• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• no.39
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• pp.115-145
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to verify the effect of job stress on domestic violence and the mediating effect of depression, among the small scale self-employed who have not received appropriate concern from the social system, although they are one of the main economic group in Korea. The subject of this study was 193 small scale self-employed working in Sungnam-city. The result showed that the depression level increases as the job stress level increases. Searching the relationship between depression and domestic violence, with the job stress level controlled, domestic violence increased as the depression level increased. Meanwhile, job stress appeared not to have direct effect on domestic violence. The result of the Aroian test, applied to verify the mediating effect of depression, was z=1.981(p<.05), attesting that depression has a statistically significant mediation effect. In other words, job stress doesn't affect domestic violence directly, but has effect on domestic violence with depression as mediator. Such result is expected to suggest practical intervention and prevention methods for domestic violence.