This article addresses the significant consequences of democratic changes in Korea, not only for the way the country is governed, but also the way in which its people lead their lives. Institutionally, the first decade of democratization fully transformed a military dictatorship into a functioning representative democracy. Procedurally, it redirected the goal of policymaking toward the promotion of economic justice, social welfare, and quality of life. Substantively, democratic reforms expanded political freedom and reinvigorated civil society. As in the authoritarian past, however, the country still suffers from the imbalance of power between the president and the National Assembly. There are also serious deficiencies in the rule of law, and a need for a proper restraint on executive power. As a result, the Korean people, as a whole, remain more dissatisfied than satisfied with the way the current system of democratic governance performs.