Economics_Senior_Thesis_Submission_Click_Here_To_Submit_mjwfour_attempt_2016-04-13-13-47-58_Senior_Thesis_Final.pdf

Abstract

This thesis analyzes the cultural and medicinal role of H Mart, a Korean supermarket chain, in Korean communities based on ethnographic fieldwork which includes participant-observations at seven different H Marts across the eastern coast of the United States as well as in-depth interviews and auto-ethnographic experiences. The influences of H Mart on Korean traditional medicine, immigrant health and wellbeing, and Korean American culture is also examined and discussed. Integrated with ethnographic evidence, a review of the debates surrounding native anthropology and fieldwork methodology is also included. This research has been approved by the Princeton University Institutional Review Board.