This thesis describes the effects of globalisation on the modern Korean house form. It is argued that house form is determined by complex socio-cultural interactions and has evolved across cultures as, for example, the bungalow. The research methods included a pilot study, a survey of Korean inhabitants and interviews of specialists. The pilot study was conducted in five different areas with 33 Korean respondents who were living abroad. The inhabitants' survey involved 131 respondents who were living in Korea, using questionnaires and interviews. The specialists' interviews involved 32 specialists in historical and contemporary house form in Korea. The major findings from these studies are: 1) Korean people understand globalisation as a process of interaction with other countries which has introduced new forms of transport, communication, technology and ideas. 2) Korean house form has been changed by internal developments and external influences through processes of modernisation and globalisation. Western influences especially affect cultural and social values in Korea whilst the demands of Korean people are for comfortable and high quality modem living. Government housing policy focuses on design and building standards and `ecology friendly' housing. 3) There has been a process of change for Korean house form. It first gradually and then speedily changed over time under more and more western and global influences. This process can be seen in different new developments in housing types such as Gae- Ryang Han-Ok, Mun-Wha house and Yeong-Dan house in the beginning of interaction with other countries for modernisation before the 1950s, apartment and quasi-houses in the 1960s, and Jeonwon-chutaek (rural style house), wooden house, luxury villas, Office-tel (office with residential facilities), one room apartment, Jusang boghab apartment (mixed with commercial and residential areas), Silver Town house (complex for elderly people) and 3 Sae-dae Dong-geo apartment (3 generations living together)in recent years. 4) There are several outcomes of changes as follows: i) Domestic living patterns have been changed. Families are smaller and it has become more usual for people to live alone. People pursue individual rather than communal family activities, and there is more concern for personal hygiene. Overall, people are interested in gaining higher standards of living. ii) Interior design has changed, reflecting altered living patterns. Families now have separate rooms to accommodate individual interests. Toilets and bathrooms are situated indoors, and there are often multiple bathrooms. Although parents' and children's spaces are still separated, as is the tradition, the separatenessh as been redesigned to fit in with western house forms. iii) House types have changed as mentioned in above 3. These are greatly influenced by global designs and are built to accommodate the new living patterns. The changes in house form in South Korea are very similar to changes in house form across the world in the process of globalisation. This is seen as a result of the high technology information age, which provides the ideas and blueprints for house form, coupled with rapid industrialisation in Korea, which has provided a growing economy to finance domestic modernisation. 111