• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.319-346
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• 2006

This study examines the current alcohol use situation among adolescents and provides information relevant to development of adequate prevention programs for adolescent alcohol use in Korea. In this study, we used focus group research method and analyzed the outcome with constant comparison method. We classified 4 major categories of adolescent alcohol use situation such as the factors on enhancing alcohol use, the factors on delaying alcohol use, the occasions significantly related to alcohol use and the first alcohol use experience of adolescent. And we found out 16 minor categories and 93 concepts under the major categories. The results from the study revealed that the factors on enhancing alcohol use were associated with adolescents' psychological reasons, their positive perceptions on alcohol, family factors, peer influences, teacher's influences and social and cultural aspects on alcohol in general. The factors on delaying alcohol use were associated with health conditions, their negative perceptions on alcohol, parental monitoring, economic reasons and their limited access to purchase alcohol. The occasions significantly related to adolescent alcohol use were family events, school events and peer gatherings. In addition, the first adolescent alcohol use experience was strongly associated with the peer influences and significant adults' offer of alcohol. Findings suggest recommendations for prevention and intervention programs for adolescent alcohol use in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.87-113
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• 2006

The research was performed responding to the growing needs of Korean foster care programs. It deals specifically with the people who voluntarily provide foster care despite the lack of Government support. The research has also made an effort to understand how the foster parents perceive their parent roles for the foster children. According to the research results based on the parents from the H foster care center, it showed that foster parents generally come from higher educational backgrounds compared to their equivalent age group and also similar or even higher income levels than the average family residing in an urban area. Conclusively, their traits in socio-demographic factors is said to be homogeneous. The research also focused on examining the role perceptions of Korean foster parents. The foster parents were well aware and educated on the significance of the children's psychological adjustments. However, the research recognized some role responsibilities that the parents failed to understand. Hopefully the foster care centers will take on such responsibilities and contribute in helping the parents realize their insufficiencies. Based on the results of the research, the researcher was able to recognize the important issues involved in the recruitment, selection, and education process for the foster parents. Additionally, new role adjustments are necessary among both foster parents and foster centers.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.67 no.1
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• pp.263-288
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• 2015

This study is to research the mediating effects of optimism and quality of relationship which interpersonal traumatic experience influences posttraumatic growth. It focuss on verifying the impact of interpersonal traumatic experience to optimism and quality of relationship and the influence of optimism and quality of relationship to posttraumatic growth. And also it is to verify dual mediating effect between optimism and quality of relationship. Data for this study were collected through the use of a survey instrument completed by 405 interpersonal traumatic experience, 30-60 age group. Collected data were analysed by AMOS program, Structure Equation Model(SEM) was implemented to verify the mediating effect between optimism and quality of relationship. Finally, Phantom Variable was utilized for verification of indirect influence of a multi mediating effects. The findings of this study were as follows, First, the result shows that the higher level interpersonal traumatic experience, the higher posttraumatic growth they have. Second, it shows that optimism and quality of relationship have partial mediating effect between interpersonal traumatic experience and posttraumatic growth. Third, it was analyzed that optimism and quality of relationship had double mediating effect. Based on these findings, the research discussion reinforced the importance of intervene with its optimism and quality of relationship in the site of those who experience interpersonal trauma. Theological, political and practical implications of this study are as follows. First, it has a series of significance in terms of that this study confirmed its influence considering the quality of relationship from interpersonal experience among relevant factors of traumatic accident, optimism among individual factors, quality of relationship among environmental factors based on 'the crisis of life and the theory of individual growth'. econd, even though optimism and quality of relationship were proved as major predictors for posttraumatic growth of those who experience interpersonal traumatic, psychological support center for traumatic experience is not operated systematically in Korea. Third, this study implies that it should intervene mainly with its optimism and quality of relationship in the site of those who experience interpersonal trauma such as any abuses including sexual abuse, bullying, and divorce.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.482-494
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• 2016

