• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.21-46
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• 1990

This paper, a sequel to Yoo and Lee (1990), attempts to investigate the interindustry determinants of technical efficiency in Korea's manufacturing industries, and also to conduct an exploratory analysis on the stability of technical efficiency over time. The hypotheses set forth in this paper are most found in the existing literature on technical efficiency. They are, however, revised and shed a new light upon, whenever possible, to accommodate any Korea-specific conditions. The set of regressors used in the cross-sectional analysis are chosen and the hypotheses are posed in such a way that our result can be made comparable to those of similar studies conducted for the U.S. and Japan by Caves and Barton (1990) and Uekusa and Torii (1987), respectively. It is interesting to observe a certain degree of similarity as well as differentiation between the cross-section evidence on Korea's manufacturing industries and that on the U.S. and Japanese industries. As for the similarities, we can find positive and significant effects on technical efficiency of relative size of production and the extent of specialization in production, and negative and significant effect of the variations in capital-labor ratio within industries. The curvature influence of concentration ratio on technical efficiency is also confirmed in the Korean case. There are differences, too. We cannot find any significant effects of capital vintage, R&D and foreign competition on technical efficiency, all of which were shown to be robust determinants of technical efficiency in the U.S. case. We note, however, that the variables measuring capital vintage effect, R&D and the degree of foreign competition in Korean markets are suspected to suffer from serious measurement errors incurred in data collection and/or conversion of industrial classification system into the KSIC (Korea Standard Industrial Classification) system. Thus, we are reluctant to accept the findings on the effects of these variables as definitive conclusions on Korea's industrial organization. Another finding that interests us is that the cross-industry evidence becomes consistently strong when we use the efficiency estimates based on gross output instead of value added, which provides us with an ex post empirical criterion to choose an output measure between the two in estimating the production frontier. We also conduct exploratory analyses on the stability of the estimates of technical efficiency in Korea's manufacturing industries. Though the method of testing stability employed in this paper is never a complete one, we cannot find strong evidence that our efficiency estimates are stable over time. The outcome is both surprising and disappointing. We can also show that the instability of technical efficiency over time is partly explained by the way we constructed our measures of technical efficiency. To the extent that our efficiency estimates depend on the shape of the empirical distribution of plants in the input-output space, any movements of the production frontier over time are not reflected in the estimates, and possibilities exist of associating a higher level of technical efficiency with a downward movement of the production frontier over time, and so on. Thus, we find that efficiency measures that take into account not only the distributional changes, but also the shifts of the production frontier over time, increase the extent of stability, and are more appropriate for use in a dynamic context. The remaining portion of the instability of technical efficiency over time is not explained satisfactorily in this paper, and future research should address this question.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.253-277
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• 2002

Nowaday, the advanced technology in information and communication has been leading the dramatic change of transaction paradigm expansion from physical basis to electronic one. As we know, financial services support most of financial exchange between two business parties. So the expansion of electronic transaction paradigm affects to every financial institutions which provide financial services. Thus, financial institutions have accepted e-Finance systems and providing internet financial services to live in the competition. The purpose of this study is to contribute the qualitative enhancement of its customer service, rapid diffusion and accurate strategy establishment for e-Finance industry in the user side. Through the literature review and factor and reliability analysis, this study selects six diffusion factors such as efficiency of perceived e-Finance, reliability and safety of e-Finance in perceived e-Finance itself's characteristic; confidence, technical factors and the customer service quality of e-Finance system in perception on e-Finance System; inclination to innovation in the personal characteristic. According to result of hypothesis verification by using logistics regression analysis, technical factors and the customer service quality of e-Finance system in perception on e-Finance System and inclination to innovation in the personal characteristic gave statistically positive effect to the diffusion decision at the significant level 0.05 and 0.01. However efficiency of perceived e-Finance, reliability and safety of e-Finance in perceived e-Finance itself's characteristic didn't affect to diffusion decision and confidence of e-Finance system in perception on e-Finance System didn't have any statistical significancy. This study can be used as a basic material for the forward empirical study of diffusion factors in the user side and be able to apply to company and government policy making or embodiment, determination for customer service quality degree of financial institutions. But this study has some limitations like didn't touch satisfaction factors and its effect, only deal domestic customers and didn't use multi-regression analysis.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.131-169
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• 2010

