• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.101-124
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• 2009

According to Wikipedia, virtual reality (VR) is defined as a technology that allows a user to interact with a computer-simulated environment. Due to a rapid growth in information technology (IT), the cost of virtual reality has been decreasing while the utility of virtual reality advertisements has dramatically increased. Nevertheless, only a few studies have investigated the effects of virtual reality advertisement on consumer behaviors. Therefore, the objective of this study is to empirically examine the effects of virtual reality advertisement. Compared to traditional online advertisements, virtual reality advertisement enables consumers to experience products realistically over the Internet by providing high media richness, interactivity, and telepresence (Suh and Lee, 2005). Advertisements with high media richness facilitate consumers' understanding of advertised products by providing them with a large amount and a high variety of information on the products. Interactivity also provides consumers with a high level of control over the computer-simulated environment in terms of their abilities to adjust the information according to their individual interests and concerns and to be active rather than passive in their engagement with the information (Pimentel and Teixera, 1994). Through high media richness and interactivity, virtual reality advertisements can generate compelling feelings of "telepresence" (Suh and Lee, 2005). Telepresence is a sense of being there in an environment by means of a communication medium (Steuer, 1992). Virtual reality advertisements enable consumers to create a perceptual illusion of being present and highly engaged in a simulated environment, while they are in reality physically present in another place (Biocca, 1997). Based on the characteristics of virtual reality advertisements, a research model has been proposed to explain consumer responses to the virtual reality advertisements. The proposed model includes two dimensions of consumer responses. One dimension is consumers' rational response, which is based on the Information Processing Theory. Based on the Information Processing Theory, product knowledge and perceived risk are selected as antecedents of intention to purchase. The other dimension is emotional response of consumers, which is based on the Attitude-Structure Theory. Based on the Attitude-Structure Theory, arousal, flow, and positive affect are selected as antecedents of intention to purchase. Because it has been criticized to have investigated only one of the two dimensions of consumer response in prior studies, our research model has been built so as to incorporate both dimensions. Based on the Attitude-Structure Theory, we hypothesized the path of consumers' emotional responses to a virtual reality advertisement: (H1) Arousal by the virtual reality advertisement increases flow; (H2) Flow increases positive affect; and (H3) Positive affect increases intension to purchase. In addition, we hypothesized the path of consumers' rational responses to the virtual reality advertisement based on the Information Processing Theory: (H4) Increased product knowledge through the virtual reality advertisement decreases perceived risk; and (H5) Perceived risk decreases intension to purchase. Based on literature of flow, we additionally hypothesized the relationship between flow and product knowledge: (H6) Flow increases product knowledge. To test the hypotheses, we conducted a free simulation experiment [Fromkin and Streufert, 1976] with 300 people. Subjects were asked to use the virtual reality advertisement of a cellular phone on the Internet and then answer questions about the variables. To check whether subjects fully experienced the virtual reality advertisement, they were asked to answer a quiz about the virtual reality advertisement itself. Responses of 26 subjects were dropped because of their incomplete answers. Responses of 274 subjects were used to test the hypotheses. It was found that all of six hypotheses are accepted. In addition, we found that consumers' emotional response has stronger impact on their intention to purchase than their rational response does. This study sheds much light into practical implications for both IS researchers and managers. First of all, while most of previous research has analyzed only one of the customers' rational and emotional responses, we theoretically incorporated and empirically examined both of the two sides. Second, we empirically showed that mediators such as arousal, flow, positive affect, product knowledge, and perceived risk play an important role between virtual reality advertisement and customer's intention to purchase. In addition, the findings of this study can provide a basis of practical strategies for managers. It was found that consumers' emotional response is stronger than their rational response. This result indicates that advertisements using virtual reality should focus on the emotional side, and that virtual reality can be served as an appropriate advertisement tool for fancy products that require their online advertisements to give an impetus to customers' emotion. Finally, even if this study examined the effects of virtual reality advertisement of cellular phone, its findings could be applied to other products that are suited for virtual experience. However, this research has some limitations. We were unable to control different kinds of consumers and different attributes of products on consumers' intention to purchase. It is, therefore, deemed important for future research to control the consumer and product types for more reliable results. In addition to the consumer and product attributes, other variables could affect consumers' intention to purchase. Thus, the future research needs to find ways t control other variables.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.21-39
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• 2013

