• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.1-26
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• 2008

The main purpose of this paper is to explore the impacts of foreign wife status and social capital on fertility among a group of Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese wives in Korea. Attention is focused on the argument that minority group status and immigrant social capital exerts an independent effect on fertility, apart from socioeconomic and demographic variables. It is hypothesized that the level and tempo of fertility of foreign wives reflect their social disadvantages and the adaptation process. Micro-data from two socio-demographic surveys were utilized to analyze the reproductive outcomes of foreign and native wives in Korea. Results of analyses reveal that foreign wives in Korea tend to have fewer children compared to native Korean women. It was found that a foreign wife's access to social capital significantly facilitates reproductive behavior. Those who engage themselves more in voluntary activities, have more friends in Korea, and possess better and higher-quality social networks tend to have more children. Foreign wives with a high degree of integration or assimilation to the new surroundings were also found to have more children than other foreign wives.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.13-27
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• 2008

The advancement of information and transportation technologies in the context of economic and cultural globalization facilitates international marriages. However, it is ironic that image and fantasies play a significant role in the actual process of these marriages. Using data from a national survey conducted in 2006 (Survey for the Conjugal Life of the International Marriage Families) this study examines the experiences of Korean men and foreign wives. The findings confirm the negative impacts on marital satisfaction of the spousal image of hypergamy (i.e., imaginings of a high-earning husband and a submissive wife) and abbreviated marriage processes (i.e., broker-mediated marriage and incorrect information about a future spouse), but the detailed patterns differ by gender and by the ethnic origin of the wife. Korean Chinese (and to a lesser extent Han Chinese) wives are more negatively affected by the marriage process and spousal imaginings than are Southeast Asians and 'other' wives. While Southeast Asian wives are more likely to have received incorrect information about their husbands, they show significantly more flexible attitudes toward the marriage and spouses. Unification Church members are excluded from the analysis because their marital lives are distinctive enough to warrant separate research. As previous qualitative findings suggested, some Korean Chinese wives seem to perceive that returnees to the home country deserve an improvement in economic status as opposed to the disappointing reality. Imagining a submissive wife hurts the marital satisfaction of husbands regardless of the ethnic origin of the wife.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.131-157
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to examine the difference in depression level of Japanese, Chinese and Vietnamese wives who are residing in Korean society. Special focus was taken to compare the differences in terms of the origin of nationality. Guided by the role theory, we analyzed the effect of parental role and work role on depression of foreign wives. Also we considered the social resources, ethnic characteristic that are well-known to be associated with the role performance, in this study. The data came from the sample of 524 foreign wives case (Japanese 35%, Chinese 31%, Vietnamese 34%). The result show us that depression level is different by origin of nationality of foreign wives: Vietnamese wives were more depressed compare to Japanese or Chinese wives. The effects of two social role on depression were significant even if the social resources and ethnicity are considered in the model. However, the strength of the effect of social roles were different by one another: having a job was especially effective to decrease the Chinese wife's depression level, while for the Vietnamese wives, parental role was essential to lower the depression level. In addition, the social determinants of depression were differ by the nationalities of wives. The results imply that the social adaptation process of foreign wife may be varied by the origin of nationality.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.155-161
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• 2019

This study was to identify the effects of home visit intervention program for Holistic Healthcare of multi-culture Couples. It used a non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design quasi-experimental research. The subjects of this study consist of 20 couples for experimental and control groups. Multi-cultural couples comprised of foreign women married to Korean men in farm and fishery areas. The research tools were used stress index by SA-3000P (Medicare co. Ltd. KOREA), Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), and World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-Bref). The experimental group of the wives had lower stress index than the control group, the experimental group of the husband showed lower stress index than the control group, (t=-3.14, p=.002). The wife (t=-3.75, p=.001) and husband (t=-4.20, p=.001) of the experimental group showed lower depression scores than the control group. Both the wife (t=3.86, p=.001) and husband (t=5.28, p=.001) showed higher scores for quality of life compared to the control group. It was found that this holistic healthcare home visit program is an effective program to make improvements on stress, depression and quality of life for multi-cultural couples. Therefore, as the intervention program developed in this study is home visits for the holistic health of multi-cultural couples, and it is judged that it can be implemented at the local social health centers or healthcare centers.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.17-29
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to identify the needs of marriage education programs for multicultural couples based on their socio-demographic characteristics. A total of 816 multicultural families (247 Korean husbands and 569 foreign wives) were recruited through 99 Multicultural Family Support Centers across Korea. Descriptive statistics and multiple regressions were conducted. The program needs that were relatively higher than other areas included the need to develop education on "understanding the culture and language of partner," "increased intimacy of the couple," "multicultural awareness," and "set goals for life." We also found that each participant's gender, foreign wife's country of origin, participant's education level, and marriage duration were significantly related to the needs of marriage education programs. These findings suggest that family life education for multicultural couples should be based on the characteristics of the program participants such as socio-demographic characteristics and family life cycle instead of providing a universal program for all multicultural couples.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.417-421
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• 2009

