• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.9-23
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• 2024

This study investigates the physiological and psychological effects of a nature-based outdoor activity program in an environment reflecting the characteristics of forest and coastal areas on 30 firefighters (average age: 40.4 ± 9.8 years) who are frequently exposed to dangerous situations. Blood pressure, pulse pressure, and heart rate variability were used as physiological measurement indicators, and the Korean versions of PANAS (positive affect and negative affect schedule), WEMWBS (Warwick-Edinburgh mental well-being scale), and PRS (perceived restorativeness scale) were used as psychological measurement indicators. For four days and three nights, the participants experienced programs at Hallyeohaesang Nature Center and the surrounding mountains, seas, and islands, utilizing forest resources such as trekking on forest trails, walking barefoot, taking aromatic footbaths, meditating in forest oxygen domes, and lying on relaxation chairs, and programs utilizing marine resources such as taking a boat to an island, walking on forest trails with seascape views, and sailing on a yacht. Participants' systolic blood pressure and pulse pressure decreased, and participants' positive emotions increased and negative emotions decreased after the program. There was a statistically significant increase in mental well-being and perceived restorative environment. Through this study, it was found that nature-based outdoor activity programs based on forest and marine resources are effective in physiological and psychological stability of firefighters. It is hoped that the results of this study will be applied to other high-risk workers for PTSD, who have high stress levels, by combining forest healing and marine healing, and expanding the scope and diversity of programs in more diverse environments and conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.81-90
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• 2001

This study focuses on the type of elder care arrangements and its consequences for mental health among physically frail elderly. Based on data from 410 frail older people, this study reveals the following results: (1) Frail elderly in family caregiving situation shows better mental health in terms of depression and psychological well-being than those in self-care or public institutional situation, (2) but this positive effect of family caregiving on mental health, especially depression, among older people is partly explained by the differences in income and marital status among older people in different caregiving situations, (3) the factors which are significantly related to mental health of older people are income in family caregiving situation, and education in both self-care situation and institutional situation. The results of the study emphasize the importance of family resources in family caregiving situation and of personal resources in self7are or institutional situation.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.52 no.5
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• pp.299-307
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• 2019

Objectives: While occupational stress has long been a central focus of psychological research, few studies have investigated how immigrant microbusiness owners (MBOs) respond to their unusually demanding occupation, or how their unresolved occupational stress manifests in psychological distress. Based on the job demands-resources model, this study compared MBOs to employees with regard to the relationships among emotional demands, job resources, and depressive symptoms. Methods: Data were derived from a cross-sectional survey of 1288 Korean immigrant workers (MBOs, professionals, office workers, and manual workers) aged 30 to 70, living in Toronto and surrounding areas. Face-to-face interviews were conducted between March 2013 and November 2013. Results: Among the four occupational groups, MBOs appeared to endure the greatest level of emotional demands, while reporting relatively lower levels of job satisfaction and job security; but MBOs reported the greatest job autonomy. The effect of emotional demands on depressive symptoms was greater for MBOs than for professionals. However, an inspection of stress-resource interactions indicated that though MBOs enjoyed the greatest autonomy, the protective effects of job satisfaction and security on the psychological risk of emotional demands appeared to be more pronounced for MBOs than for any of the employee groups. Conclusions: One in two Korean immigrants choose self-employment, most typically in family-owned microbusinesses that involve emotionally taxing dealings with clients and suppliers. However, the benefits of job satisfaction and security may protect MBOs from the adverse mental health effects of job stress.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.1-13
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• 2011

Objectives: This study investigated beliefs of Koreans on the usefulness of various resources they use to alleviate depressive symptoms and to identify factors affecting the beliefs on different approaches to depressive symptoms. Methods: A household survey was conducted on a stratified sample of adults of age 18~74 (N=1,607) in 2009. The participants were asked to read a case vignette of depression and to provide their opinion about usefulness of 39 types of resources as ways of addressing the symptoms. Factors affecting opinions on usefulness of various resources were examined with logistic regression. Results: The three approaches identified via factor analysis were believed to be useful in the order of 'psychological/relational/activity-oriented', 'lifestyle/cultural', and 'physical/medical' approaches. The logistic regression analyses revealed that correct recognition of symptoms increased the likelihood of positive opinion about psychological and physical approaches, and so did having current symptoms about physical and popular approaches. Past help-seeking experience increased the likelihood of negative opinion about physical approach, however. Conclusions: Strategies to adopt various types of resources need to be developed, including rigorous use of psychosocial methods, mechanisms to control service quality, and the integration of diverse resources into the current community mental health services.

