• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.63-71
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• 2009

Safety is totally established through not only legal regulations and system but the establishment of safety culture. As a foundation of safety culture, safety and health communication is the essential condition. Therefore, in the case of researching safety culture the communication network of a organization is a crucial factor. This study has analysed the structure of occupational safety and health communication between domestic and foreign corporations comparatively by the statistical analysis. The occupational safety and health communication is composed of four sub-dimensions: general communication in working site, using safety information communication, communication with the board of directors, and communication with labor union. The nationality of corporations influences the safety communication significantly except for communication with labor union. Consequently it is possible to infer that the nationality of corporations is a significant factor for safety communication network.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.565-579
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• 1995

The purpose of this study was 1) to investigate the effect of male clothing type and facial attractiveness on the subjects' inferences of occupational and appearance characteristics for the wearers. The subjects 'inferences of occupational and appearance characteristics for the wearers were measured by means of semantic-differential scales and open-ended questionnaires. The stimuli were composed of 18 color photographs which were made of 3 levels of facial attractiveness in combination with 6 types of clothing. The subjects were 216 male and 216 female university students. The results were as follows: First, the responses to the semantic-differential scales were factor analyzed to identify the underlying constructs of occupational characteristics. As the result, 4 factors were emerged. The first factor was interpreted to Appearance·Ability, the second, Individuality, the third, Dominance, and the fourth, Naivety. Second, the type of clothing influenced on all the 4 factors, and was more influencial than the facial attractiveness which influenced on the 3 factors except the Naivety factor. Third, There were differences perceptions for the wearers beteen subjects 'sex type; The male subjects perceived for the wearers with categorization more exactly than the female's. Fourth, there were accordances between free-association and inference in semantic-differential scales for the wearers.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.99-106
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• 2023

This study would analyze a survey conducted with 609 workers to use the results as materials for the settlement of safety culture for the characteristics of the establishment by assessing the status of the workers' exposure to harmful risks and the impact on safety culture to present the following conclusions. This study has significance in that it found that exposure to harmful/dangerous factors in the establishment and the workers' experiences of occupational accidents affect their perception of safety culture and that in particular, 'worker safety priority' of the safety cultural factors was an important factor, and it is judged that continuous studies are necessary so that the perceptions of safety culture will spread in the establishment.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.30 no.2 s.57
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• pp.251-266
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• 1997

In order to test scaling assumption, and to assess the validity, reliability, and acceptability of the Short form 36(SF-36) health survey questionnaire, we conducted a survey. Samples were 296 workers who had been employed in small sized companies. All scale passed for item internal consistency(100% sucess rate) and item discriminant validity(100% success .ate). Reliability coefficients were ranged from the lowest 0.51 to the highest of 0.85. For 87.5% of the total workers, inconsistent responses were not observed. Only 3.0% of the total workers failed two or more checks. Factor analysis was performed using principal axis factor method and quartimax rotation. In this survey, the SF-36 retained available psychometric properties even when used in a generally healthy worker group. But further study with some consideration to develope health status measurement is expected : first, the definition of health status should be rationalized. Second, the measurement of outcome is an important consideration in evaluations of quality of care. But ambiguities hinder understanding of this important topic. Third, internal consistency should be interpreted with caution as an indication reliability because it ignores potentially important sources of variation that can occur over time.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.367-376
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• 2021

The aimed of this research was to identify the influence of perception of the vocational ethics and education on job stress and job commitment in occupational therapists. 173 occupational therapists measure for perception of vocational ethics and education, job stress and job commitment, the findings of the study were as follows. First, perception of vocational ethics and education was correlated with job stress, job commitment(p<.01). Second, perception of vocational ethics and education sub-factor of education experience(p<.01), seriousness of ethical issues(p<.05) was found to have affected the job stress. Third, perception of vocational ethics and education sub-factor of education experience(p<.05) was found to have affected the job commitment. Through the results of this study, systematic education will be needed to recognize the importance of vocational ethics and improve it.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.485-490
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• 2020

Background: Meniscal tears are among the major risk factors for knee osteoarthritis progression. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between meniscal tears and work-related factors in the farming occupation. Methods: The participants included 486 farmers (238 men and 248 women), aged 40-69 years, who were among the 550 farmers registered in the Korea Farmer's Knee Cohort (KFKC). Data such as those on gender, age, body mass index (BMI), mechanical axis, cumulative heavy-lifting working time (CLWT), cumulative squatting working time (CSWT), and previous knee injury history were collected from the questionnaire, along with whole leg radiographic findings. Two radiologists assessed the magnetic resonance images of both knees to confirm the presence of meniscal tears. The factors related to meniscal tears were analyzed by multiple logistic regression. Results: A total of 54.5% of the farmers (48.7% of men and 60.1% of women) had meniscal tears. These tears were associated with gender, age, and BMI. We also identified an association between meniscal tears and CSWT, an especially important factor in farming [10,000-19,999 working hours, odds ratio = 2.16, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.14-4.07, ≥20,000 working hours, odds ratio = 2.35, 1.45-3.80]. However, mechanical axis, knee injury history, and CLWT were not significantly related to meniscal tears. Conclusion: This study's findings show that squatting for long periods, as an occupational factor, is related to meniscal tears.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.79-83
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• 2018

