• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.12 no.8
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• pp.41-52
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• 2021

Purpose: The study aims to analyze effects of wage on FDI inflows based on the threshold of institutional quality in 14 developing economies of Southeast and South Asia over the period from 2000-2017. Research design, data, and methodology: The study applies a fixed effect panel threshold regression. As a proxy for the institutional quality, it uses the six components of Worldwide Governance Indicators or a compound index obtained by an average of the six components. The data were taken from World Bank, the Chinn & Ito Database, and UNCTAD. To the best of our knowledge, no researches so far have considered the threshold of institutional quality in estimating the effect of wage on FDI inflows. Results: The composite index and each component of the six indicators of institutional quality except for voice and accountability, and regulatory quality are found to have nonlinear effects on FDI inflows. When the institutional quality is below the threshold, wage affects FDI inflows negatively. When the institutional quality is above the threshold, however, wage does not significantly affect FDI inflows. Conclusions: The effect of wage on FDI inflows varies depending on whether the institutional quality of the target countries is above or below the threshold.

• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.13-19
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• 2013

Purpose - The paper tested the relationship between the stock markets of the Middle East and the USA with the oil price and US dollar index as threshold variables. Research design, data, and methodology - The stock price indices of the USA, the Middle East (Abu Dhabi, Jordan), WTI spot crude oil price, and US dollar index were daily returns in the research period from May 21, 2001 to August 9, 2012. Following Hansen (1999), the panel threshold regression model was used. Results - With the US dollar index as the threshold variable, a negative relationship existed between the stock price indices of Jordan and the USA but no significant result was found between the stock price indices of Abu Dhabi and the USA. Conclusions - The USA is an economic power today:even if it has a closer relationship with the US stock market, the dynamic US economy can learn about subsequent developments and plan in advance. Conversely, if it has an estranged relationship with the US stock market, thinking in a different direction and different investment strategies will achieve good results.

• Asian Journal of Business Environment
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.17-25
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• 2021

Purpose: This study extends previous empirical work on the threshold effects of institutions on the relationship between infrastructure and economic growth. It does so by using three sub-indices of institutions as the threshold variable in place of aggregate index. This is with a view to determining the roles of the sub-indices in the nexus between infrastructure and economic growth. Research design, data and methodology: The analysis is based on a dynamic panel threshold regression model using a panel data set comprising 41 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa over the sample period of 1996-2015. Data are obtained from Ogbaro (2019). Results: The study finds that infrastructure exerts significant positive effects on economic growth below and above the threshold values of the three sub-indices, with higher effects above the threshold values. Results also show that on average, the Sub-Saharan African countries are not able to satisfy any of the threshold conditions, which accounts for their poor growth experience. Conclusion: The study concludes that countries with weak institutions do not benefit maximally from infrastructure development policies. The paper, therefore, recommends that countries in Sub-Saharan Africa need to focus on improving their institutional patterns if they are to reap the optimum benefits from their infrastructure development efforts.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.89-102
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• 2022

This study is designed to investigate the effect of inflow FDI on the host country's economic growth and the role of absorptive capacity in this relationship. Eight developing countries in East Asia, including Mongolia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia, are analyzed. Year data from 2000 to 2018 are used. Based on the study of Hansen (1999), the panel threshold effect model is used, and human capital, R&D, and infrastructure are set as absorptive capacity by referring to Wang and Hwang (2013). The analysis results are as follows. It is confirmed that FDI has a positive effect on the economic growth of the host country, and absorption capacity strengthens the relationship between FDI and economic growth in a positive direction. At this time, it appears that a threshold exists for the moderating effect of the absorptive capacity. It presents useful implications for economic growth in developing countries.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.1301-1311
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• 2022

Global climate change brings environmental quality sensitivity, especially in developed countries. Developed countries use non-renewable energy sources intensively both in their own countries and in other countries, they make productions that cause an enormous rate of increase in CO₂ emissions and unsustainable environmental costs. This has increased the interest in environmentally friendly alternative energy sources. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of nuclear energy consumption and technological innovation on environmental quality in G7 countries using annual data over the period 1970-2015. The Panel Threshold Regression Model was used for the analysis. Empirical findings have indicated that the relationship between nuclear energy consumption and carbon emissions differs according to innovation for nuclear power plants. It was also concluded that nuclear energy consumption reduces carbon emissions more after a certain level of innovation. This result shows that the increase in innovative technologies for nuclear power plants not only increases energy efficiency but also contributes positively to environmental quality.

• Industrial Engineering and Management Systems
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.148-154
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• 2009

In recent days, large-sized flat-panel display (FPD) has been increasingly applied to computer monitors and TVs. Mura defects, appearing as low contrast or non-uniform brightness region, sometimes occur in manufacturing of the Thin-Film Transistor Liquid-Crystal Displays (TFT-LCD). Implementation of automatic Mura inspection methods is necessary for TFT-LCD production. Various existing Mura detection methods based on regression diagnostics, surface fitting and data transformation have been presented with good performance. This paper proposes an efficient Mura detection method that is based on a regression diagnostics using studentized residuals for automatic Mura inspection of FPD. The input image is estimated by a linear model and then the studentized residuals are calculated for filtering Mura regions. After image dilation, the proposed threshold is determined for detecting the non-uniform brightness region in TFT-LCD by means of monitoring the every pixel in the image. The experimental results obtained from several test images are used to illustrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method for Mura detection.