As the utilization of information technology and the turbulence of technological change increase in organizations, the adoption of IT outsourcing also grows to manage IT resource more effectively and efficiently. In this new way of IT management technique, service level management(SLM) process becomes critical to derive success from the outsourcing in the view of end users in organization. Even though much of the research on service level management or agreement have been done during last decades, the performance of the service level management process have not been evaluated in terms of final objectives of the management efforts or success from the view of end-users. This study explores the relationship between SLM maturity and IT outsourcing success from the users' point of view by a analytical case study in four client organizations under an IT outsourcing vendor, which is a member company of a major Korean conglomerate. For setting up a model for the analysis, previous researches on service level management process maturity and information systems success are reviewed. In particular, information systems success from users' point of view are reviewed based the DeLone and McLean's study, which is argued and accepted as a comprehensively tested model of information systems success currently. The model proposed in this study argues that SLM process maturity influences information systems success, which is evaluated in terms of information quality, systems quality, service quality, and net effect proposed by DeLone and McLean. SLM process maturity can be measured in planning process, implementation process and operation and evaluation process. Instruments for measuring the factors in the proposed constructs of information systems success and SL management process maturity were collected from previous researches and evaluated for securing reliability and validity, utilizing appropriate statistical methods and pilot tests before exploring the case study. Four cases from four different companies under one vendor company were utilized for the analysis. All of the cases had been contracted in SLA(Service Level Agreement) and had implemented ITIL(IT Infrastructure Library), Six Sigma and BSC(Balanced Scored Card) methods since last several years, which means that all the client organizations pursued concerted efforts to acquire quality services from IT outsourcing from the organization and users' point of view. For comparing the differences among the four organizations in IT out-sourcing sucess, T-test and non-parametric analysis have been applied on the data set collected from the organization using survey instruments. The process maturities of planning and implementation phases of SLM are found not to influence on any dimensions of information systems success from users' point of view. It was found that the SLM maturity in the phase of operations and evaluation could influence systems quality only from users' view. This result seems to be quite against the arguments in IT outsourcing practices in the fields, which emphasize usually the importance of planning and implementation processes upfront in IT outsourcing projects. According to after-the-fact observation by an expert in an organization participating in the study, their needs and motivations for outsourcing contracts had been quite familiar already to the vendors as long-term partners under a same conglomerate, so that the maturity in the phases of planning and implementation seems not to be differentiating factors for the success of IT outsourcing. This study will be the foundation for the future research in the area of IT outsourcing management and success, in particular in the service level management. And also, it could guide managers in practice in IT outsourcing management to focus on service level management process in operation and evaluation stage especially for long-term outsourcing contracts under very unique context like Korean IT outsourcing projects. This study has some limitations in generalization because the sample size is small and the context itself is confined in an unique environment. For future exploration, survey based research could be designed and implemented.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.103-128
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• 2013

