• Title/Summary/Keyword: Cross-National Comparison

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Correlation of Occupational Stress Index with 24-hour Urine Cortisol and Serum DHEA Sulfate among City Bus Drivers: A Cross-sectional Study

  • Du, Chung-Li;Lin, Mia Chihya;Lu, Luo;Tai, John Jen
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • v.2 no.2
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    • pp.169-175
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    • 2011
  • Objectives: The questionnaire of occupational stress index (OSI) has been popular in the workplace, and it has been tailored for bus drivers in Taiwan. Nevertheless, its outcomes for participants are based on self-evaluations, thus validation by their physiological stress biomarker is warranted and this is the main goal of this study. Methods: A cross-sectional study of sixty-three city bus drivers and fifty-four supporting staffs for comparison was conducted. Questionnaire surveys, 24-hour urine cortisol testing, and blood draws for dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S) testing were performed. The measured concentrations of these biological measures were logarithmically transformed before the statistical analysis where various scores of stressor factors, moderators, and stress effects of each OSI domain were analyzed by applying multiple linear regression models. Results: For drivers, the elevated 24-hour urine cortisol level was associated with a worker's relationship with their supervisor and any life change events in the most recent 3 months. The DHEA-S level was higher in drivers of younger age as well as drivers with more concerns relating to their salary and bonuses. Non-drivers showed no association between any stressor or satisfaction and urine cortisol and blood DHEA-S levels. Conclusion: Measurements of biomarkers may offer additional stress evaluations with OSI questionnaires for bus drivers. Increased DHEA-S and cortisol levels may result from stressors like income security. Prevention efforts towards occupational stress and life events and health promotional efforts for aged driver were important anti-stress remedies.

A comparative study on configuration of the nation in epics (서사시에 나타난 '민족' 형상화에 관한 비교 연구 - 고은의 『백두산』과 리욱의 『고향 사람들』, 『풍운기』를 중심으로)

  • Jang, Eun Young
    • Cross-Cultural Studies
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    • v.25
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    • pp.337-362
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    • 2011
  • This study focused on difference of the nation's concept between Ko un's Baekdusan and Lee uk's Gohyangsaramdul, Pungungi. These works are epics restructure nation's history. A epic's story provides framework of recognition to social members. An individual and community accept their story and then stories construct pesonal identity and community's identity. So we can say a epic configurates national identity by story nation history and nation territory. The nation's concept is understood steadfast and very pure as like a blood relationship in Korea. This is aspects of Korean nationalism. But the Nation is modern, social and historical concept. That is different from ethnic identity. This way throws open the door to analyze nation identity. Ko un's Baekdusan narrates permanence and sacralization of the nation for emphasizing the unification of North Korea and South Korea. Baekdusan expresses the social desire of Korea in the 1980s. In comparison, Lee uk's Gohyangsaramdul representate ambivalent attitude. One is a position as a settler and the other is a new master of Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture. So Gohyangsaramdul narrates and remembers their motherland Chosun. But Pungungi exclude recognition of Chosun as motherland. This work's narration focuses on association with struggle of classes and anti-Japanese Movement during the Japanese colonial period. Because these events are able to unity Korean and Chines. Three works deal with same history and same background, but those show defferent recognition about the Nation. Because each society has different social desire and expect different future. The present desire and future prospect construct nation identity.

