• 대한지역사회영양학회지
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• 제20권6호
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• pp.423-432
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• 2015

Objectives: In Korea, the percentage of elderly is increasing at an unprecedented rate, and is expected to account for 40% of the population by 2060. This massive demographic change stresses the importance of research on aging as it is necessary to improve the quality of life (QoL) of this population. This study aimed to examine the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of the rural elderly and to clarify its association with the nutrient adequacy ratio (NAR). Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed in S-gun, Chonbuk, a critical agricultural area. The elderly people without abnormal physical functioning composed our study population and the data were collected by personal visits to 336 elderly people aged over 65 years (110 males and 226 females). Subjects were interviewed with questionnaires pertaining to general characteristics and EuroQol (EQ-5D). Nutrient intakes were assessed two days by 24-hours recall method. Subjects were defined as high QOL group if EQ-5D index with Nam's model was above the median. Results: Generally, EQ-5D index was lower in women than in man, and lower in older subjects than in younger subjects. The percentages of people below the median were 42% (low QoL group) and 58% (high QoL group) were found to be the above the median. The high QoL group had higher NAR, especially for vitamin C, vitamin B1, vitamin B2 and folate. All dimensions in the EQ-5D were affected by NAR of some nutrients and especially anxiety/depression dimension was significantly correlated with NAR of 5 nutrients (protein, calcium, iron, vitamin C and vitamin B1) and EQ-5D scores. Conclusions: HRQol was significantly reduced in elderly with increasing age and this was more pronounced in women than in man. The NAR of some nutrients were associated with the EQ-5D index, especially anxiety/depression dimension, among rural elderly.

• 한국컴퓨터정보학회논문지
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• 제19권12호
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• pp.349-357
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• 2014

우리나라는 세계에서 유례를 찾아보기 어려운 빠른 속도로 저출산과 더불어 고령화가 진행되어 가고 있다. 인구구조도 피라미드형 구조였으나, 최근에는 역피라미드형 구조가 되어감에 따라 생산인구 문제를 열악하게 만드는 요인으로 작용하고 있다. 노인일자리사업은 이러한 산업구조 역행의 일부를 대체하는 측면도 있지만, 노인의 경제적 측면과 신체적 측면 그리고 사회통합의 측면에서도 효과적인 지원체계가 마련되어져야 한다. 또한 다양한 일자리 창출 및 보급을 위한 노력도 함께 이루어져야 한다. 문화, 복지, 의료, 관광, 체험 등 서비스 분야에서 취약한 부분을 발굴하여 은퇴 전 가지고 있었던 기술과 경험이 활용될 수 있는 양질의 일자리가 만들어 지도록 해야 한다. 따라서 이 연구는 노인일자리사업의 효율화 방안을 위한 이론적 기초를 제공하였다는데 그 의의가 있다.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• 제6권4호
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• pp.323-330
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• 2018

The growth of the older population is expected to further increase social problems associated with population aging, such as isolation, poverty, and depression. The emerging issues associated with the older population are also expected to provide further momentum on studies about the dwelling environment as factors that ensure the health of older people as well as improve their quality of life. Therefore, approaches for explaining the issues of the older age group should be diversified using a variety of factors and appropriate analytic tools. Studies on measuring depression have principally focused on assessing an objective self-report questionnaire, usually in a highly structured, textual form which may not reflect the cognitive impairment of older adults. The aim of this study was to define and measure dwelling depression among older adults in Korea. There are two specific hypotheses in this study as follows: (a) there will be statistically significant relationships with dwelling dissatisfaction and depression, and (b) dwelling depression tools containing text and images will be, respectively, assessment tools that have a good construct with content validity and reliability. In the first experiment, to define and measure dwelling depression, 301 people over 65 years old living in single and two-person households were surveyed using a text-based dwelling depression questionnaires from September 1-30, 2017. In the second experiment, to examine whether the projective image questionnaire could serve as a suitable replacement for the text-based questionnaires, the same participants were surveyed from January 22 to February 2, 2018. The results show that depression has a close correlation with dwelling dissatisfaction. In addition, the geriatric dwelling depression index (GDDI) based on the projective image was refined. Additionally, the projective image questionnaire has a close correlation with the text-based questionnaire. Finally, through ROC curve analysis, it was found that the projective image questionnaire can accurately predict a depression group. To this end, this preliminary study examined the validity of the projective image questionnaire in older adults to make this instrument feasible for older populations and to contribute to a profound understanding of geriatric depression due to the living environment. We hope they will provide a basis for further research on psychological diagnoses using projective images.

