Collecting ordinary people's experiences of sinmyeong (신명), the study found it is the joy that bursts out when we rediscover the worth of ourselves or our group — a joy that grows as it is shared and released.
A qualitative study of conceptualizing ‘Shinmyeong’
신명의 개념화 및 구조화 연구
QUESTION
How can Korean sinmyeong be conceptualized from ordinary people's real experiences, and through what process and structure is it experienced?
FINDINGS
Sinmyeong is felt when an unexpected event restores one's sense of self-worth or brings recognition from others, when people confirm their sense of “we” by doing something together, and when people express what they value.
신명은 전환적 사건의 발생에 의해 자신의 자기가치감이 회복되거나 타인들에게 인정받았을 때Sinmyeong is experienced when, through the occurrence of a turning-point event, one's sense of self-worth is restored or one is recognized by others…p1‘우리’라고 생각할 수 있는 사람들과 어떠한 일을 함께 경험하면서 우리의식을 확인할 때, 그리고 자신의 가치와 관련된 것들을 표현하는 과정에서…when confirming a we-consciousness by experiencing something together with people one can think of as 'us', and in the process of expressing things related to one's own worth…p1Though sinmyeong arose from three different kinds of triggers, all three types followed the same psychological process and had a similar emotional quality.
세 유형의 신명은 기본적으로 공통적인 심리적 과정을 따르며 유사한 감정의 질을 갖는다The three types of sinmyeong basically follow a common psychological process and have a similar quality of emotion.p19유형에 따른 인과적 조건은 각각 ‘전환 적 사건의 발생’, ‘계기적 사건의 발생’, ‘자기 표현을 하게 되는 사건’으로 나타났지만…the causal conditions by type appeared as 'occurrence of a turning-point event', 'occurrence of an occasioning event', and 'an event leading to self-expression', but…p19The core of sinmyeong is the “rediscovery of the worth of the self (or group)”: it arises when a bad situation turns good and one's sense of worth comes back to life.
사람들은 자신을 둘러싼 상황이 부정적인 국면에서 긍정적인 국면으로 전환할 때 신명을 경험하며People experience sinmyeong when the situation surrounding them turns from a negative phase to a positive one…p21‘자기(혹은 집단)가치의 재발견’이라는 이름으 로 다시 명명하였고…were renamed 'rediscovery of self- (or group-) worth'…p19부정적 상태에 있 던 자기(혹은 집단)가치감이 회복되거나 재확인 되면서 강렬한 쾌감이 발생하는데 그것이 바로 신명이며…as the self- (or group-) worth that was in a negative state is restored or reconfirmed, an intense pleasure arises, and that is sinmyeong…p21The pleasure of sinmyeong grows even stronger when the feeling is shared with others.
신명의 쾌감은 다른 이들 과의 감정공유를 통해 한층 증폭되며The pleasure of sinmyeong is further amplified through sharing emotions with others…p23IN DAILY LIFE
The 2002 World Cup street cheering: many people named cheering together, feeling a shared “we” as citizens of Korea, as a sinmyeong experience.
온 국민이 함께 했던 거리응원에 초점이 두어질 경우에는 대한민국 국민이라는 우리의식이 두드러진다When the focus is on the street cheering the whole nation did together, the sense of “we” as citizens of the Republic of Korea stands out.p11연령을 불문하고 많은 사람들이 신명 경험으로 꼽은 2002년 월드컵은The 2002 World Cup, which many people of all ages named as a sinmyeong experience…p11One person, calling his father to say he had been promoted, choked up and could not finish speaking, then turned the music up loud in the car and cried out loud.
아버지께 승진했다고 전화를 드렸는데 목이 메어 말을 잇지 못했다.I called my father to tell him I had been promoted, but my throat choked up and I couldn't go on speaking.p16차 안에서 음악을 크게 틀어놓고 크게 소리내어 울었다In the car I turned the music up loud and cried out loud.p16In depth
This paper, more closely — every sentence carries an original quote and page number.
Background
Until then, sinmyeong had been discussed mainly through the insights of folklore and Korean-studies scholars; few studies had systematically clarified its concept and structure.