The Tasks of Comparative Literary Studies and The Literary Transnationalism (비교문학의 과제와 문학적 트랜스내셔널리즘)

  • Lee, Changnam
    • Cross-Cultural Studies
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    • v.38
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    • pp.245-264
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    • 2015
  • In this paper, I suggest methodological ways of studying comparative literature regarding ongoing discussions of world and national literature. The role of comparative literature studies has widened in the contemporary era, in which nations have become rapidly entangled and the concept of the world as a unified entity is under question. In this regard, I critically review the traditional principles of the hospitality of cosmopolitanism and the exclusivity of the borders of national literatures. Further, I suggest that scholars adopt the concept by Sigmund Freud of "unfamiliar familiarity" as a methodological motive for studies of comparative literature. Based on this concept, scholars can further develop the unique methods of the discipline of comparative literary studies for teaching and research amidst the ongoing phenomenon of globalization. They can also use these methods to simultaneously contribute to solving the problem of "comparison without a unifying category of the world," as revealed by the results of deconstructional and postcolonial studies. Regarding community-based discussions of literature, I introduce the "bridge and door" metaphor, put forth by Georg Simmel, as a key concept in methodological consideration of translation and in comparative literary studies. In this paper, adopting the metaphor of the bridge and door as an intertextual and social model for comparative studies, I define the new role of comparative literary studies in literary transnationalism, which is particularly necessary when different languages and cultures overlap and become entangled. Regarding the rapidly changing contemporary world community, comparative literary studies, as an experimental discipline, is uniquely capable of examining this kind of community, which forms itself beyond and beneath individual nations.

Comparison of Elementary Students' Health Behaviors by Geographical Regions (우리나라 초등학생들의 지역별 건강생활실천 비교)

  • Lee, Jung-Yul;Lee, Kyu-Yung;Houng, Yun-Mi
    • Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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    • v.24 no.4
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    • pp.87-98
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    • 2007
  • Background: Health promotion services should be provided based on clients' health promotion needs. To provide health promotion services for elementary students in Korea, health promotion needs by geographical regions should be analyzed. Purpose: To analyze elementary students' health behaviors by regions. Method: Elementary students of 4018 from large cities, 1636 from medium sized cities, 328 from rural areas were included. Data collection was done using items from National Health and Nutrition Survey and was collected by mail from schools. For data analysis, Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were utilized. Result: From comparison of health behaviors, there were no significant differences between large cities and medium sized cities. However, there were significant differences between urban students and rural students in terms of fast food intake, breakfast, soft drink intake, sleeping hours, tooth brush, and obesity. Conclusion: Health promotion services, especially correcting unhealthy eating behaviors for rural elementary students should be focused.

An Exploratory Comparison of Supply Chain Integration Practices of Korean and International Manufacturing Plants in Automotive, Electronics, and Machinery Industries (한국과 해외 우수 제조기업의 공급사슬 통합 현황에 대한 탐색적 고찰 : 자동차, 전자, 기계산업을 중심으로)

  • Hur, Dae-Sik;Kim, Kil-Sun;Choi, Jeong-Wook
    • Journal of the Korean Operations Research and Management Science Society
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    • v.33 no.4
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    • pp.101-118
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    • 2008
  • This study compares supply chain integration practices of high performing manufacturing plants in Korea and those in the U.S., Japan, and six European countries. Data were drawn from the High Performance Manufacturing(HPM) Round 3, a joint data-collection effort on manufacturing and supply chain management. Specifically, in the automotive, electronics, and machinery industries, we selected twenty Korean plants with high performance reputation and chose the same number of non-Korean plants(HPM top 20), based upon their competitive manufacturing capability index and customer satisfaction index. The Korean plants do not significantly differ from HPM top 20 plants in that internal value creation activities are coordinated and integrated at the corporate level and between plants. The Korean plants, however, demonstrated more integration with suppliers than with customers, and only the two of them were classified as 'outward facing', which pursues greater integration with both customers and suppliers. Unbalanced and lower integration with customers of the Korean plants was attributed to the lower than expected manufacturing capability and customer satisfaction. Implications for supply chain professionals were discussed.

