A big data analysis of K-POP on social media: focused on images, figures, and public attitude

Abstract

This study aims to present the image and thoughts about K-POP among the public through objective data as we realized that it is necessary to conduct a systematic analysis of the public mentality and attitude toward K-POP to sustain the movement of Hallyu or Korean Wave. To this end, we used the big data in 2014 and 2021 to compare and analyze the K-POP-related images, figures, and public attitude between the two time points. The result can be summarized as follows: First, between 2014 and 2021, the changes over time in the media, where K-POP can be accessed by the audience, are more pronounced than common images about K-POP; Second, the figures that appeared consistently and commonly in 2014 and 2021 were found to be EXO and BTS, popular South Korean boy-bands. In the case of EXO, there was no commonly related figure at both points of time, but as for BTS, it was found that their fan club, A.R.M.Y, appeared as a common related figure; Third, compared to 2014, the rate of positive response toward K-POP decreased while negative response increased in 2021; in other words, the attitude toward K-POP turned negative. Unlike the previous studies that collect data with questionnaires or materials and analyze them, we used the already stored data and Sometrend, Korea’s big data analysis software, provided by VAIV Company, to find out what people think about K-POP. This study is significant as it extracts information from the existing data, analyzes the contents, and reinterprets the results from various angles to derive meaningful results. It is expected that the findings of this study, presented through precise data—the K-POP-related images, figures, and public attitude—will be used as basic material to contribute to the sustaining of the K-POP wave.