신명의 정확한 개념과 구조 등을 밝히기 위한 체계적인 연구는 적었다There were few systematic studies aimed at clarifying the precise concept and structure of sinmyeong.p2과거 신명에 대한 연구는 주로 민속학 및 한 국학과 관련된 분야에서 연구자들의 한국문화 에 대한 통찰에 근거하여 이루어져 왔을 뿐Past research on sinmyeong was mainly conducted in fields related to folklore and Korean studies, based on researchers' insights into Korean culture…p2The authors' earlier theoretical work tried to make concrete the idea that “sinmyeong comes when han (한) is released,” seeing han as, for Koreans, a damaged sense of self-worth.
한국인들에게 있어서 한이란 자기가치감의 손상을 의미하는데For Koreans, han means damage to one's sense of self-worth…p2‘한이 풀리어 나타나는 신명’으로 언급되어 왔던 한과 신명의 관계에 대한 논의를 심화시킨 것으로…deepened the discussion of the han–sinmyeong relationship, which had been described as 'sinmyeong that appears when han is released'…p2한 이 해소되어 신명에 이르는 경로를 한이 해소 되는 방식과 관련하여 구체화하였다…specified the path by which han is resolved into sinmyeong in relation to the way han is resolved.p2Method
Sinmyeong experiences were gathered through open-ended questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, then analyzed with grounded theory — a qualitative method that builds theory from people's own accounts of their experience.
총 17명(남 8명, 여 9명)을 대상으로 면접을 실시하였다Interviews were conducted with a total of 17 people (8 men, 9 women).p6개방형 설문 및 반구조화 면접의 방식으로 수집하고 근거이론의 절차에 의해 분석함으 로써…collected through open-ended surveys and semi-structured interviews and analyzed by grounded-theory procedures…p1개념과 변인들을 발견하고 그 관계에 대한 가설적 진 술을 함으로써 신명이라는 개념에 대한 가설적 이론의 틀을 제공할 수 있다…by discovering concepts and variables and making hypothetical statements about their relations, it can provide a hypothetical theoretical framework for the concept of sinmyeong.p8개방형 설문 및 반구조 화 면접을 통해 얻은 총 220명의 응답들 중…of the responses from a total of 220 people obtained through open-ended surveys and semi-structured interviews…p10리 서치 기관(www.embrain.com)에 의뢰하여…commissioned a research agency (www.embrain.com)…p531명) 총 133명(남 65명, 여 68명)에 대해 온라 인 조사를 실시하였다…an online survey was conducted with a total of 133 people (65 men, 68 women).p668명의 대학생(남 28명, 여 40명, 평균연령 22.3세)들과 서울 및 충남 공주에 거주하는 일반인 19명…68 university students (28 men, 40 women, mean age 22.3) and 19 members of the public living in Seoul and Gongju, South Chungcheong…p6신명에 대한 묘사가 생생하고 진술이 구 체적인 응답자들을 선택하여…respondents whose descriptions of sinmyeong were vivid and whose statements were specific were selected…p6① 그 경험은 어떤 것이었습니까?(가장 인상 깊었던 한 가지만 적어주십시오)① What was the experience? (Write only the single most memorable one.)p7② 그때, 당신이 느꼈던 기분, 감정, 느낌은 어떠했습니까? ③ 당신은 왜 그러한 감정을 느끼게 되었습 니까?② What mood, emotions, and feelings did you have then? ③ Why did you come to feel those emotions?p7④ 그때, 당신은 어떠한 행동을 했습니까? 구체적으로 묘사해 주십시오④ What did you do then? Please describe it concretely.p7⑥ 그 사건은 당신의 마음이나 생활에 어떠 한 영향을 주었습니까?⑥ What effect did that event have on your mind or life?p7신명경험의 원인과 감정, 행동과 결과에 해 당하는 네 개의 상위범주는The four higher-order categories corresponding to the causes, emotions, behaviors, and results of sinmyeong experience…p12Detailed findings
Sorting the responses produced three types: sinmyeong from a turning-point event (passing an exam, a promotion, the World Cup semifinal, etc.), from a sense of “we” (street cheering, village feasts, pungmul drumming, etc.), and from self-expression (performances, playing an instrument, dancing, etc.).