Absorbable Guided Bone Regeneration Membrane Fabricated from Dehydrothermal Treated Porcine Collagen (Dehydrothermal Treatment로 제작한 흡수성 콜라겐 골유도재생술 차단막)

  • Pang, Kang-Mi;Choung, Han-Wool;Kim, Sung-Po;Yang, Eun-Kyung;Kim, Ki-Ho;Kim, Soung-Min;Kim, Myung-Jin;Jahng, Jeong-Won;Lee, Jong-Ho
    • Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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    • v.33 no.2
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    • pp.112-119
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    • 2011
  • Purpose: Collagen membranes are used extensively as bioabsorbable barriers in guided bone regeneration. However, collagen has different effects on tissue restoration depending on the type, structure, degree of cross-linking and chemical treatment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the inflammatory reaction, bone formation, and degradation of dehydrothermal treated porcine type I atelocollagen (CollaGuide$^{(R)}$) compared to of the non-crosslinked porcine type I, III collagen (BioGide$^{(R)}$) and the glutaldehyde cross-linked bovine type I collagen (BioMend$^{(R)}$) in surgically created bone defects in rat mandible. Methods: Bone defect model was based upon 3 mm sized full-thickness transcortical bone defects in the mandibular ramus of Sprague-Dawley rats. The defects were covered bucolingually with CollaGuide$^{(R)}$, BioMend$^{(R)}$, or BioGide$^{(R)}$ (n=12). For control, the defects were not covered by any membrane. Lymphocyte, multinucleated giant cell infiltration, bone formation over the defect area and membrane absorption were evaluated at 4 weeks postimplantation. For comparison of the membrane effect over the bone augmentation, rats received a bone graft plus different covering of membrane. A $3{\times}4$ mm sized block graft was harvested from the mandibular angle and was laid and stabilized with a microscrew on the naturally existing curvature of mandibular inferior border. After 10 weeks postimplantation, same histologic analysis were done. Results: In the defect model at 4 weeks post-implantation, the amount of new bone formed in defects was similar for all types of membrane. Bio-Gide$^{(R)}$ membranes induced significantly greater inflammatory response and membrane resorption than other two membranes; characterized by lymphocytes and multinucleated giant cells. At 10 weeks postoperatively, all membranes were completely resorbed. Conclusion: Dehydrotheramal treated cross-linked collagen was safe and effective in guiding bone regeneration in alveolar ridge defects and bone augmentation in rats, similar to BioGide$^{(R)}$ and BioMend$^{(R)}$, thus, could be clinically useful.

Cross-National Comparison of Public Awareness Campaigns for Suicide Prevention: Analysis of Campaign Strsategies and Contents of New Zealand, USA, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, and Korea (자살예방을 위한 인식개선 캠페인의 국가 간 비교: 뉴질랜드·미국·아일랜드·스코틀랜드·호주 및 대한민국의 캠페인 전략 및 내용 분석)

  • Song, In Han;Kwon, Se Won;Kim, Jung-Soo;You, Jung-Won;Park, Jang Ho;Kim, Lija;Kim, Woosik;Kim, Hyunjee;Kim, Jeniffer Hyunjin;Kim, Ji Eun;An, Sangmin
    • The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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    • v.14 no.7
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    • pp.253-270
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    • 2014
  • Public awareness campaign is the core factor of the national suicide prevention strategies. Korea's current campaign needs to be more systematically developed. This study analyzed the national-level campaigns for suicide prevention of New Zealand, USA, Ireland, Scotland, and Australia whose campaigns were known to be successful, and compared them with those of Korea. With the analysis framework based on the 'Guideline for Effective Health Communication Campaigns' by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, we examined the campaigns from the dimensions of (1) clarity of goals, (2) appropriacy of targeting strategies, (3) suitability of messaging strategies, and (4) efficiency of performance. The results show that effective campaigns for suicide prevention have the following common factors: (1) campaign appellations which include clear goals, (2) targeting at risk groups considering social contexts, (3) slogans which contains specific action guidelines, and (4) close relationships between public and private sectors. On this basis, future directions for more effective suicide prevention media campaigns in Korea are discussed.