I develop a matching model in which risk-averse workers face borrowing constraints and make a labor force participation decision as well as a job search decision. A sharp distinction between unemployment and out of the labor force is made: those who look for work for a certain period but find no job are classified as the unemployed and those who do not look for work are classified as those out of the labor force. In the model, the job search decision consists of two steps. First, each individual who is not working obtains information about employment opportunities. Second, each individual who decides to search has to take costly actions to find a job. Since individuals differ with respect to asset holdings, they have different reservation job-finding probabilities at which an individual is indifferent between searching and not searching. Individuals, who have large asset holdings and thereby are less likely to participate in the labor market, have high reservation job-finding probability, and they are less likely to search if they have less quality of information. In other words, if individuals with large asset holdings search for job, they must have very high quality of information and face very high actual job-finding probability. On the other hand, individuals with small asset holdings have low reservation job-finding probability and they are likely to search for less quality of information. They face very low actual job-finding probability and seem to remain unemployed for a long time. Therefore, differences in the quality of information explain heterogeneous job search decisions among individuals as well as higher job finding probability for those who reenter the labor market than for those who remain in the labor force. The effect of the extended maximum duration of unemployment insurance benefits on the aggregate labor market and the labor market flows is investigated. The benchmark benefit duration is set to three months. As maximum benefit duration is extended up to six months, the employment-population ratio decreases while the unemployment rate increases because individuals who are eligible for benefits have strong incentives to remain unemployed and decide to search even if they obtain less quality of information, which leads to low job-finding probability and then high unemployment rate. Then, the vacancy-unemployment ratio decreases and, in turn, the job-finding probability for both the unemployed and those out of the labor force decrease. Finally, the outflow from nonparticipation decreases with benefit duration because the equilibrium job-finding probability decreases. As the job-finding probability decreases, those who are out of the labor force are less likely to search for the same quality of information. I also consider the matching model with two states of employment and unemployment. Compared to the results of the two-state model, the simulated effects of changes in benefit duration on the aggregate labor market and the labor market flows are quite large and significant.

• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.106-122
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• 1994

The purpose of this study to investigate the awareness of environmental management knowledge and behavior and the effect of independent variables (The environmental management behavior of housewives are composed of five activities-clothing, eating, housing, buying, family management. The independent variables are composed of objective variable and subjective variable). The Research Questions are as follows; 1. Are there significant differences in the housewife's awareness of the environmental management knowledge according to the objective variable and the subjective variable? 2. How much are the effects of related variables on the awareness of environmental management knowledge? 3. Are there significant differences in the housewife's environmental management behavior according to objective variable and subjective variable and awareness of environmental management knowledge? 4. How much are effects of related variables on the housewife's environmental management behavior? For these purpose, a theoretical framework was developed by literature review and applied to empirical test. The data was collected through the questionnaire those respondents were 477 housewives in seoul. It was analyzed by various statistical methods such as Frequency. Percentile, GLM, F-test, T-test, Duncan's Multiple Range Test, Pearson's Correlations Analysis Simple Regression Analysis, and Multiple Regression Analysis. The results of this research are as follows; 1. The awareness of environmental management knowledge had significant differences according to the variables such as housewife's age, husband's job, family number, education experience of environment, frequencies of contracting mass media, the perceived adequacy of resources, social-altruistic orientation. 2. Among all of these variables affecting the awareness of environmental management knowledge, the perceived adequacy of resources had the highest effects and the next were family number, social-altruistic, type of residence in order. 3. Total Environmental management behavior of housewives had significant differences according to the variables such of environment, frequencies of contracting mass media, the satisfaction of household labor, the perceived adequacy of resources, biospheric orientation, social-altruistic orientation, egoism orientation, the awareness of environmental management knowledge. The clothing, eating, housing, family management behavior had the high level, the buying management behavior had the average level. The clothing, eating, housing, buying, family management behavior had significant differences according to the variables such as the satisfaction of household labor, the perceived adequacy of resources, biospheric orientation, social-altruistic orientation, egoism orientation, the awareness of environmental management knowledge. In particular, the clothing, eating, housing, buying management behavior had significant differences according to the variables such as education experience of environment. And the housing, buying management behavior had significant differences according to the variables such as frequencies of contracting mass media. 4. Among all of theses variables affecting environmental management behavior, the most influence variables was awareness of environmental management knowledge and the next were influence of housewife's job, biospheric orientation, the satisfaction of household labor, education experience of environment, frequencies of contraction mass media, egoism orientation in order. Among all of theses variables effecting the clothing, eating, housing, buying management behavior the variables affecting the family management behavior, the most influences variables was housewife's job. In the result of analysing the housewife's environmental management behavior and awareness of environmental management knowledge, influences of education experience of environment had the highest effect and frequencies of contracting mass media may more influencial than other variables. And Concrete and systematic knowledge and technique of environmental education is requisite. The result of this study could be attributed to develop the efficient environmental information. More emphasis should be given to environmental education and a long range environmental policy. in particular, environmental education be effectively related to environmental behavior, life-education and systematic support must be provided. In addition, further study of environmental problem is needed for and application of various theoretical approaches and research method.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.7-29
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• 2012