This study examines the longitudinal trends regarding awareness of informatization, Information Technology (IT) use, and attitudes towards IT among older adults aged 60 or over. Surveys were conducted in 2004 and 2014 at senior welfare centers in Seoul, Korea. The trends between 2004 and 2014 showed that the rate of Internet use increased among older adults who lived alone, were aged 70 or over, had middle education level, had low income, or were unemployed. Older adults had positive attitudes towards IT, and users were more positive than non-users. The levels of IT use were low among users, and their reasons for IT use were for psychological, emotional, and practical purposes. For non-users of IT, their passive tendencies toward IT use and informatization were amplified. As such, the state of IT use and attitudes toward it among older adults in Seoul were longitudinally different, and the differences in awareness and ability between users and non-users tended to increase.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.53-76
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• 2008

The aim of this study is to understand the ethical struggles of Child Protective Service(CPS) social workers and to indicate some implications for future studies by conducting research focusing on their ethical dilemmas and decision-making. This study used qualitative methods, in particular the phenomenological approach and 14 in-depth semi-structured interviews with CPS social workers, and were conducted and analyzed using the procedures of Colaizzi(1978). This study looks at the following research questions: 1) What kind of ethical dilemmas do CPS social workers encounter? This means what ethical dilemmas do they directly or indirectly encounter because of policy or system inadequacies and huge caseloads. 2) How do the CPS social workers make decisions when they are faced with ethical dilemmas? Making the best decisions with all of their responsibilities and burdens is the focus of this question. This study suggests the following discussions: First, efforts to emphasize 'ethics' at CPS are needed. Second, proper policies and systems based on the Korean situation are needed so that CPS social workers won't have to face 'needless' ethical dilemmas. Third, an index of ethical problems or ethical codes is necessary because principles are important to those social workers who face ethical dilemmas. Fourth, an ethical committee that protects the CPS social workers by supporting their decisions and being responsible for them is needed. Last, a debriefing system that reduces a CPS social worker's psychological trauma caused by ethical dilemmas should be available.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.165-193
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• 2013

This study purposes to explore the growing process through spousal bereavement in later life, and to develop the theory. A qualitative research was conducted, and the participants were 17 seniors. The analysis according to Strauss and Corbin's grounded theory(1998), resulted in 143 concepts, 43 subcategories, and 19 categories. Range analysis according to paradigm showed that the causal conditions were 'marital relationships', 'independent/dependent tendencies', and 'emotional readiness for the death of a spouse', and the phenomena were 'depression', 'hopelessness', 'daily stress', 'psychological intimidation', 'regret', and 'sense of being freed'. The contextual conditions that affect these phenomena were 'desire for intimate personal relationships' and 'desire to maintain independence'; the action/interaction strategies to manage the phenomena were 'facing reality' and 'efforts for construction of the new life'; and the mediating conditions that promote or suppress these action/interaction strategies were 'social support' and 'spirituality'. The results were 'reconstruction of the meaning in life', 'increase in self-esteem', 'reinforcement of social network' and 'embrace and acceptance'. Furthermore, when personal growth after bereavement of a spouse was analyzed focusing on changes over time, the growth process consisted of three steps: 'sadness and despair', 'embracing and moving forward', and 'personal growth'. The pattern analyses were performed to typify recurring relations by category, and 5 types were derived. The results of our study show that personal growth after spousal loss is an integrative process in life after crisis, and can be conceptualized as the process of overcoming the despair that immediately follows the death of a spouse, seeking a new life by actively taking control, and discovering a strengthened self.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.235-242
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• 2013