• Psychiatry investigation
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• v.15 no.12
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• pp.1168-1173
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• 2018

Objective After the Sewol ferry disaster, bereavement with suicidal ideation was a critical mental health problem that was accompanied by various neuropsychological symptoms. This study examined the frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA), heart rate variability (HRV), and several psychological symptoms in bereaved family members (BFM) after the Sewol ferry disaster. Methods Eighty-three BFM after the Sewol ferry disaster were recruited. We assessed FAA, HRV, and psychological symptoms, including depression, post-traumatic stress, post-traumatic growth factor, anxiety, grief, and positive resources, between BFM with the presence and absence of current suicidal ideation. Results Compared to BFM without suicidal ideation, BFM with suicidal ideation showed a higher FAA with right dominance. Significant differences in psychological symptoms were observed between the groups. In BFM with suicidal ideation, the low: high frequency (LF:HF) ratio correlated with social resources and support. Conclusion The FAA and LF:HF ratio may be biomarkers that represent the pathological conditions of BFM with suicidal ideation. If researched further, they may shed light on the interaction between bereavement with suicidal ideation and social resources for therapeutic intervention.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.27-42
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• 2022

This study was conducted to examine the resources that influence the choice of drop-out students' reentry to school. A total of five years of panel analysis of 2,553 drop-out teenagers from 2013 to 2017 were utilized. In order to verify the resources that affect the choice of school reentry of teenagers with experiences of suspension of studies to formal middle and high school after July 2012, this study analyzed drop-out teenagers' family resources as well as their psychological, mental, and social-relationship resources. A crossover analysis, t-test, and hierarchical logistic regression analysis were conducted. The major outcomes of this study are as follows: First, the socio-demographic variables among the resources that affected the choice of reentry for school of teenager children were the type of family and number of moves to a new house. Second, the psychological and sentimental variable that affected the choice of school reentry was a decreasing level of positive recognition of the situation of suspension of studies combined with depression, impulsiveness, and perceiving society as one that discriminates based on the level of education. Third, significant family resource variables were the type of family form and parents providing economic support, which is a subfactor of parental attachment. Fourth, the presence of a mentor as a helpful social-relationship resource had a significant effect on relational resources. This study is significant in the sense that the positive family resources that affect the choice of school reentry of drop-out teenage students were determined, and the positive directivity of supportive family resources is presented for parents with teenage children experiencing a suspension of studies.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.235-243
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• 2017

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the mental health status of the children of psychiatric patients in order to plan for the resources that may be necessary to help these children achieve their full potential. Methods: Forty-eight children (age 9-18) whose parents were registered in 5 community mental health centers located in Seoul were recruited. Tests assessing 3 psychological domains were conducted: 1) cognition: Korean version of Learning Disability Evaluation Scale, Comprehensive Attention Test, 2) parent reported emotion and behavior: Korean Child Behavior Checklist, Korean attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder Rating Scale, and 3) self-reported emotion and behavior: Korean Beck's Depression Inventory-II/Children's Depression Inventory-II, Korean Youth Self Report). We defined the children as having a high risk of developing mental health problems if their test scores were over the cut-off levels in 2 or more of the 3 domains assessed. Results: Twelve (25%) children were classified as having a high risk of developing mental health issues. 20 (41.6%) children scored above the cut-off in only one of the domains. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the children of psychiatric patients might be vulnerable to mental illness and need early prevention or interven-tions for the sake of their mental health.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.145-154
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• 2003