Smartphone and its applications (i.e. apps) are increasingly penetrating consumer markets. According to a recent report from Korea Communications Commission, nearly 50% of mobile subscribers in South Korea are smartphone users that accounts for over 25 million people. In particular, the importance of smartphone has risen as a geospatially-aware device that provides various location-based services (LBS) equipped with GPS capability. The popular LBS include map and navigation, traffic and transportation updates, shopping and coupon services, and location-sensitive social network services. Overall, the emerging location-based smartphone apps (LBA) offer significant value by providing greater connectivity, personalization, and information and entertainment in a location-specific context. Conversely, the rapid growth of LBA and their benefits have been accompanied by concerns over the collection and dissemination of individual users' personal information through ongoing tracking of their location, identity, preferences, and social behaviors. The majority of LBA users tend to agree and consent to the LBA provider's terms and privacy policy on use of location data to get the immediate services. This tendency further increases the potential risks of unprotected exposure of personal information and serious invasion and breaches of individual privacy. To address the complex issues surrounding LBA particularly from the user's behavioral perspective, this study applied the privacy calculus model (PCM) to explore the factors that influence the adoption of LBA. According to PCM, consumers are engaged in a dynamic adjustment process in which privacy risks are weighted against benefits of information disclosure. Consistent with the principal notion of PCM, we investigated how individual users make a risk-benefit assessment under which personalized service and locatability act as benefit-side factors and information privacy risks act as a risk-side factor accompanying LBA adoption. In addition, we consider the moderating role of trust on the service providers in the prohibiting effects of privacy risks on user intention to adopt LBA. Further we include perceived ease of use and usefulness as additional constructs to examine whether the technology acceptance model (TAM) can be applied in the context of LBA adoption. The research model with ten (10) hypotheses was tested using data gathered from 98 respondents through a quasi-experimental survey method. During the survey, each participant was asked to navigate the website where the experimental simulation of a LBA allows the participant to purchase time-and-location sensitive discounted tickets for nearby stores. Structural equations modeling using partial least square validated the instrument and the proposed model. The results showed that six (6) out of ten (10) hypotheses were supported. On the subject of the core PCM, H2 (locatability ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA) and H3 (privacy risks ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA) were supported, while H1 (personalization ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA) was not supported. Further, we could not any interaction effects (personalization X privacy risks, H4 & locatability X privacy risks, H5) on the intention to use LBA. In terms of privacy risks and trust, as mentioned above we found the significant negative influence from privacy risks on intention to use (H3), but positive influence from trust, which supported H6 (trust ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA). The moderating effect of trust on the negative relationship between privacy risks and intention to use LBA was tested and confirmed by supporting H7 (privacy risks X trust ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA). The two hypotheses regarding to the TAM, including H8 (perceived ease of use ${\rightarrow}$ perceived usefulness) and H9 (perceived ease of use ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA) were supported; however, H10 (perceived effectiveness ${\rightarrow}$ intention to use LBA) was not supported. Results of this study offer the following key findings and implications. First the application of PCM was found to be a good analysis framework in the context of LBA adoption. Many of the hypotheses in the model were confirmed and the high value of $R^2$ (i.,e., 51%) indicated a good fit of the model. In particular, locatability and privacy risks are found to be the appropriate PCM-based antecedent variables. Second, the existence of moderating effect of trust on service provider suggests that the same marginal change in the level of privacy risks may differentially influence the intention to use LBA. That is, while the privacy risks increasingly become important social issues and will negatively influence the intention to use LBA, it is critical for LBA providers to build consumer trust and confidence to successfully mitigate this negative impact. Lastly, we could not find sufficient evidence that the intention to use LBA is influenced by perceived usefulness, which has been very well supported in most previous TAM research. This may suggest that more future research should examine the validity of applying TAM and further extend or modify it in the context of LBA or other similar smartphone apps.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.45 no.8
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• pp.1090-1098
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• 2016