① 전환적 사건에 의한 신명, ② 우리의식에 의한 신명, ③ 자기표현에 의한 신명의 세 가지이다The three types are: ① sinmyeong from a turning-point event, ② sinmyeong from we-consciousness, and ③ sinmyeong from self-expression.p11한국의 월드컵 4강 진출, 운동경기에서의 역전승, 복권당첨, 대학합격, 승진Korea reaching the World Cup semifinals (top 4), come-from-behind wins in sports, winning the lottery, university admission, promotionp12월드컵 거리 응원, 운동경기 응원, 대학 축제, 마을잔치, 풍물놀이World Cup street cheering, cheering at sports games, university festivals, village feasts, pungmul folk musicp12작품 전시회, 연극공연, 악기 연주할 때, 혼자 한 여행, 춤출 때art exhibitions, theater performances, playing an instrument, traveling alone, dancingp12The “flow-like sinmyeong” predicted by theory hardly appeared in ordinary people's actual experiences, so it was renamed “sinmyeong from self-expression.”
몰입경험이 중요한 비중을 차지하는 사례는 거의 나타나지 않았다Cases in which the flow experience carried significant weight hardly appeared.p11그 이유는 이론적인 논의와 는 달리 개인의 실제 신명경험이 직접적으로 반영되었기 때문인 것으로 생각된다The reason is thought to be that, unlike the theoretical discussion, individuals' actual sinmyeong experiences were directly reflected.p11몰입과 유사한 특성을 갖는 신명의 유형은, 그러한 신명을 경험하게 되는 사건이 주로 자신의 능력이나 가치를 표현하는 성격을 갖는다는 점에 착안하여…the type of sinmyeong with flow-like features, noting that the events leading to it mainly involve expressing one's own ability or worth…p11The joy of sinmyeong has two layers: a primary pleasure such as feeling good and having fun, and a secondary pleasure — pride, a full heart — in which oneself or “we” is at stake.
기분좋음, 즐거움, 유쾌함 등의 1차적 쾌감과, 뿌듯함, 가슴벅참, 자랑스러움 등…primary pleasure such as feeling good, enjoyment, and cheerfulness, and pride, a swelling heart, a sense of being proud, etc.p14즐거 움, 유쾌함 같은 1차적 쾌감과 함께, 자신의 자기가치감과 연계된 2차적 쾌감을 느끼며…feel, along with primary pleasure such as enjoyment and delight, a secondary pleasure linked to their own sense of self-worth…p12차적 쾌감 (자기(혹은 집단) 개입적 쾌감)secondary pleasure (self- or group-involved pleasure)p20Beneath sinmyeong usually lay a memory of one's past self in hard and difficult times.
‘신명경험 이전의 어렵고 힘들었던 과거의 자기에 대한 인식’이 주로 신명 발생 이전의 맥락적 조건“Awareness of one's past self in hard and difficult times before the sinmyeong experience” was mainly the contextual condition before sinmyeong arose.p15People feeling sinmyeong released it through outbursts such as shouting and jumping up and down.
신명을 경험하는 사람은 신명의 감정을 표현하기 위해 여러 가지 분출 행동들A person experiencing sinmyeong engages in various outburst behaviors to express the feelings of sinmyeong…p16(소리를 지르거나 펄쩍펄쩍 뛰는 등의 각종 표출행동)(various expressive behaviors such as shouting or jumping up and down)p16Regardless of type, what intensified sinmyeong was confirming the worth of the self (or group), and this happened mainly by sharing feelings with others.
주로 다른 이들과 ‘감정을 공유’함으로써 이루어진다는 속성을 지닌다…has the property of being achieved mainly by “sharing emotions” with others.p17중재적 조건 역시 신명의 유형과 관계없이 유사한 성격을 갖는 것으로 나타났는데, 그것 은 ‘자기(혹은 집단) 가치감을 확인’하는 것이The intervening conditions also proved similar regardless of sinmyeong type: confirming self- (or group-) worth…p17The outcomes were a sense of release as built-up negative feelings dissolved, restored or confirmed self-worth, positive energy, and later recalling the moment and wanting to feel it again.
누적된 부정적 정서의 해소로 인한 ‘해소감“A sense of release” from resolving accumulated negative emotions…p18해소감 자기가치감의 회복 긍정적 에너지의 획득 회상 및 동기화sense of release, recovery of self-worth, gaining positive energy, recollection and motivationp19‘신명경험을 회상하고 다시 신명을 경험하기 위해 동기화되는 과정…'the process of recalling the sinmyeong experience and becoming motivated to experience sinmyeong again'…p18In a separate study by the authors, people distinguished “sinmyeong-nanda” (feeling sinmyeong) from the ordinary “sin-nanda” (having fun) as different feelings.