When a consumer needs a product or service and multiple sellers are available online, the process of selecting a seller to buy online from is complex since the process involves many behavioral dimensions that have to be taken into account. As a part of this selection process, consumers may set minimum trust expectation that can be used to screen out less trustworthy sellers. In the previous research, the level of consumers' trust expectation has been anchored on two important factors: product involvement and perceived risk. Product involvement refers to the extent to which a consumer perceives a specific product important. Thus, the higher product involvement may result in the higher trust expectation in sellers. On the other hand, other related studies found that when consumers perceived a higher level of risk (e.g., credit card fraud risk), they set higher trust expectation as well. While abundant research exists addressing the relationship between product involvement and perceived risk, little attention has been paid to the integrative view of the link between the two constructs and their impacts on the trust expectation. The present paper is a step toward filling this research gap. The purpose of this paper is to understand the process by which a consumer chooses an online merchant by examining the relationships among product involvement, perceived risk, trust expectation, and intention to buy from an e-tailer. We specifically focus on the mediating role of perceived risk in the relationships between enduring product involvement and the trust expectation. That is, we question whether product involvement affects the trust expectation directly without mediation or indirectly mediated by perceived risk. The research model with four hypotheses was initially tested using data gathered from 635 respondents through an online survey method. The structural equation modeling technique with partial least square was used to validate the instrument and the proposed model. The results showed that three out of the four hypotheses formulated were supported. First, we found that the intention to buy from a digital storefront is positively and significantly influenced by the trust expectation, providing support for H4 (trust expectation ${\rightarrow}$ purchase intention). Second, perceived risk was found to be a strong predictor of trust expectation, supporting H2 as well (perceived risk ${\rightarrow}$ trust expectation). Third, we did not find any evidence of direct influence of product involvement, which caused H3 to be rejected (product involvement ${\rightarrow}$ trust expectation). Finally, we found significant positive relationship between product involvement and perceived risk (H1: product involvement ${\rightarrow}$ perceived risk), which suggests that the possibility of complete mediation of perceived risk in the relationship between enduring product involvement and the trust expectation. As a result, we conducted an additional test for the mediation effect by comparing the original model with the revised model without the mediator variable of perceived risk. Indeed, we found that there exists a strong influence of product involvement on the trust expectation (by intentionally eliminating the variable of perceived risk) that was suppressed (i.e., mediated) by the perceived risk in the original model. The Sobel test statistically confirmed the complete mediation effect. Results of this study offer the following key findings. First, enduring product involvement is positively related to perceived risk, implying that the higher a consumer is enduringly involved with a given product, the greater risk he or she is likely to perceive with regards to the online purchase of the product. Second, perceived risk is positively related to trust expectation. A consumer with great risk perceptions concerning the online purchase is likely to buy from a highly trustworthy online merchant, thereby mitigating potential risks. Finally, product involvement was found to have no direct influence on trust expectation, but the relationship between the two constructs was indirect and mediated by the perceived risk. This is perhaps an important theoretical integration of two separate streams of literature on product involvement and perceived risk. The present research also provides useful implications for practitioners as well as academicians. First, one implication for practicing managers in online retail stores is that they should invest in reducing the perceived risk of consumers in order to lower down the trust expectation and thus increasing the consumer's intention to purchase products or services. Second, an academic implication is that perceived risk mediates the relationship between enduring product involvement and trust expectation. Further research is needed to elaborate the theoretical relationships among the constructs under consideration.

• The Korean Nurse
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.76-87
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• 1992