The anti-inflammatory effects of ethanol extract from Grateloupia crispata (GCEE) were investigated in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated murine macrophages. Anti-inflammatory effects were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. There was no cytotoxic effect on proliferation of macrophages treated with GCEE compared to the control. GCEE significantly inhibited production of pro-inflammatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis $factor-{\alpha}$, and $IL-1{\beta}$] as well as nitric oxide in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. In addition, GCEE suppressed expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, cyclooxygenase-2, and nuclear $factor-{\kappa}B$ in a dose-dependent manner. GCEE significantly reduced activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases. In the in vivo test, evaluation of anti-inflammatory activity of GCEE was performed using croton oil-induced ear edema in ICR mice. Oral administration of 10 mg/kg to 250 mg/kg of GCEE significantly reduced ear edema in a dose-dependent manner compared to croton oil-induced mice. Moreover, GCEE reduced ear thickness and the number of mast cells compared to croton oil-induced mice in the histological analysis. These data suggest that GCEE could be used as a potential source for anti-inflammatory agents.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.59-72
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors affecting the intention to use healing farming by setting aged readiness, rural healing supply condition, and rural healing service as independent variables. This study has been started based on the idea that it is necessary to provide healing service through healing agriculture to the rapidly increasing elderly people and urban people who need mental rest. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to find out the various factors influencing intention to use healing agriculture through empirical analysis. Second, we want to examine whether the variables influenced the intention to use more. Third, based on the results of these tests, we suggest the policy for activation of healing agriculture by examining the factors necessary for the promotion of physical and mental health of the elderly in the aging society and the revitalization of healing agriculture for the mental healing of the urban people. For this study, a questionnaire survey was conducted for men and women over 30 years old, and the final 356 copies were analyzed. The validity of the research hypothesis was verified by linear regression analysis. The results of the analysis are as follows. First, the physical preparation, emotional preparation, and economic preparation of aged care preparations were found to have a significant effect on intention to use. Second, natural landscape, accessibility, and stability of rural healing supply conditions were found to have a significant effect on intention to use. But economics and expertise were dismissed. Third, crop cultivation, animal medication and healing facilities of rural healing service were proved to have significant influence on intention to use. In order to increase the utilization of healing agriculture, it is necessary for the consumer to be well prepared for aging. In rural healing supply conditions, accessibility and safety should be provided for healing facilities in rural healing services.And to increase the intention to use it.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.257-290
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• 2005

