• Korean Journal of Comparative Education
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.53-75
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• 2013

This article explores the impact of mergers on the experiences of students. A case design is used to gain an in-depth understanding of the students in a Korean university that was combined with a two-year college in 2007. Semi-structured interviews of 11 direct entrants, 5 transfer students, and 7 professors were conducted in 2010 for the data collection. The results suggest that mergers do not necessarily ensure the integration of the students involved. Since mergers pose enormous challenges to both transfer students and direct entrants, university leaders need to give careful attention to students' persistence and integration as the campus changes. The results also reveal that students' experience of mergers may be affected by cultural backgrounds as well as the hierarchical structure of higher education. In Korean society, where credentialism prevails, mergers can have different impacts on students who come from initial institutions of differing perceived quality, and thus mergers may incite tension among the students. In light of these concerns, this study's findings highlight the importance of student integration as a key element in mergers.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.5-28
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• 2018

Smoking is one of the important public health concerns because it is preventable causes regarding individuals' negative health consequences and increased social and economic cost. However, few studies have examined longitudinal patterns of stages of changes(SOC) in smoking behaviors among the general population. The purpose of the study is to explore the latent patterns of SOC over time among Korean adult smokers using the 2008-2016 Korea Welfare Panel Study. A repeated measure latent class analysis is employed in the present study. The finding of the present study are as follows: First, four latent groups were identified: (1) action/maintenance stage(33.6%), (2) contemplation/preparation to action/maintenance stage(14.8%), (3) continuously contemplation/preparation stage(29.6%), and (4) continuously pre-contemplation stage(22.1%). Second, the results of a multinomial logistic regression found that socio-demographic and clinical characteristics were associated with the identified longitudinal patterns of smoking behaviors. Compared to a continuously pre-contemplation stage, higher levels of depressive symptoms and drinking behavior were associated with increased odds of being in action/maintenance stage. The findings of the present study highlight that a tailored intervention is needed for individuals with continuously pre-contemplation stage and contemplation stage.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.389-411
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• 2012

A new era of research has focused on examining the growth of change in drinking problems among the elderly. Thus, the purpose of the present study was two fold: (1) to investigate trajectories of drinking problems(CAGE) among the Korean elderly(age$${\geq_-}65$$); and (2) to identify the predicting factors for the intercept and the slope of alcohol problems using multi-level growth curve model. Data come from three waves(1st wave(2006)~3rd wave(2008) of the Korea Welfare Panel(KWP) study. The results indicated that the levels of drinking problems decreased over time and that age, gender, marital status, religion, poverty, self-rated health, and social relationship satisfaction were associated with the baseline CAGE. Further analysis showed that social relationship satisfaction affected the declining slope of drinking problems over time. Specifically, among those who satisfied social relationship, there was a sharp decline of CAGE over time. Overall findings highlight the importance of developing and implementing effective alcohol prevention programs for the elderly in the community settings to mitigate the harmful effects of various psycho-social stressors. Especially, programs to maintain and form healthy social support network are suggested as critical interventions for prevention as well as recovery of alcohol problems in late life.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.43-53
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• 2016

Objectives : Somatic symptoms after the exposure of psychological trauma frequently developed. However, the somatic symptoms are not covered under the diagnostic criteria of posttraumatic stress disorder(PTSD) in detail, although they are often associated with social and occupational functioning and patient-doctor relationships. The aim of this article is to highlight the potential mechanisms, the common manifestations, and the treatment of the somatic symptoms. Methods : This article studied the somatic symptoms searched using academic search engines like PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, KoreaMed and KISS from the earliest available date of indexing to March 31, 2016. Results : The mechanism of somatic symptoms after the exposure was described as psychological and physiological aspects. Psychological mechanism consisted of psychodynamic theory, cognitive behavioral theory, and others. Physiological mechanism involved changes in neuroendocrine and immune system, autonomic nervous system and central nervous system. Somatization associated with psychological trauma manifested various health conditions on head and neck, chest, abdominal, musculoskeletal, and dermatological and immune system. Few studies described the standardization of treatment for the somatic symptoms. Conclusions : Clinicians and disaster behavioral health providers should think of the accompanying somatic symptoms during intervention of psychological trauma and PTSD. Further studies are needed on the somatic symptoms seen in psychological trauma and PTSD.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.136-143
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• 2021

Objectives : The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is a global medical crisis imposing particular burden on public sector employees. The aim of this study was to investigate the psychiatric distress among public sector workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods : We conducted a cross-sectional study with 531 public sector workers in Gwangmyung city who completed Korean versions of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Impact of Event Scale-Revised-Korean (IES-R-K). Results : The results revealed more than moderate levels of stress (85.2%), depressive symptoms (22.2%), and posttraumatic stress symptoms (38.8%). PSS total score was significantly correlated with PHQ-9, IES-R-K total scores as well as IES-R-K subscale scores. Total scores on the PSS, PHQ-9, and IES-R-K were all inversely correlated with age. Conclusions : COVID-19-related workers experience considerable stress and depressive symptoms, with self-rated stress correlating significantly with depression scores. Age may serve as a protective factor against occupational stress and burnout. These findings highlight the need for adequate psychiatric screening and intervention for public sector workers.