Trend Analysis in the Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes According to Risk Factors among Korean Adults: Based on the 2001~2009 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Data

  • Kim, Young-Ju;Lim, Myoung-Nam;Lee, Dong-Suk
    • Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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    • v.44 no.6
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    • pp.743-750
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    • 2014
  • Purpose: The objective of this study was to provide a trend analysis of the prevalence of diabetes relative to the socioeconomic, lifestyle, and physiologic risk factors among Korean adults aged over 30 years for a 10-year period using data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Methods: Prevalence difference and the slope index of inequality were calculated for each risk factors using binomial regression by considering the repeated cross-sectional features of the data. The prevalence ratio and the relative index of inequality were calculated using log-binomial regression. Linear trend tests were performed using SAS 9.2. Results: Crude prevalence of diabetes increased over the 10-year period, and was higher for men than for women. It was very high for adults 60 years or over, consistently increasing over time. The prevalence among unemployed men, women with higher level of stress, women with hypertension, and adults with serum triglyceride levels over 135 mg/dL increased over the 10-year period in comparison with the respective control group. Conclusion: Considering the rapid economic development and associated lifestyle changes in Korea, action should be taken to control the prevalence of diabetes by both preventing and consistently monitoring these identified risk factors using a public-health approach.

Baseline Sensitivity to Mandipropamid Among Isolates of Phytophthora capsici Causing Phytophthora Blight on Pepper

  • Jang, Ho-Sun;Lee, Soo-Min;Kim, Sun-Bo;Kim, Joo-Hyung;Knight, Susan;Park, Kwee-Doo;McKenzie, Duncan;Kim, Heung-Tae
    • The Plant Pathology Journal
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    • v.25 no.4
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    • pp.317-321
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    • 2009
  • Sensitivity to the new carboxylic acid amide fungicide, mandipropamid, of Phytophthora capsici causing pepper Phytophthora blight was determined on 187 isolates collected in Korea over 3 years, from 2005 to 2007. All isolates were sensitive to mandipropamid, with $EC_{30}$ values for growth of mycelia ranging from 0.001 to $0.037\;{\mu}g/ml$. Among the isolates, 147 (79.0%) isolates were sensitive to metalaxyl, whereas others were resistant to this fungicide. Mandipropamid had the same effect on mycelium growth of both metalaxyl-sensitive and metalaxyl-resistant isolates, indicating an absence of cross-resistance between these two fungicides. Comparison of the sensitivities of P. capsici isolates showed a positive correlation between sensitivity to mandipropamid and dimethomorph ($r^2$=0.8533). The results of this study indicate that there is no evidence for development of resistance to mandipropamid in this population of P. capsici isolates collected in Korea.

Usefulness of intraoperative transcranial sonography in patients with traumatic brain injuries: a comparison with postoperative computed tomography

  • Mahn Jeong Ha;Seung Han Yu;Jung Hwan Lee;Hyuk Jin Choi;Byung Chul Kim
    • Journal of Trauma and Injury
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    • v.36 no.1
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    • pp.8-14
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    • 2023
  • Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the agreement between intraoperative transcranial sonography (TCS) and postoperative computed tomography (CT) in patients with traumatic brain injuries. Methods: We performed a retrospective cross-sectional study of 35 patients who underwent TCS during surgery, among those who presented to a regional trauma center and underwent decompressive craniectomy between January 1, 2017 and April 30, 2020. Results: The mean difference between TCS and CT in measuring the midline shift was -1.33 mm (95% confidence interval, -2.00 to -0.65; intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC], 0.96; P<0.001). An excellent correlation was found between TCS and CT in assessing contralateral subdural hematomas (ICC, 0.96; P<0.001) and focal hematoma lesions (ICC, 0.99; P<0.001). A very good correlation between TCS and CT was found for measurements of ventricle width (ICC, 0.92; P<0.001). Conclusions: TCS during surgery is considered an effective diagnostic tool for the detection of intraoperative parenchymal changes in patients with traumatic brain injuries.