‘신명난다’라는 정서와 일반적인 ‘신난다’라는 정서를 구분하고 있는 것으로 나타났다People were found to distinguish the emotion of “sinmyeong-nanda” from the ordinary emotion of “sin-nanda.”p23신명 개념의 타당화를 위해 별도로 수행한 연구(한민, 한성열, 2007, 미간행)…a separate study conducted to validate the concept of sinmyeong (Han & Han, 2007, unpublished)…p23Authors’ interpretation
Empathy in sinmyeong differs from empathy in counseling psychology (understanding the other): it is “co-experience,” living through the other's whole experience together.
상대방의 총체적 경험을 공유하는 공경험(共經驗)의 의미를 갖는다…has the meaning of co-experience (共經驗), sharing the other's total experience.p24신명경험에서의 공감은 기존의 심리학 혹은 상담심리학에서 언급되는 공감과는 그 성격이 다르다Empathy in sinmyeong experience differs in nature from the empathy discussed in existing psychology or counseling psychology.p24상대방의 사고와 감정으로 그를 이해하는 것이다…to understand the other through the other's thoughts and feelings.p24Koreans, used to exchanging feelings heart to heart, catch others' emotions very quickly in sinmyeong situations; the authors guess words like sinbaram (신바람) came from this.
신명상황에서 타인의 감정을 함께 경험하는 속도는 대단히 빠르며In sinmyeong situations, the speed at which one experiences others' feelings together is very fast…p24심정교류라는 문화적 감정전달방식에 익숙한 한국인들에게For Koreans, who are accustomed to the cultural mode of emotional transmission called simjeong exchange…p24신명의 이러한 속 성에서 ‘신바람’과 같은 말도 파생되었을 것으 로 추측할 수 있다…it can be conjectured that words such as 'sinbaram' derived from this property of sinmyeong.p24Sinmyeong resembles catharsis in releasing negative feelings, but because it is a process of discovering and pouring out the worth of the self (or group), it means more than relieving stress.
신명은 신명만의 독특한 의미와 과정을 갖는다는 점에서 스트레스를 푼다는 것 이상의 의미가 있다Sinmyeong has a meaning beyond relieving stress, in that it has its own unique meaning and process.p25그 결과가 부정적 정서의 배설이라는 측면에서 카 타르시스(Catharsis)와 공통점을 갖는다…has something in common with catharsis in that its result is the discharge of negative emotions.p24자기(혹은 집단)와 관련된 가치를 발견한 기쁨을 자각하고…becoming aware of the joy of discovering worth related to the self (or group)…p25Limits the authors note
Key terms
Han (한, 恨) — in sinmyeong from we-consciousness Not one specific grievance but an umbrella term for the negative feelings piled up over one's life so far.
이전까지의 삶에서 누적되어 온 부정적인 정서를 통칭한다…refers collectively to the negative emotions accumulated in one's life up to then.p3‘못 배우고 못 사는 한’이 나 ‘누군가에게 당한 부당한 피해’ 등의 구체적 인 내용이 아니라…not specific content such as 'the han of being uneducated and poor' or 'unjust harm suffered at someone's hands'…p3Flow (몰입) An experience of being absorbed — losing track of time and place — in an activity that is its own goal, even without outside reward.
외부적인 보상이 없더라도 그 자체가 목적이 되는(autotelic) 행동을 통해 얻는 경험An experience gained through an (autotelic) activity that is an end in itself even without external reward.p3그 행동에 시간과 공간을 의 식하지 못할 정도로 푹 빠져 있는 상태를 나타 내는 개념이다…a concept referring to the state of being so absorbed in the activity that one is unaware of time and space.p3Affect attunement (감정 공조) The psychological process of feeling and adjusting one's own emotions in order to share another person's inner state.
다른 사람의 주관적인 상태를 공유하고 그와 같은 상태를 만들기 위해 자기 자신의 감정 상태를 느끼고…sharing another person's subjective state and feeling one's own emotional state in order to create the same state…p24