The purposes of study was: 1. To identify the direction and scope of research activities in Korean Nursing. 2. To discuss the unique problems present in Korea that warrant nursing research. 3. To delineate the factors that facilitate and/or hinder nursing research in Korea. This study was conducted at six colleges of nursing in Korea. The schools which were selected had doctoral programs at the time, the data were collected in 1990. Four of the schools were located in the metropolitan area of the capital city, Seoul, and two were in two other cities similar in size. The total population of the study was 283 nurses. The instrument for the research was the English version of Research Profile Questionnaire which was translated into Korean by the researchers and was validated in its translation by two professors. A pretest procedure was done before the data collection process. Of the population of 283, 210 subjects received the questionnaire and 150 subjects responded(71.4%). Excluding incomplete questionnaires, 141 questionnaires were utilized for data analysis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Responses to open-ended questions were content analyzed for themes and categories. Results of the study were as follows : Respondents currently , involved in nursing research numbered 108(76.6%), but 33(23.4%) did not have any research experience. The inexperienced respondenLs tended to be younger than the experienced subjects and most( 60.6%) were employed in hospitals, while 82.4 percent of the experienced nurses were employed in nursing schools. Among the respondents with research experience, 68.5 percent were involved in one to three projects and 31.5 percent were engaged in four or more projects. The experienced nurses indicated that nursing research in Korea is active. On the other hand, the responses of the inexperienced were that nursing research is not active. The most frequently selected research subjects were patients(76.9%, 83 respondents) followed by nurses, healthy persons and nursing students. The relatively high percentage of healthy persons as study subjects, could be explained as a concern of nurses for healthy persons as well as for ill patients. The aforememioned literature review showed a dramatic change in the kinds of study subjects; approximately 33 percent were patients but 25 percent were healthy subjects of various ages. The hospital was the prevailing research setting(67.6%) but at the same time various community settings were used. This is a changing phenomena in nursing research of Korea. Current research designed to build on previous studies amounted to 75 percent; about 39.8 percem were theory and hypothesis generated. Over 65 recommended additional research focusing on hypothesis-testing 0:' theory building. The previously quoted literature review found that only 4.0 percent of the study quescions were developed from a theoretical framework. The most frequently listed current major focus of nursmg research was stress and adaptation. Patients with cancer, pain, social support and care of the elderly were the next most frequently reported. These concerns may reflect problems associated with a technological and industrializing societyl. The most frequently identified problem was lack of clinical research. The need for replication research and research that contributes to the accumulation of nursing knowledge were found to be rare in Korean research. A need for theory testing and theory construction research was also identified. Although advanced statistical methods were often utilized in nursing research, the results were frequently considered by the interviewers not to be applicable in practice, and readers had difficulty in comprehending the findings. Even though the number of clinical nurses involved in research is increasing, it is still considered inadequate. Among 108 respondents, 83(76.9%) gave lack of time as a barrier to conducting nursing research. Over fifty percent of the respondents reported lack of funding or, personally, low confidence in research skills as barriers. The respondents offered 183 suggestions for future emphasis in nursing research. Among the 51 areas of emphasis, clinical research received the highest number and nursing intervention was next. The findings suggested that nursing research should be based on theory, be related to practice and relevant to the situation of a unique Korean culture.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Traditional Landscape Architecture
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.78-88
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• 2016

The comparative analysis result of appearance characteristic of landscape elements and symbolic elements implied by the tablets on the 16th century's Korean Damyang garden and Chinese Suzhou garden is as follows. First, among the landscape elements implied in the tablets, appearance rate of botanical factors appeared high in the gardens of both areas. Damyang garden displayed bamboo grove and natural forest around the garden, while Suzhou garden displayed artificial mountain(假山) created artificially and a variety of plants including lotus, bamboo, and pine surrounding it were associated with the significance of the tablets. On the other hand, climatic/celestial elements including the rain, wind, and the moon were associated with the tablets of Damyang garden, while the artificial factors such as the building, bridge, and book, etc. were mostly were associated with the tablets of Suzhou garden. Second, among the symbolic elements included in the tablets, ethical personality which is the basic virtue of a noble man(聖人), was the universal characteristic of the meditation world of the garden in both areas. However, a will for political stability was mostly associated with the tablets of Damyang garden, while the retrospect heart for the immortal was mostly associated with the signboard in Suzhou garden. It was concerned with political ideal and the thought of Confucianism respectively. Third, the symbolic elements that appeared frequently in the tablets of Damyang garden, "Ethics" and "Political stability", were associated with the scene atmosphere created by the climatic elements and celestial elements. On the contrary, the symbolic elements which most frequently appeared in the tablets of Suzhou garden, "Ethics", was associated with the symbolic significance of the plant. The invisible space of gardens was expanded by tablets in both areas.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.60-72
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• 2018