• The Korean Journal of Applied Statistics
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.873-885
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• 2016

Onions are grown in a few specific regions of Korea that depend on the climate and the regional characteristic of the production area. Therefore, when onion yields are to be estimated, it is reasonable to use a statistical model in which both the climate and the region are considered simultaneously. In this paper, using a spatial panel regression model, we predicted onion yields with the different weather conditions of the regions. We used the spatial auto regressive (SAR) model that reflects the spatial lag, and panel data of several climate variables for 13 main onion production areas from 2006 to 2015. The spatial weight matrix was considered for the model by the threshold value method and the nearest neighbor method, respectively. Autocorrelation was detected to be significant for the best fitted model using the nearest neighbor method. The random effects model was chosen by the Hausman test, and the significant climate variables of the model were the cumulative duration time of sunshine (January), the average relative humidity (April), the average minimum temperature (June), and the cumulative precipitation (November).

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.172-184
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• 2016

Background: The objective of this study was to examine the effect of occurrence and reoccurrence of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) on transition to poverty and persistence of poverty in South Korea. Methods: The data of the year 2008-2011 from the Korea Health Panel were used. CHE was defined as the share of total health expenditure in a household out of a household's total income at various threshold levels (more than 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%). The effect of catastrophic expenditure on transition to poverty and persistence of poverty was analyzed through multivariate logistic regression. Results: The shares of households facing CHE at various threshold levels have increased gradually with 37.7%, 21%, 13.1%, and 9.5% in 2011. Households facing CHE were more likely to experience transition to poverty at thresholds level of more than 5% and 20% in 2010 set. Households facing CHE seemed to experience persistence of poverty, but it was not statistically significant. About 40% of households facing CHE in 2009 encountered another shock of CHE in 2010. Households without CHE seemed to experience more transition to poverty and persistence of poverty, but it was not statistically significant. For household with multiple CHE, those with medical aid were more likely to experience transition to poverty with statistical significance, but the statistical significance disappeared in case of persistence of poverty. Conclusion: The Korean health system needs to be improved to serve as a social security net for addressing transition to poverty and persistence of poverty due to facing CHE.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.423-435
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• 2010

Objectives: The low benefit coverage rate of South Korea's health security system has been continually pointed out. A low benefit coverage rate inevitably causes catastrophic health expenditure, which can be the cause of the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty. This study was conducted to ascertain the effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty in South Korea. Methods: To determine the degree of social mobility, this study was conducted among the 6311 households that participated in the South Korea Welfare Panel Study in both 2006 and 2008. The effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty in South Korea was assessed via multiple logistic regression analysis. Results: The poverty rate in South Korea was 21.6% in 2006 and 20.0% in 2008. 25.1 - 7.3% of the households are facing catastrophic health expenditure. Catastrophic health expenditure was found to affect the transition to poverty even after adjusting for the characteristics of the household and the head of the household, at the threshold of 28% or above. Conclusions: 25.1% of the households in this study were found to be currently facing catastrophic health expenditure, and it was determined that catastrophic health expenditure is a cause of transition to poverty. This result shows that South Korea's health security system is not an effective social safety net. As such, to prevent catastrophic health expenditure and transition to poverty, the benefit coverage of South Korea's health security system needs to the strengthened.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.275-296
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• 2012

Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University The national health insurance system in Korea is characterized as relatively high out-of-pocket payments, which are the principal source of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE). The objectives of this study are to estimate the incidence of household CHE and to clarify the characteristics that affect the occurrence and recurrence of household CHE using the Seoul Welfare Panel Survey database for 2008 and 2010. Thresholds to estimate CHE were 10% and 20% of the total household income (T/X), and 25% and 40% of the income excluding food share (T/Y). Determinants of the occurrence and recurrence of CHE at the threshold of T/X=10% were analysed using multiple logistic regression models. Out of the 3,665 households that responded in 2008 survey, households with CHE were 12.07% (T/X${\geq}$10%), 5.34% (T/X${\geq}$20%), 6.84% (T/Y${\geq}$25%), and 4.44% (T/Y${\geq}$40%). Risk factors associated with household CHE included living with a spouse, non-Medicaid beneficiary, householder unemployment, low household income, the number of disabled members, poor subjective health, and the number of chronic diseases. A total of 41.78% of households with CHE in 2008 repeatedly experienced CHE in 2010. Risk factors of CHE recurrence included decreased household income and an increase in chronic diseases over the two time periods, the number of members with disability or chronic diseases, and the presence of cancer patients in 2008. Households with lower socioeconomic and health status had a higher financial burden on health care than do their counterpart households. There is a need to enhance society-wide financial protection from health spending among vulnerable citizens in Seoul, particularly, households with low income, disabled members or cancer patients.