• 국제지역연구
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• 제12권2호
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• pp.125-145
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• 2008

일본은 동아시아 국가들 중 가장 먼저 인구 전환 과정을 마무리 지었으며, 소자고령화사회(小子高齡化社會)로 진입한 국가이다. 일본 인구문제 연구소에서 발표하는 인구통계자료집(2008)에 의하면, 일본의 인구증가율은 2000년에 0.21, 2005년 0.13, 2006년에 0.0으로, 인구감소 사회에 진입하고 있음을 알 수 있다. 이러한 급격한 인구학적 변화에 따라 경제성장에 어떤 영향을 미칠 것인가에 대한 관심이 증대되고 있다. 본 논문은 동아시아에서 가장 먼저 인구 전환 과정을 거친 일본에서의 인구전환 과정을 장기적 관점에서 살펴보고, 이를 실증분석을 하는 데 목적이 있다. 메이지 유신의 성공으로 가장 먼저 산업화를 달성한 일본의 인구전환은 동아시아 국가들 중에서 가장 빠르게 나타났다. 실증분석에서는 1952년에서 2005년 시계열 데이터를 사용한 분석 결과, 인구학적 요인과 경제성장간에 정(+)의 관계가 도출되었다. 그러므로 현재 일본의 상황을 고려할 때, 인구 감소는 노동력 감소에 의해 경제성장의 저해 요인이 될 수 있을 것이다. 이러한 문제는 일본뿐만 아니라 한국에서도 공통적인 문제이며, 이에 대한 다양한 정책이 요구되는 시점이라 할 수 있다.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• 제26권1호
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• pp.21-38
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• 2019

This study starts from the question, "Are people of the age 60 and over equally 'old?' "As the aging population has rapidly become a global issue, it is a timely question to think about whether it is appropriate to classify people aged 60 and over as senior citizens monolithically based on their chronological age. Thanks to the advancement of medical technology and ever-increasing life expectancy, there may be more differences than we thought in terms of cognitive and behavioral patterns among the elderly population. In order to further investigate this question, this study focuses on technology acceptance behavior of 132 participants over the age of 60 towards a wearable healthcare device. The results show that there were interesting behavioral differences among participants depending on their cognitive capabilities. More specifically, participants with high cognitive capability (Superagers) consider the usefulness and the social aspects (social norm and image) of using wearable healthcare technology. Whereas for those with relatively low cognitive capability (non-Superagers), usefulness of using the technology was not a significant factor, and they mainly considered social norm and image. Our findings imply that the current monolithic application of chronological age to classify the elderly population should be carefully reconsidered because people aged over 60 years old may not always share homogeneous cognitive and behavioral patterns.

• 한국안전학회지
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• 제37권6호
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• pp.102-107
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• 2022

South Korea will soon be a super-aged society, as more than 20.6% of its population will be 65 years and older by 2025. As of 2022, 17.5% of the total population in South Korea is 65 years and older, which exceeds the set threshold for an aged society, where more than 14% of the population is 65 years and older. The proportion of older subway construction workers has increased. Aging workers and their work stress negatively impact their workability. A previous study demonstrated that the stress index measured using the uBioMacpa measurement device (Macpa stress index) had a significant correlation with work stress in South Korea. The device tests vascular health and measures stress levels via Macpa signal analysis. In this study, the pulse waves of subway construction workers were measured using uBioMacpa to identify their stress levels. The stress levels were analyzed by age, years of service, job position, employment type, and work type. Herein, these statistics could not be easily represented by a normal distribution; therefore, the Kruskal-Wallis test, a nonparametric statistical method, was used for the analysis of data. The results showed that age, job position, employment type, and working type affected the Macpa stress index and the stress levels of workers increased with age. In terms of job position, technical engineers were more stressed than other workers because of their poor working environment. In terms of employment type, daily-wage workers were more stressed than other workers. In terms of working type, tunneling, waterproofing, and construction scored the highest Macpa stress indexes without any significant difference, whereas earthworks scored the lowest. Based on the analysis of Macpa stress index, safety and health management plans were proposed to reduce the stress levels of workers. Moreover, a manual for efficient stress management must be developed for subway construction workers.