• Journal of vocational education research
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.25-45
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• 2018

This study investigates the relationship between the social supports & the transformational leadership from career mentors and high school students' GRIT & career preparation behavior. The purpose of this study was to provide baseline data for Development of Career-program so that they can provide effective career advice to students, through analyzing preceding researches that highlight the impact from career mentors on students' GRIT and career preparation behavior. For this study, the questionnaires for students' GRIT & career preparation behavior were completed by 257 sophomore high school students participating in the career mentor program. also, This data was analyzed to find student's perception of social supports and transformational leadership from career mentors. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship among four variable(GRIT, career preparation behavior, career mentor's social supports, career mentor's transformational leadership) and regression analysis was used to find the influence from the career mentor's social supports and career mentor's transformational leadership on student's GRIT & career preparation behavior. The result showed the change of students' GRIT & career preparation behavior have risen on average. Also, it showed the change of students' career preparation behavior is influenced by career mentor's emotional support, informational support and individualized consideration. Lastly, the change of students' GRIT is influenced by career mentor's emotional support, appraisal support and individualized consideration. This result was able to identify the relationship and influence of career mentor who were limited to social support by their parents and teachers. And, it suggests that the appropriate social supports need to be provided to students by understanding the type of social supports that meet student's expectations.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.44
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• pp.7-28
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• 2016

This study examines the sociocultural background of negritude by delving into Caseríos, Reggaeton, and $Trigue{\tilde{n}}os$, which are interrelated with the racism deeply embedded in Puerto Rican society. These terms have also been discussed in relation to the ideological discourse of racial democracy, which has caused Puerto Rican people to be blind to silenced inequality and hegemonic racial policies. Caseríos, housing projects for the poor urban class, are targeted by the state - sponsored project 'Mano Dura'. Due to the policing, control and surveillance of this anticrime project, Caseríos became perceived even more as residential communities of violence, poverty, and insecurity generally connected to the stigmatization of blackness. Reggaeton emerged as a mega hit genre of transnational Puerto Rican music in the 2000s, which in turn, drew attention to both the afrodiaspora in New York and the urban musical power in the Island. This musical genre serves to highlight the meaningfulness of black heritage in the national cultural identity of Puerto Rico. $Trigue{\tilde{n}}idad$ has recently become a common racial cultural term that embraces a broader racial paradigm of mestizaje. This term can function as an alternative concept of blackness, but it has not yet been transformed into enough cultural politics to resist ongoing racial democracy. The three terms intrinsically address both the uprooted racism and potential methods of challenging it. This paper argues the necessity of stronger and more responsive cultural politics to defy the pervasiveness and invisibility of racial discrimination in Puerto Rico.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.56-68
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• 2019

Safety-conscious design on site is required for site constructions because of the introduction of the design for safety, but it still leaves much to be desired. This study compared the site where the design was applied and the site where it was not applied. The applied case examined the underground wall construction during frame construction, which corresponds to the skeleton of the building construction. The underground wall construction is quite risky due to the exposure to exterior environments and involvement of various stages, such as scaffolding, formwork, reinforcing work, and concrete casting work. Therefore, the risk factors for each stage were identified and a risk assessment was carried out to select an alternative method to reduce the risk. The risk factors of the selected alternative construction method were also identified and a risk assessment was conducted. The risk assessment weight was calculated by comparing the site where the construction method was applied and the site where it was not, explaining the necessity of the design for safety in reducing the risk. In addition, an actual case where an alternative construction method was used was studied to highlight the necessity for a design for safety.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.499-508
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• 2019

Cancer stem cells (CSCs), which are primarily responsible for metastasis and recurrence, have self-renewal, differentiation, therapeutic resistance, and tumor formation abilities. Numerous studies have demonstrated the signaling pathways essential for the acquisition and maintenance of CSC characteristics, such as WNT/${\beta}$-catenin, Hedgehog, Notch, B lymphoma Mo-MLV insertion region 1 homolog (BMI1), Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP), and TGF-${\beta}$ signals. However, few therapeutic strategies have been developed that can selectively eliminate CSCs. Recently, neutralizing antibodies against Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) and Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), have shown promising outcomes in clinical trials of melanoma, lung cancer, and pancreatic cancer, as well as in hematologic malignancies. ICIs are considered to outperform conventional anticancer drugs by maintaining long-lasting anti-cancer effects, with less severe side effects. Several studies reported that ICIs successfully blocked CSC properties in head and neck squamous carcinomas, melanomas, and breast cancer. Together, these findings suggest that novel and effective anticancer therapeutic modalities using ICIs for selective elimination of CSCs may be developed in the near future. In this review, we highlight the origin and characteristics of CSCs, together with critical signaling pathways. We also describe progress in ICI-mediated anticancer treatment to date and present perspectives on the development of CSC-targeting ICIs.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.1077-1100
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• 2018

The present study analyzed the effect of firms' external research and development (R&D) on corporate productivity, while investigating the moderating effect of firm size on the external R&D-productivity nexus. In the empirical analysis, we estimated South Korean manufacturing firms' total factor productivity (TFP) using the firm level data drawn from the Survey of Business Activities (Korea National Statistical Office) for the years 2006-2015. Thereafter, focusing on the role of external R&D and its interaction with the firm size in determining firms' TFP, the productivity function was estimated as well. To this end, we used ordinary least squares (OLS) and quantile regression to highlight the heterogeneous impacts of external R&D by companies' productivity level. Empirical results confirmed that firms' external R&D significantly enhanced corporate productivity in all manufacturing industries, from high-tech to low-tech. The moderating effect of firm size in determining the productivity effect of external R&D was not as prominent as in the case for internal R&D, which exhibited some degree of the size premium in the productivity-enhancing effect. These results suggest that regardless of the firm size, external R&D can be an important channel for corporate productivity improvement, and can be a particularly effective strategy for SMEs with relatively limited internal R&D capacities.