• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.141-156
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• 2013

Researchers in welfare services of local government in Korea have rather been on isolated issues as disables, childcare, aging phenomenon, etc. (Kang, 2004; Jung et al., 2009). Lately, local officials, yet, realize that they need more comprehensive welfare services for all residents, not just for above-mentioned focused groups. Still cases dealt with focused group approach have been a main research stream due to various reason(Jung et al., 2009; Lee, 2009; Jang, 2011). Social Security Information System is an information system that comprehensively manages 292 welfare benefits provided by 17 ministries and 40 thousand welfare services provided by 230 local authorities in Korea. The purpose of the system is to improve efficiency of social welfare delivery process. The study of local government expenditure has been on the rise over the last few decades after the restarting the local autonomy, but these studies have limitations on data collection. Measurement of a local government's welfare efforts(spending) has been primarily on expenditures or budget for an individual, set aside for welfare. This practice of using monetary value for an individual as a "proxy value" for welfare effort(spending) is based on the assumption that expenditure is directly linked to welfare efforts(Lee et al., 2007). This expenditure/budget approach commonly uses total welfare amount or percentage figure as dependent variables (Wildavsky, 1985; Lee et al., 2007; Kang, 2000). However, current practice of using actual amount being used or percentage figure as a dependent variable may have some limitation; since budget or expenditure is greatly influenced by the total budget of a local government, relying on such monetary value may create inflate or deflate the true "welfare effort" (Jang, 2012). In addition, government budget usually contain a large amount of administrative cost, i.e., salary, for local officials, which is highly unrelated to the actual welfare expenditure (Jang, 2011). This paper used local government welfare service data from the detailed data sets linked to the Social Security Information System. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that affect social welfare spending of 230 local authorities in 2012. The paper applied multiple regression based model to analyze the pooled financial data from the system. Based on the regression analysis, the following factors affecting self-funded welfare spending were identified. In our research model, we use the welfare budget/total budget(%) of a local government as a true measurement for a local government's welfare effort(spending). Doing so, we exclude central government subsidies or support being used for local welfare service. It is because central government welfare support does not truly reflect the welfare efforts(spending) of a local. The dependent variable of this paper is the volume of the welfare spending and the independent variables of the model are comprised of three categories, in terms of socio-demographic perspectives, the local economy and the financial capacity of local government. This paper categorized local authorities into 3 groups, districts, and cities and suburb areas. The model used a dummy variable as the control variable (local political factor). This paper demonstrated that the volume of the welfare spending for the welfare services is commonly influenced by the ratio of welfare budget to total local budget, the population of infants, self-reliance ratio and the level of unemployment factor. Interestingly, the influential factors are different by the size of local government. Analysis of determinants of local government self-welfare spending, we found a significant effect of local Gov. Finance characteristic in degree of the local government's financial independence, financial independence rate, rate of social welfare budget, and regional economic in opening-to-application ratio, and sociology of population in rate of infants. The result means that local authorities should have differentiated welfare strategies according to their conditions and circumstances. There is a meaning that this paper has successfully proven the significant factors influencing welfare spending of local government in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.1
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• pp.65-81
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• 1980

This study is aimed at investigating the compensatory education which was already implemented or is being implemented in the U.S.A. and Japan; and at studying the types of programs and their characteristics; and at sounding out the possibilities of the application of such programs in family and social conditions is Korea. In order to achieve the above mentioned objectives, the established items for the study are as follows: (1) Various types of early children's education (2) Programs of compensatory education for the disadvantaged Children (3) Head Start Program, Early Training Project and Montessori School (4) Integrated Preschool Programs (5) Day-Care Center for employed mothers We investigated the various compensatory education programs for the preschool children who are in economically, socially, culturally disadvantaged conditions. Head Start Programs were federally supported programs for preschool children and opened as summer programs in 1965 for the first time. The purpose of Head Start has been to give preschool children the kinds of experiences they need in preparation for school. The Head Start children were found to be significantly better prepared for school than the normal children. However, after six to eight months, their initial advantages had virtually. disappeared and then the simple problem with Head Start and other such programs was that little long-term good could be evidenced unless the high quality educational environment was maintained. Therefore, to solve this problem, three other programs were funded as part of the overall Head Start. These three programs are the Parent-Child Center, Home Start, and the Child and Family Resources Program. The Early Training Project for disadvantaged children was implemented by Klaus and Gray of Peabody College in 1962. The program was a field research study concerned with the development and testing over time of procedures for improving the educability of young children from low income homes. Its major concern was to study whether it was possible to offset the progressive retardation observed in the public schooling careers of children, living in deprived circumstances. Children, who were trained through the Early Training Project were superior to control groups in the test of IQ and vocabulary as well as linguistic abilities, and preparation for reading. This project showed the possibilities which could prevent preschool children from being disadvantaged socially, culturally and mentally. In 1907, Montessori School was established by Maria Montessori in Italy and her school program has been introduced at present to several countries in the world as one compensatory educations. She first began her experimental methods with retarded children, followed by disadvantaged children from the tenements of Rome. The Montessori approach futures a prepared environment and carefully designed, self-correcting materials. The Montessori curriculum presents tastes that feature sequence, order, and regularity, in addition to those that develop motor and sensory skills. She was interested in children's intellectual development and in developing good work habits. One of the latest developed programs for disadvantaged children is "Integrated Preschool Program" which has successfully integrated handicapped and nonhandicapped children. Several studies have showed that handicapped children in integrated school environments are accepted by and interact with their nonhandicapped peers. In fact, this program provides a number of potential, and perhaps opportunities for nonhandicapped children to serve as valuable resources in fostering the development of their handicapped peers. Next we turn to Japanese programs which are divided into two different types. One is Day-Care Center which was established by Child Welfare Law and the other is kindergarten organized by School Education Law. The kindergarten opened in 1876 and it has been part of school systems since 1947 by the implementation of education law, and the Day-Care Center which started in 1890 for the employed mothers. was changed into Day-Nursery by the enactment of child welfare law in 1947. The laws and operational regulations for the Day-Nursery were set up and were put in effect by the establishment standard acts of children welfare facilities, and the Day-Nursery has been operated in various types by the increasing demand, chiefly because of the socio-economical changes of family structures in both urban and suburban areas. Nursery education for physically and mentally disadvantaged children is for those who are blind, deaf and dumb, mentally retarded; physically disadvantaged by accidents or diseases. Montessori education in Japan was started in 1968 and many research groups for studying Montessori were organized. In 1977, Montessori remedial education society was also organized in which they started a number of studies; a study for developing materials; in-service training for the remedial education; and seminars and lectures, etc It is strongly suggested that we study the early educations that are being implemented in Japan and a variety of compensatory educations that were already implemented in the U.S.A. and modify them for the organization of our own model and properly accommodate them to our social needs.