The number of international marriages in South Korea has drastically increased since the year 2000, and among these, the proportion of couples with a Korean husband and foreign wife accounts for more than 70%. At the same time, the number of children resulting from an international marriage has also risen dramatically; this tendency is especially evident in preschool children below 6 years of age. This review article shows some of the similarities and differences between children from international marriages and those from non-international households with respect to their growth, development and language skills.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.891-902
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• 2008

Some Korean men choose to marry a foreigner expecting that marriage will solve all their problems. Therefore, this case study is to provide basic information on how to prevent conflicts in the marriage and how to get used to the marriage life. first, it is apparent that these match-makings between Korean men and married Female Immigrants are commercialized and are based on the two parties' convenience. Second, it is more possible that the issues with the role of husband/wife and the allocation of household labor stem from the cultural differences from international racial differences rather than Korean men are authoritative or patriarchal. It seems that the foreign brides from the third world countries choose to many Korean men with only a single purpose to financially help their parents. While neither willing to share household labor nor providing what is expected to be a wife, they demand financial assists for their parents or choose to get a job at a factory to make money. Third, the husbands expect their wives to learn Korean since there is not much opportunity to learn the wives' language and the culture. Also, the textbooks are rare to find for the languages. Moreover, the husbands do not have the enthusiasm or the ability to team due to age Fourth, the Korean men are rather psychological, financial, social victims than domestic abusers.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.29-39
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• 2013

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate levels of stress, self-esteem, and powerlessness in Korean husbands married to foreigner wives. Methods: The subjects were 183 Korean men who were living with foreigner wives in the Gwangju, Jeonnam and Jeonnbuk areas. Data were collected from January to May 2012 and analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test, one-way ANOVA, Scheffe$\acute{e}$ test, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and backward multiple regression with the SPSS PC WIN version 18.0. Results: The average level of stress was 4.48, with difficulties in international marriage experienced by the subjects due to differences in language and culture. The average reported self-esteem score was 29.69, and the average powerlessness score 117.76. There were significant differences in perceived powerlessness depending on the employment statuses, income levels, and nationalities of the participants' wives, and their perceived levels of satisfaction with living with a foreigner wife. Powerlessness was positively correlated with stress (r=.41, p<.001), and negatively correlated with self-esteem(r=-.63, p<.001). The factors affecting the perceived powerlessness included self-esteem (${\beta}$=-.54, p<.001), stress (${\beta}$=.28, p<.001), lower income (${\beta}$=.13, p = .016), and working wife (${\beta}$=.12, p = .036). Conclusion: Healthcare providers need to explore strategies to improve self-esteem and powerlessness in Korean men married to foreigner wives.

• Journal of English Language & Literature
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• v.58 no.2
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• pp.249-277
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• 2012

Eugene O'Neill's one-act play Before Breakfast (1916) depicts a morning scene of a married couple who live in a slovenly flat at Greenwich Village. There is no apparent dramatic action occurring in the play. Instead, the play is full of Mrs. Rowland's incessant complaints about her husband Alfred's loafing around bars with artists friends, neglecting his role as breadwinner. An irony is that every morning she prepares breakfast for the good-for-nothing husband even in the moment of complaining. It is worth noting that Alfred is an 'unseen character' who is never directly observed by the audience but is only described by her wife. Deprived of all chances to speak and present himself on stage, he is kept in the room throughout the play. In contrast, Mrs. Rowland dominates the stage, monopolizing language and action. The audience has to listen to her, judge from her statements, and take her one-sided complaints. The accused husband, with zero chance of showing up and defending himself, has no choice but to be the sinner as the wife intends. Another irony is that the audience's feeling about the situation is quite different from what is expected. The wife's complaints are regarded to be unfair and groundless in the reason that the situation is monopolized by her. In case of the husband, in contrast, the loss of voice and presence stresses the injustice of his dead-lock situation. In other words, the 'absent' quality of Alfred works to evoke the audience's sympathy for himself and subsequently makes his presence recognized, not visually but emotionally, by the audience throughout the play. Discovered in this paradoxical moment where the spectators understand or 'see' the status of the unseen and the devoiced message is successfully conveyed to the listeners, is the theatricality of absence. Adding to the function as theatrical device, the 'unseen character' Alfred works as a device of self-reflection to mirror the author's own life. Alfred, the alter-ego of O'Neill, effectively exorcises the author's life-long feeling of guilty as the unfaithful husband and father in the unhappy first marriage, successfully evoking the audience's sympathy for himself.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.95-120
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to find the factors that facilitate married female immigrants' early adjustment in Korea. For this purpose, 14 immigrated female participants living in Daegu were interviewed in-depth by using an open-ended questionnaire. The major findings are as follows: Through content analysis of participants' responses, three major factors were found to influence successful adjustment of married female immigrants personal factors, familial support and the social support system. Among the personal factors, having a conservative marital attitude, optimism and liking the partner rather than economic concern for the reason of marital decision making are contributing factors to the successful marital adjustment. Above all, familial support, a husband's good personality, care, and active support are the important factors in a foreign wife's adjustment and life satisfaction. Parent-in-law's help and tolerance playa role in a foreign daughter-in-law's successful adjustment. In the social support system, joined activities and the support of mends from the homeland make a contribution to decreasing the sense of isolation and to giving mental well-being for married female immigrants. The center for support of multicultural family gives them the opportunity to meet people from their homelands and to expand the social network.