• 농촌계획
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• 제30권1호
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• pp.1-13
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• 2024

There is a serious risk of regional extinction due to low birth rate and aging in Korea. Accordingly, the regional extinction index is applied to diagnose the extinction status of cities, counties, and districts. However, when the regional extinction index was applied to rural villages, most villages were found to be at 'high risk of extinction'. There is no differentiation in the level of extinction of rural villages. Therefore, a village extinction index was developed to apply to rural villages. This study applies and compares the existing regional extinction index and the newly developed village extinction index to rural villages. The purpose is to propose an index that can better diagnose the extinction of rural villages. As a research method, the regional extinction index and village extinction index are applied to all villages in Haengjeong-ri villages in South Chungcheong Province. And the adequacy of the index suitable for rural villages is diagnosed. For this purpose, ➂ stage distribution for each two indices, ➂ demographic aspect diagnosis, and ➂ resident awareness survey were analyzed. When the village extinction index was used, the discrimination problems seen in the regional extinction index were overcome. As a result of the demographic analysis, the regional extinction index showed that villages with a population of 200 or more were at 'high risk of extinction', but the village extinction index was derived as 'high risk of extinction' for villages with underpopulated populations. Lastly, the results of the residents' awareness survey also showed that the village extinction index was well reflected in the actual situation of rural villages when applied. When the village extinction index was applied to rural villages rather than the regional extinction index, it was found to reflect the actual state of rural extinction better.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• 제32권1호
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• pp.27-49
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• 2010

본 연구에서는 1996년과 2000년, 2005년의 국민이전계정(National Transfer Accounts)을 이용하여 1997년 말 외환위기와 2000년 이후의 급속한 인구구조 고령화가 세대 간 재배분에 미친 영향에 대해 분석하였다. 국민이전계정은 국민계정과 일관되게 거시적 수준에서 세대 간 이전(intergenerational transfers)을 측정하는 회계방식이다. 국민이전계정을 통해 외환위기와 인구고령화가 세대 간 재배분에 미친 영향을 살펴본 결과는 다음과 같이 요약된다. 1) 유년층(0~19세)의 민간소비(보건, 교육)는 크게 감소한 반면, 공공소비(보건, 교육)는 증가하였다. 2) 노년층(65세 이상)의 공적이전(public transfers)은 증가한 반면, 사적이전(private transfers)은 감소하였다. 3) 노년층의 자산재배분이 크게 증가하였다. 경제위기에도 불구하고 총소비는 크게 위축되지 않은 것으로 파악되는데, 이는 정부의 확대재정정책에 의한 공공소비의 증가가 총소비를 일정 수준으로 유지(consumption smoothing) 시킬 수 있었기 때문이다. 한편, 노년층의 경우 우리나라의 국민연금제도가 아직 미성숙함에도 불구하고 자산축적을 통해 스스로 노후를 대비하고 있는 것으로 파악되었다. 자신의 노후소득을 마련하기 위해 자산축적이 지속적으로 활발하게 이루어질 경우 향후 급속한 인구고령화에 의한 공적연금의 재정부담을 경감시켜 줄 수 있을 것이다.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• 제38권3호
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• pp.351-358
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• 2005

Objectives : Dementia has rapidly increased with the prolongation of life expectancy and aging in Korea. This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of, and find related factors for, dementia in an urban elderly population, using a newly developed screening method. Methods : Seven hundred and six people, aged over 65 years-old, in Dong district of Gwangju, Korea, were recruited using stratified cluster sampling, and completed Korean version of Geriatric Mental State Schedule B3 (GMS B3-K), the Korean version of the Community Screening Interview for Dementia (CSID-K) and modified 10 word list-learning from the Consortium to Establish a Registry of Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD). Dementia was diagnosed by an algorithm derived from all three of these measures. Results : The crude and age adjusted prevalence rates of dementia were 13.0 and 11.5%, respectively. Age, education, marital status and a history of cerebrovascular disease were identified as factors related with dementia. Conclusions : The new instrument, using the GMS B3-K, CSID-K and modified 10 word list-learning from the CERAD, was considered effective as a community screening and diagnostic tool for dementia. The results of this study can also be used to develop a community-based prevention and management system for dementia in the future.

• 한국주거학회논문집
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• 제28권3호
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• pp.55-64
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• 2017

Elderly population has increased rapidly and adjusting the environment is in demand to support their health. To improve the living environment of elderly, an appropriate plan for customized home modification is needed upon the personal contexts. The purpose of this study is to explain the sequence and to build an insight on customized home modification for vulnerable single elderly. It is a case study based on single target that includes 6 months of execution period deeply seeking the appropriate plan for implementation. The target is a male elderly aged 74 living in a single story detached house. The various research methods are applied in this study including exploratory, participatory, action and trade-off preference researches. The result shows that plan for home modification is complex outcome of interlocking uniqueness between residence environment and resident situation. If customized modification is targeted for residentially vulnerable social group, more sensitive approach aiming for the highest result is required due to financial constraint. To conclude, comprehensive understanding of overall circumstances of a dwelling, a resident and various stakeholder is essential throughout the process. Since the aging-in-place of elderly cannot be achieved without self-sustaining living environment, customized home modification should be a tool to meet housing suitability. It is important to strengthen the experts and future workforce with networks of local residents to share opinions and appropriate plans.