Background: Lower-limb varicose veins (VVs) are common and known to have a higher prevalence among people who work in occupations requiring prolonged standing. In the Republic of Korea, however, VV-related occupational factors have seldom been examined. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence of VVs among nurses, an occupational group considered to be at high risk of VVs, and determine the occupational risk factors of prolonged standing. Methods: Between March and August 2014, a questionnaire survey coupled with Doppler ultrasonography was conducted on the nurses working at a university hospital. Results: A total of 414 nurses participated in the survey and diagnostic testing. From the survey analysis and test results, the prevalence of VVs in nurses was estimated to be 16.18%. Significant factors for venous reflux were age [odds ratio (OR) = 1.06, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.03-1.10], pregnancy (OR = 2.15, 95% CI = 1.17-3.94), and delivery (OR = 2.02, 95% CI = 1.08-3.78). The statistical significance of these factors was verified after risk adjustment for sociodemographic factors (OR = 3.40, 95% CI = 1.27-9.09). Conclusion: Factors significantly associated with venous reflux were increasing age and prolonged working hours (${\geq}4hours$) in a standing position (OR = 2.80, 95% CI = 1.08-7.25), even after risk adjustment for sociodemographic factors. This study is significant in that an objective diagnosis of VVs preceded the analysis of the risk factors for VV incidence, thus verifying objectively that VVs are associated with occupations requiring prolonged hours of working in a standing position.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.365-374
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• 2011

Objectives: This study was designed to investigate whether long-term, low-level exposure to monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (MAHs) induced insulin resistance. Methods: The subjects were 110 male workers who were occupationally exposed to styrene, toluene, and xylene. One hundred and ten age-matched male workers who had never been occupationally exposed to organic solvents were selected as a control group. Cytokines, which have played a key role in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance, and oxidative stress indices were measured. Assessment of exposure to MAHs was performed by measuring their ambient levels and their urinary metabolites in exposed workers, and the resulting parameters between the exposed group and non-exposed control groups were compared. Results: There was no significant difference in general characteristics and anthropometric parameters between the two groups; however, total cholesterol, fasting glucose, fasting insulin, and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance levels were significantly higher in the exposed group. Phenylglyoxylic acid levels showed significant association with tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$, total oxidative status, and oxidative stress index via multiple linear regression analysis. Further, there was a negative correlation between methylhippuric acid levels and total anti-oxidative capacity, and there was a significant relationship between MAHs exposure and fasting glucose levels, as found by multiple logistic regression analysis (odds ratio = 3.95, 95% confidence interval = 1.074-14.530). Conclusion: This study indicated that MAHs increase fasting glucose level and insulin resistance. Furthermore, these results suggested that absorbing the organic solvent itself and active metabolic intermediates can increase oxidative stress and cytokine levels, resulting in the changes in glucose metabolism and the induction of insulin resistance.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.3-20
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• 2019

This review aimed to identify risk factors for occupational accidents and illnesses among young workers in the Nordic countries and to attain knowledge on specific vulnerable groups within the young working force that may need special attention. We conducted a systematic review from 1994 to 2014 using five online databases. Of the 12,528 retrieved articles, 54 met the review criteria and were quality assessed, in which data were extracted focusing on identifying occupational safety, health risk factors, and vulnerable groups among the young workers. The review shows that mechanical factors such as heavy lifting, psychosocial factors such as low control over work pace, and organizational factors such as safety climate are all associated with increased injury risk for young Nordic workers. Results show that exposures to chemical substances were associated with skin reactions, e.g., hand eczema. Heavy lifting and awkward postures were risk factors for low back pain, and high job demands were risk factors for mental health outcomes. The review identified young unskilled workers including school drop-out workers as particularly vulnerable groups when it comes to occupational accidents. In addition, apprentices and young skilled workers were found to be vulnerable to work-related illnesses. It is essential to avoid stereotyping young Nordic workers into one group using only age as a factor, as young workers are a heterogeneous group and their vulnerabilities to occupational safety and health risks are contextual. Politicians, researchers, and practitioners should account for this complexity in the education, training and organization of work, and workplace health and safety culture.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.11-26
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• 2024

Purpose : This study investigated the empowerment, burnout, and job satisfaction levels among occupational therapists, and to ascertained the effects of empowerment and burnout on job satisfaction. The study aimed to provide foundational data to help increase job satisfaction among occupational therapists. Methods : We surveyed 180 occupational therapists working in the Jeollabuk-do. The survey included 49 questions covering general characteristics, empowerment, burnout, and job satisfaction. Differences in empowerment, burnout, and job satisfaction levels based on general characteristics were analyzed using independent sample t-tests and one-way ANOVA. We performed multiple regression analyses to ascertain the effects of empowerment and burnout on job satisfaction. Results : The average scores for job satisfaction, burnout, and empowerment were 40.32, 58.40, 41.82, respectively. Job satisfaction according to general characteristics showed statistically significant differences based on the annual income and the most difficult treatment. We found that empowerment factors such as perceived importance of the job confidence in one's abilities, and independence and autonomy in job performance, significantly affected job satisfaction. However, the most significant factor influencing job satisfaction was daily fatigue and stress. Conclusion : Job empowerment and burnout of significantly affected job satisfaction among occupational therapists. Occupational therapists have a effect on the daily lives of their clients through interventions, playing a crucial role for each individual client. Thus, increasing the empowerment and job satisfaction levels of occupational therapists and reducing their burnout levels can help improve the quality of life of the clients and enable occupational therapists to provide high-quality services.