As the life-expectancy is ever-increasing, and the proportion of the elderly population is growing steadily in every society of the world, it is ever more important to establish what factors allow certain elderly people to age successfully and remain relatively independent while others grow old less successfully and require extensive intervention. However, there is no consensus yet as to what successful aging means. Researchers have defined successful aging in a variety of ways. This study attempted to define the concept of successful aging and to clarify some dimensions of it through literature review. Previous approaches of studying successful aging and related themes were examined. Early perspectives including activity, disengagement, and continuity theories, Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC) model by Baltes and Baltes, three different conceptions of successful aging, that is, psychological well-being, physical health, and wisdom, and MacArthur research on successful aging have been reviewed for this study. The definition derived from the review is: Keeping up continuous developmental processes to achieve wisdom or ego-integrity, without suffering any major disabilities in either physical or mental functioning, while maintaining psychological well-being and employing SOC strategies, and participating in positive relationships with significant others. The dimensions of successful aging are 1) personal resources, including physical health, cognitive competences, self esteem, and social support 2) adaptation process of SOC, and 3) psychological aspects, including psychological well-being and wisdom.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.213-219
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• 2022

Objective: The Job Demand & Resources model suggests work characteristics are related to mental well-being and work engagement. Previous work describes the development of a combined construct 'engaged well-being at work' (EWB). To what extent changes in measures of this construct are responsive to changes in job demands and resources or associated with changes in job-related attitudes has not been established. Methods: Longitudinal employee-level data from three waves (German Linked Personnel Panel) were used. Logistic and linear fixed effects regression analyses explored longitudinal associations between changes in EWB for participants over a three-year period with changes in job demands and resources and job-related attitudes (job commitment, satisfaction, and turnover intentions). Results: While job resources were associated with increased odds for a change into a healthier and/or more engaged category of EWB, job demands reduced them. Job resources were more strongly related to higher EWB (OR_range = 1.22 - 1.61) than job demands (OR_range = 0.79 - 0.96). Especially psychological job demands showed negative associations with improved EWB (OR = 0.79). A change from the least desirable category 'disengaged strain' to any other category of EWB was associated with greater odds by up to 20.6 % for increased commitment and job satisfaction and lower odds for turnover intentions. Discussion: Improving work characteristics, especially job resources, could increase employees' EWB, emphasizing the importance of job characteristics for a healthy workplace. Because EWB seems to be associated with job attitudes, an improvement of this indicator would be relevant for employees and employers.

• Journal of Agricultural Extension & Community Development
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.149-171
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• 2006

This is a pilot study on rural women's psychological trap to define some obstacles to self directed learning. During few decades, according to major crop of each farm household has shifted from rice to other crops like as vegetables, fruits, horticultures, livestock, etc., women's role or labor sharing of women in farming has been also increased. Although women are important human resources, till now, there is no a research or an approach to rural woman on the view of individual human being. Therefore this study will contribute to understand woman's behavior or attitudes based on psychological description at each person's experiences. For this study, the data was collected from 23 women leaders who participated in a training course in 2005, through the scale of Jeffrey E. Young & Janet S. Klosko which was developed to improvement of one's repetitious behavior based on cognitive psychological care. It was categorized into 11types of psychological trap of one person, named as follows; (1) trap of being deserted by someone (2) trap of disbelief and being ill-treated (3) trap of weakness (4) trap of dependence (5) trap of emotional deprivation (6) trap of feelings of alienation among society (7) trap of deficiency (8) trap of anxiety to failure (9) trap of subordination (10) trap of the merciless standard by self-estimation (11) trap of the sense of privilege. From the data, the average age of subjects was 52.8years old, and the educational back of subjects was higher than general rural women. In both of the trap of weakness and the trap of the merciless standard by self-estimation, the ratio of over and 4 point score of 6 points was 71.4% and 76.2%. It means most of subjects have experienced fear of unexpected calamity(trap of weakness), and mental press hard for efforts to meet one's ideal standard(trap of the merciless standard by self-estimation). Especially the trap of the merciless standard by self-estimation may have relation with rural women's over burden from farming and local society activities.