Korean energy use in industrial sector has increased more rapidly than other sectors during 1980~2000 periods. Relatively higher increases in industrial sector energy consumption raise questions whether government policy of rationalization of industrial energy use has been effective. In this study, we use 80-85-90 and 90-95-00 constant price input-output table to analyze increases in industrial energy use. Using an adjusted version of structural decomposition model introduced by Chen and Rose (1990), we decompose Changes of energy use into 17 elements. We classify entire industry sector into 32 sectors including four energy sectors (coal and coal products, refined petroleum, electricity and town gas). We then analyze changes of energy use by industrial level to check differences among industrial energy demand structures. Finally, we compare three industries, electronic product manufacturing, metal manufacturing and construction, that represent technology and capital intensive, energy and material intensive and labor and capital intensive industry. As results, we find that high energy using industries make the most effort to reduce energy use. Primary metal, petrochemical and mon-metal industries show improvements in elements such as energy and material productivity, energy and material imports, energy substitution and material substitutions towards energy saving. These results imply that although those industries are heavy users of energy, they put the best effort to reduce energy use relative to other industries. We find various patterns of change in industrial energy use at industrial level. To reduce energy use, electronic product manufacturing industry needs more effort to improve technological change element while construction industry needs more effort to improve material input structure element.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.217-235
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• 2010

In franchise industry, territorial restraint is a system that imposes exclusive right to franchisers in a certain business area. To the franchisers, this system guarantees monopoly profits in a local market and exclusive rights during the contract periods. In such a way, franchisee generates a big revenue at once on the basis of franchiser's initial investment such as interior cost and franchise fee, it must have supervised franchiser's moral hazard for the territorial restraint agreement. Rather than territorial restraint can be a system to give exclusive right to franchiser's so that they neglect their own sales and too much rely on headquarter's brand and marketing activities without their own efforts. This paper assesses the implication of territorial restraint by examining the effect on brand extension, degree of contract termination. Drawing on research in transaction cost agreement and opportunism, the authors suggest that franchisee is highly likely to launch similar brand which is not effected on previous contract when territorial restraint is set out in the contract system. Moreover, the authors find that the degree of contract termination will be high in the existence of territorial restraint due to the franchisee's opportunism. The results imply that territorial restraint induces franchisee's opportunistic strategy more aggressively so that the possibility of brand extension or new brand launching will be increased. At the same time, franchisee is aggressively seeking for the reason for contract termination due to the pursuit of its profit maximization. Based on some empirical findings, this paper concludes with policy implications and some necessary fields of future studies desirable.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.155-174
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• 2010

In many cases, street vendors are means of living and/or a solution to unemployment for low income group. Street vendors have both of positive and negative effects on traditional market revitalization. This two-sided perspective of the vendors has produced different views of interests groups. In this study, the features of street vendors are examined to present related issues, and a survey result conducted on interests groups is presented to offer effective management measures. As traditional management about street vendors are focused on crackdown, relationship between street traders and government has been not very much mutually cooperative, and at times some traders organized groups who are against government policies. With the premise admitting street vendors as one element of distribution network, it is possible to access the management measures for street vendors in organizational, quantitative or qualitative perspectives. However, I believe it is not recommendable to enforce multi-perspective approach at a time. It is because street traders still have quite strong animosity against government policies. Therefore, serious misunderstanding and side-effects on our society could be brought if the government makes hasty and forcible attempts to legalize street vendors. In political position, overreaching actions of government could hardly produce positive results because policy making and its enforcement need each of timeliness. In a similar way, government's policies for street vendors need to come into effect gradually. Management measures for street vendors can come in short-, mid- and long-term. In short-term, government should try to reduce animosity of street traders along with minimizing institutional and political pressure on them. As a mid-term solution, plans to bring vendors over to institutional boundaries by improving them are required. Last but not least, in the long term, government should design policies which are to help street vendors settle down and maintain successfully in the boundaries. Besides, policies related to street vendors need to come in effect in a way that closely connected to interests groups and businesses because those policies would get involve many interests groups and businesses in diverse perspectives.