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine differences in eating-out, dietary life styles, and healthy dietary competencies among middle-aged consumers according to obesity status and gender for implications of consumer education. Methods: Data were drawn from the 2016 Food Consumption Behavior Survey, and 3,022 subjects (mail 1,388; female 1,634) who were middle-aged adults were investigated. Analysis of variance with $Scheff\acute{e}$ test, t-test, $x^2$-test, and factor analysis were performed using SPSS v.24. Results: Males showed less interest in diet than females. For both males and females, higher BMI degrees were associated with higher levels of interest in diet. For frequency, monthly average consumption expenditure, one-time cost for eating out, and drinking frequency, males showed higher levels than females. Especially for the male group, higher obesity status was associated with higher levels of eating out and drinking. Dietary lifestyles of males and females turned out to be very similar. For the male group, normal weight group was more likely to show 'health and high quality pursuit dietary life-style' than the other groups. For females, the normal weight group were more likely to show 'health and high quality pursuit dietary life-style' and 'safety pursuit dietary life-style' than the other groups. The level of 'healthy dietary competence' for females was found to be higher than that for males. For the female group, there were significant differences according to obesity status, and practice was more important than knowledge in determining a healthy dietary life. Conclusion: For dietary life-related education for obese middle-aged consumers, it is important to emphasize less eating-out and drinking and less overeating while eating-out based on the results that eating-out, drinking, and overeating in the obesity group were significantly higher than in the normal group. It is important to focus on the value of dietary life and diverse foods, based on the results that the obesity group was less likely to be have healthy dietary lifestyles and consume less diverse foods than the normal group.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.39-53
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• 2012

It is widely known that knowledge management plays a facilitating role that contributes to upgrading organizational performance. Knowledge management systems (KMS), especially, support the knowledge management process including the sharing, creating, and using of knowledge within a company, and maximize the value of knowledge resources within an organization. Despite this widely held belief, there are few studies that describe how companies actually develop, share, and practice their knowledge. Companies in the domestic small franchise sector, which are in the early stages in terms of knowledge management, need to improve their KMS to manage their franchisees effectively. From this perspective, this study uses a qualitative approach to explore the actual process of knowledge management implementation. This article presents a case study of PB (Paris Baguette) company, which is the first to build a KMS in the franchise industry. The study was able to confirm the following facts through the analysis of target companies. First, the chief executive's support is a critical success factor and this support can increase the participation of organization members. Second, it is important to build a process and culture that actively creates and leverages information in knowledge management activities. The organizational learning culture should be one where the creation, learning, and sharing of new knowledge is developed continuously. Third, a horizontal network organization is needed in order to make relationships within the organization more close-knit. Fourth, in order to connect the diverse processes such as knowledge acquisition, storage, and utilization of knowledge management activities, information technology (IT) capabilities are essential. Indeed, IT can be a powerful tool for improving the quality of work and maximizing the spread and use of knowledge. However, during the construction of an intranet based KMS, research is required to ensure that the most efficient system is implemented. Finally, proper evaluation and compensation are important success factors. In order to develop knowledge workers, an appropriate program of promotion and compensation should be established. Also, building members' confidence in the benefits of knowledge management should be an ongoing activity. The company developed its original KMS to achieve a flexible and proactive organization, and a new KMS to improve organizational and personal capabilities. The PB case shows that there are differences between participants perceptions and actual performance in managing knowledge; that knowledge management is not a matter of formality but a paradigm that assures the sharing of knowledge; and that IT boosts communication skills, thus creating a mutual relationship to enhance the flow of knowledge and information between people. Knowledge management for building organizational capabilities can be successful when considering its focus and ways to increase its acceptance. This study suggests guidelines for major factors that corporate executives of domestic franchises should consider to improve knowledge management and the higher operating activities that can be used.

