal and nonverbal framing elements, this article provides a comprehensive understanding of how framing contributes to the achievements of social movements.
Jung, Gowoon and Minyoung Moon. (Equal Authorship). 2024. “”I Am A Feminist, But…”: Practicing Quiet Feminism in the Era of Everyday Backlash in South Korea” Gender & Society, 38(2): 216-243. [LINK]
In this study, we investigate the practice of feminism among young South Korean women in the era of backlash. Drawing on interviews with 40 female college students in South Korea, we found that most of the participants self-identify as feminists who engage in feminist activities primarily in private offline settings on their college campuses. To understand this phenomenon of quiet feminism, which contradicts the global trend of postfeminist attitudes and online feminism, we link the students’ offline practice of everyday feminism with what we term everyday backlash. Our findings reveal that these young women have encountered widespread antifeminist sentiments in both online and offline everyday contexts since the rapid popularization of feminism in South Korea in the late 2010s. We argue that this pervasive everyday backlash not only motivates the students to create safe spaces within their college campuses but also discourages them from publicly disclosing their feminist identities. Through this research, we contribute to the literature on contemporary feminist practice and its relationship with backlash by offering a nuanced understanding of the local context in South Korea.
Moon, Minyoung. 2024. “Digital Sex Crime, Online Misogyny, and Digital Feminism in South Korea” Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, 25(1): 186-192. [LINK}
In 2017, the South Korean government announced the “Comprehensive Countermeasures Against Digital Sex Crime” as part of a collaborative effort among multiple ministries to establish a prevention system for digital sex crimes. Given the widespread occurrence of these crimes and the heightened presence in South Korea (Korea) since the late 1990s, this action was long overdue. Korea is known as one of the most digitally advanced nations globally and has faced both challenges and opportunities in addressing gender-based violence facilitated by technology in recent decades. This paper discusses the development and diversification of gender-based violence, aided by evolving digital technologies, in Korea. Additionally, it explores how Korean women have responded to pervasive issues of digital sex crimes and online misogyny with the support of an increasing population of digital feminists. After examining the obstacles, the paper concludes with suggestions on how to overcome these difficulties, emphasizing efforts from both the government and private sectors.
Moon, Minyoung. 2023. “Toward an Integrated Analysis of Social Movements and New Religious Movements Research” Sociology Compass, 17(12): e13134. [LINK]
Despite calls from researchers for intersectional studies between religion and social movements over the past few decades, scholars have not engaged in fruitful conversation about integrating the two disciplines. This article aims to facilitate such discussion by examining the topic of new religious movements (NRMs). I first review the existing literature on NRMs and discuss why NRM research has been neglected in social movement studies. Then, I explore a few research areas where both NRM studies and social movement research could intersect and benefit from a synthetic approach. Specifically, I suggest that social movement studies could advance through the examination of some relatively ignored subjects of research, such as persistent participation and disengagement, by drawing on empirical cases of NRMs. I also propose ways in which the application of social movement theories would enhance our understanding of different aspects of NRMs, such as their leadership and coalition practices. In making these arguments, I refer to one of the prominent, long-term NRMs, the Unification Church or Movement, to help illustrate my ideas.
Moon, Minyoung. 2022. “Digitally Mediated Mobilization: Women’s March in South Korea and Collective Identity Building Online” Sociological Perspectives, 65(5): 960-980. [LINK]
This paper explores collective identity building in a feminist online community that in 2018 organized the largest women’s march in South Korean history. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative content analyses of the community’s bulletin boards, this study describes the process through which members of the community developed their cognitive boundaries and their interactional and emotional connections with one another. My finding shows that the language used in the community shifted over time as the participants came to distinguish themselves from other preexisting feminist communities. I argue that protocols set by the leadership team of this online community played an important role in collective identity construction by providing guidelines for boundary drawing and by promoting positive interactions among members. My research also discusses how this leadership operated as “hidden leaders” in shaping collective identity, by navigating the definition of “us” in the context of Korean feminism and encouraging solidarity building among anonymous participants.
McCammon, Holly, Magdalena Sudibjo, Cathryn Beeson-Lynch, Amanda Brockman, and Minyoung Moon. 2022. “Feminist Friends of the Court: Amicus Curiae, Social Movement Institutional Activism, and the U.S. Supreme Court’s Women’s-Rights Cases.” Sociological Focus, 55(1):1-26.
McCammon, Holly, Minyoung Moon, Brittany Hearne, and Megan Robinson. 2020. “The Supreme Court as an Arena for Activism: Feminist Cause Lawyering’s Influence on Judicial Decision Making.” Mobilization: An International Quarterly, 25(2):221-244.
McCammon, Holly, Brittany Hearne, Allison McGrath, and Minyoung Moon. 2018. “Legal Mobilization and Analogical Legal Framing: Feminist Litigators' Use of Race-Gender Analogies.” Law & Policy, 40(1): 57-78.
Book Chapters
McCammon, Holly, Allison McGrath., David Hess, and Minyoung Moon. 2018. “Women, Leadership, and the U.S. Environmental Movement.” Pp. 312-333 in 100 Years of the Nineteenth Amendment: An Appraisal of Women’s Political Activism, edited by McCammon, H. and Banaszak, L. Oxford University Press.
McCammon, Holly and Minyoung Moon. 2014. “Social Movement Coalitions” in The Oxford Handbook of Social Movements, Pp. 326-339, edited by della Porta, D. and Diani, M. Oxford University Press.
Works In Progress
Moon, Minyoung and Gowoon Jung. “Popular Pseudo-Feminism: Aversion to Radical Feminism and Gender-Blindness Among Young Korean Men” (Revised and Resubmitted to Men and Masculinities )
Moon, Minyoung. “Unification Church” (Revised and Resubmitted; invited to submit a book chapter for Handbook of Contemporary Religions in Korea)
Moon, Minyoung. “Gender, Leadership, and Organizational Outcomes in a Religious Organization.”
Moon, Minyoung and Hyejin Jeon*. “Young Women’s Perspectives on Men and Marriage Amidst the Gender Divide in South Korea.” *collaboration with a graduate student
Nam, Jyunghyun* and Minyoung Moon. “Master Emotion in Protest Movements.” *collaboration with a graduate student