For people with disabilities, getting a job makes it possible to advocate their own human rights, to improve their self-esteem and self-efficacy, to narrow economic, psychological and social divide between them and those without disabilities and ultimately to attain social integration. According to recent statistical data, there was an increase in the weight of people with disabilities, but their economic activities were on the wane, and it's required to explore what curbs the employment of people with disabilities to find feasible solutions. The purpose of this study was to examine influential factors for the economic activities of people with disabilities. The subjects in this study were the selected people with disabilities in the metropolitan area, on whom a survey was conducted to make an empirical analysis. The findings of the study were as follows: The people with disabilities engaged in less economic activities when they were basic livelihood security recipients, when they were older, and when they were female. And those who underwent job training and who were certified technicians were more likely to participate in economic activities. Therefore differentiated policy setting is required to boost the economic activities of people with disabilities after their general characteristics, characteristics as human resources and characteristics related to vocational training are carefully analyzed. As for general characteristics, whether they are basic livelihood security recipients or not should be considered to assess the degree of their poverty, and their gender, age and presence or absence of spouses should all be taken into account. In terms of vocational training, their certificates and job training experience should be investigated.

• Archives of design research
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.313-322
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• 2003

The residential and welfare facilities for the elderly are continuously increasing due to change of value on family under situation of aging population increase. And it is predicted that accommodation capacity of facilities for the elderly and its rate those facility takes compared to whole social welfare facilities will be accelerated considering past increase speed. On the other hand, about 60％ of elderly people have low physical and mental level almost dose to handicapped people therefore special environmental concerns helping their independent living are necessary. The purpose of this study is to analyze whether facilities for the elderly are adequate to accommodate their request condition by understanding color among environmental factors is one of most important factor for smooth understanding, communication and psychological remedy effect for thou. For this purpose, importance and effect of color and visual characteristic and reaction to color in elderly environment are researched through documents and visited 10 facilities in Seoul and Kyunggi region to research interior color status. And measuring of color on 5 main spaces of the facilities such as lobby/lounge, corridor, dining room, bedroom, stairway/ramp are done under analysis of its functional and aesthetic level based on Moon ＆ Spencer's color theory.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.115-142
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• 2006

This study examined the level of social support for grandparent-headed families and its effects on the grandparents' physical and mental health. For this purpose, the survey data was collected from 141 grandparents raising their grandchildren in Daejeon Metropolitan City. The study generated several findings. First, grandparent-headed families tended to rely on formal support system rather than informal one. Second, grandparent's physical health was found to be very poor that 82.3% of the grandparents reportedly needed some assistance in at least one ADL, and their mean score of depression measured by CES-D was 27.4, indicating a moderate level of psychological distress. Third, among the sociodemographic and stressor variables, grandparents' sex, the number of their children and household keeping burden were statistically significant predictors of their ADL restriction. As for depression level of the grandparents, their monthly income, parenting duration, the number of their children, economic difficulties, household keeping burden and social restrictions were found to be statistically significant. Fourth, grandparents who reported of having more social support from their friends, a higher level of satisfaction of the friends' social support and also of being satisfied with social support from their religious associations tended to experience significantly less ADL restrictions. The more kinds of social support received from friends and social welfare agencies and the less satisfied they were with social support from governmental sector, the higher their depression level was. Implications for social welfare services and programs for grandparent-headed families were discussed.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.352-363
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• 2016

The study was an exploratory research on the awareness of informatization and attitudes to information technology (IT) and its use among elderly women in a metropolitan area. The questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data on IT use or non-use of elderly women aged 60 or older in senior welfare centers in Seoul, Korea. The data on 343 cases were analysed using SPSS 21.0. As a result, the rate of internet use was relatively high and different according to socio-demographic factors, such as age. The elderly women's attitudes like the levels of awareness and expectation of informatization were positive. Elderly women learned to use IT for psychological, emotional reasons as well as for practical ones, and the satisfaction level of IT use was relatively high. Finally, most IT non-users were indifferent and ignorant about IT use. In addition, the dissatisfaction level of IT non-use was normal, but elderly women had a relatively positive expectation of IT use in the future. This study may contribute to understanding the diverse pictures of IT use and the digital divide in old age, and assist in the development of practical programs and policies for the informatization and welfare for older adults.