• The Journal of Art Theory & Practice
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• no.8
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• pp.33-58
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• 2009

This paper examines four genre paintings on the subject of child education by Jean-Baptiste-Sim${\'{e}}$on Chardin(1699-1779). The Governess, The Diligent Mother, Saying Grace, and The Morning Toilette garnered critical attention after they were exhibited in the Salon from 1739 to 1741. After the exhibition, the paintings were made into prints and frequently sold to members of the bourgeois class in Paris. The iconographical details of Chardin's genre paintings have, thus far, been compared to Dutch genre pictures of the seventeenth century. Further, most studies conducted on Chardin's paintings focus on formal analysis rather than the historical and social contexts. Through attempting social-contextual readings of Chardin's educational series, this paper argues that the significance of Chardin's painting series of child education lies in his representation of the ideal French bourgeois family and the standard of early childhood education in the eighteenth-century French Enlightenment period. In each of the four child education paintings, Chardin depicted a mother with children in a domestic space. Even though this theme derives from traditional Dutch genre paintings in the seventeenth century, the visual motifs, the pictorial atmosphere and the painting techniques of Chardin all project the social culture of eighteenth century France. Each painting in the child education series exemplifies respectively the attire of a French gentlemen, the social view on womanhood and the education of girls, newly established table manners, and the dressing up culture in a 'toilette' in eighteenth century France. Distinct from other educational scenes in previous genre paintings, Chardin accentuated the naive and innocent characteristics of a child and exemplified the mother's warmth toward that child in her tender facial expressions and gesturing. These kinds of expressions illustrate the newly structured standard of education in the French Enlightenment period. Whereas medieval people viewed children as immature and useless, people in the eighteenth century began to recognize children for their more positive features. They compared children to a blank piece of paper (tabula rasa), which signified children's innocence, and suggested that children possess neither good nor bad virtues. This positive perspective on children slowly transformed the pedagogical methods. Teaching manuals instructed governesses and mothers to respect each child's personality rather than be strict and harsh to them. Children were also allotted more playtimes, which explains the display of various toys in the backgrounds of Chardin's series of four paintings. Concurrently, the interior, where this exemplary education was executed, alludes to the virtue of the bourgeois's moderate and thrifty daily life in eighteenth century France. While other contemporary painters preferred to depict the extravagant living space of a French bourgeoisie, Chardin portrayed a rather modest and cozy home interior. In contrast to the highly decorated living space of aristocrats, he presented the realistic, humble domestic space of a bourgeois, filled with modern household objects. In addition, the mother is exceptionally clad in working clothes instead of fashionable dresses of the moment. Fit to take care of household affairs and children, the mother represents the ideal virtues of a bourgeois family. It can be concluded that the four genre paintings of child education by Chardin articulate the new standards of juvenile education in eighteenth century France as well as the highly recognized social virtues between French bourgeois families. Thus, Chardin's series of child education would have functioned as a demonstration of the ideal living standards of the bourgeois class and their emphasis on early childhood education in the French Enlightenment period.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.81-96
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• 2016

