A study showed that North Korean refugees have a clear conservative tendency and show a higher voter turnout than other South Koreans.

According to "A Study on the Political Resocialization of North Korean Refugees," a doctoral thesis released by Hyun In-ae, in the Interdisciplinary Programs in North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University on March 3, nine out of ten North Korean refugees (87.2%) voted for a candidate from a conservative political party such as the Saenuri Party and the Liberty Forward Party in the 19th General Elections in 2012. This is more than 30% higher than 55%, the average votes received by the candidates in these parties in the election. Hyun explained, "Support for liberal democracy and the market economy, hostility towards the North Korean leadership, and a tendency to think of those critical of the incumbent government as forces denying democracy and trying to realize a system like the North Korean regime in the South are the reasons behind the fervent support for conservative parties." Also the voter turnout of North Korean refugees in the 19th General Election was 76%, more than 20% higher than the nationwide average of 54.4%. Hyun said, "This reflects a North Korean way of reasoning which sees participation in elections as an expression of loyalty to the party and the state. They've only changed the object of their loyalty from North Korea to South Korea."

Among the North Korean refugees, those in their twenties and thirties showed the highest approval for democratic norms, and their voter turnout and support for conservative parties was relatively low, a tendency similar to the average South Korean in that age group. Also unlike the established thought that the more education one receives the more democratic one's political attitude becomes, it appears that in North Korea, a higher education further strengthens an authoritarian tendency.

Hyun said, "This study shows that if we suddenly introduce a democratic system to North Korea during the reunification process, we may actually trigger confusion. We need to first educate the people on democracy and gradually introduce the political system."
Hyun worked as a professor at Chongjin University of Medicine in North Korea before she defected from the North in 2004. She was also the head of the North Korea Intellectuals Solidarity. This study was based on a survey of 232 North Korean refugees and an interview of 43 refugees residing in the Seoul, Gyeonggi region in July-December 2012. As of September 2013, there are 25,000 North Korean refugees living in South Korea.