As the internet has become widespread and easy to access everywhere, it is common for people to search information via online search engines such as Google and Naver in everyday life. Recent studies have used online search volume of specific keyword as a measure of the internet users' attention in order to predict disease outbreaks such as flu and cancer, an unemployment rate, and an index of a nation's economic condition, and etc. For stock traders, web search is also one of major information resources to obtain data about individual stock items. Therefore, search volume of a stock item can reflect the amount of investors' attention on it. The investor attention has been regarded as a crucial factor influencing on stock price but it has been measured by indirect proxies such as market capitalization, trading volume, advertising expense, and etc. It has been theoretically and empirically proved that an increase of investors' attention on a stock item brings temporary increase of the stock price and the price recovers in the long run. Recent development of internet environment enables to measure the investor attention directly by the internet search volume of individual stock item, which has been used to show the attention-induced price pressure. Previous studies focus mainly on Dow Jones and NASDAQ market in the United States. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between the individual investors' attention measured by the internet search volumes and stock price changes of individual stock items in the KOSDAQ market in Korea, where the proportion of the trades by individual investors are about 90% of the total. In addition, we examine the difference between industries in the influence of investors' attention on stock return. The internet search volume of stocks were gathered from "Naver Trend" service weekly between January 2007 and June 2015. The regression model with the error term with AR(1) covariance structure is used to analyze the data since the weekly prices in a stock item are systematically correlated. The market capitalization, trading volume, the increment of trading volume, and the month in which each trade occurs are included in the model as control variables. The fitted model shows that an abnormal increase of search volume of a stock item has a positive influence on the stock return and the amount of the influence varies among the industry. The stock items in IT software, construction, and distribution industries have shown to be more influenced by the abnormally large internet search volume than the average across the industries. On the other hand, the stock items in IT hardware, manufacturing, entertainment, finance, and communication industries are less influenced by the abnormal search volume than the average. In order to verify price pressure caused by investors' attention in KOSDAQ, the stock return of the current week is modelled using the abnormal search volume observed one to four weeks ahead. On average, the abnormally large increment of the search volume increased the stock return of the current week and one week later, and it decreased the stock return in two and three weeks later. There is no significant relationship with the stock return after 4 weeks. This relationship differs among the industries. An abnormal search volume brings particularly severe price reversal on the stocks in the IT software industry, which are often to be targets of irrational investments by individual investors. An abnormal search volume caused less severe price reversal on the stocks in the manufacturing and IT hardware industries than on average across the industries. The price reversal was not observed in the communication, finance, entertainment, and transportation industries, which are known to be influenced largely by macro-economic factors such as oil price and currency exchange rate. The result of this study can be utilized to construct an intelligent trading system based on the big data gathered from web search engines, social network services, and internet communities. Particularly, the difference of price reversal effect between industries may provide useful information to make a portfolio and build an investment strategy.

• Korean Journal of Hospice Care
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.13-28
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• 2008

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the subjective structures and types of school age children's perception of death through an investigative study on their perception of death in order to provide a basic material for them to understand death, and develop and carry out an effective death education program. Methods: The study method used the Q Methodology which can investigate the subjective structures and types of school age children's perception of death. For Q-population, 20 school age children were used as subjects for neutral interviews and open surveys, and through documentary research, a total of 132 statements were collected, For Q-samples, 23 statements (Q-samples) were derived through a non-structural method. P-samples were 31 school age children (8-13 year olds), Q-sorting was carried out using Q-cards, and the collected data was analyzed using the PC QUANL program. Results: As a result of the study, children's perception of death was divided into five types. The first type was functional type, characterized by prominent subjective perception regarding the elements of death, such as non-reversibility, universality, non-functionality, and causality. The second was after-life type, characterized by a strong, focus on life after death in one's perception of death, and it included children with Christian background and those who had experienced death in their immediate family. The third was religious type, characterized by a strong belief in being able to still watch over one's family and friends after one's death, resulting in a positive faith in the after-life. The fourth was fearful type, characterized by a deeper fear of death in comparison to other types. The fifth was realistic type, characterized by a strong and positive assent to the perception of good death. Conclusion: The significance of the results of this paper's study to Nursing is as follows. In terms of understanding the subjectivity of school age children's perception of death in nursing practice, and understanding the compositional elements of death presented with strong emphasis in existing literature and studies, the results will expand these understandings and allow us to understand the level of perception in school age children regarding the definition of death, after-life, and good death, be utilized as useful material in developing an effective death education program for them according to their type characteristics, and become the fertilizer for enabling the children to live a proper life and preventing the tendency to make light of death that occur in adolescence and the spread of suicides. In terms of nursing theory, the description and examination of the subjective structures and the characteristics of the different, types of school age children's perception of death can be utilized as useful material for building a model of school age children's perception of death, and be further used for teaching respect for life. In terms of nursing research, the results can contribute to research describing the effects of nursing intervention strategies and developing tools for providing psychosocial nursing in terms of giving school age children a positive perception of death according to their types as well respect for life.