• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.94-104
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• 2022

Objectives: This study attempted to examine the association between health literacy and health-promoting behavior, and identify the major variables that affect the health-promoting behavior of university students. Methods: This was a descriptive correlation study that identified the degree of health literacy and health-promoting behavior of 248 university students (119 male and 129 female) and examined the correlation between the two and factors influencing them. The questionnaire covering health literacy comprised 66 questions, and that for health-promoting behavior comprised 10 questions covering eating habits, 3 questions about physical activity, and 10 questions involving stress. Results: The score for health literacy was 41.56 ± 18.38 out of 66 points, and that for health-promoting behavior was 65.27 ± 11.21 points (27.61 ± 6.72 points for eating habits, 7.23 ± 2.56 points for physical activity, and 30.44 ± 5.61 points for stress). Health literacy and health-promoting behavior had a significant positive correlation (r = 0.175, P < 0.01). The perceived health status (β = 0.391, P < 0.001) was the most important variable in health-promoting behavior, followed by health literacy (β = 0.236, P < 0.001). Conclusions: It is necessary to develop a systematic educational strategy and implement educational programs to improve health literacy as well as encourage health-promoting behavior and thus increase the perceived health levels of university students.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.188-194
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• 2017

Objectives: Environmental pollution is a significant global issue. Both objective (scientifically measured) environmental pollution and perceived levels of pollution are important predictors of self-reported health. The purpose of this study was to compare the associations between perceived environmental pollution and health in China, Japan, and South Korea. Methods: Data were obtained from the East Asian Social Survey and the Cross-National Survey Data Sets: Health and Society in East Asia, 2010 (n=7938; China, n=3866; Japan, n=2496; South Korea, n=1576). Results: South Koreans perceived environmental pollution to be the most severe, while Japanese participants perceived environmental pollution to be the least severe. Although the Japanese did not perceive environmental pollution to be very severe, their self-rated physical health was significantly related to perceived environmental pollution, while the analogous relationships were not significant for the Chinese or Korean participants. Better mental health was related to lower levels of perceived air pollution in China, as well as lower levels of perceived all types of pollution in Japan and lower levels of perceived noise pollution in South Korea. Conclusions: Physical and mental health and individual socio-demographic characteristics were associated with levels of perceived environmental pollution, but with different patterns among these three countries.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.318-327
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of perceived health status on resilience of life of elderly people participating in physical activity. Total of 282, elderly people participated in this study. Data ware analyzed by descriptive statistical analysis, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, correlation analysis, and multiple regression with SPSS 18.0 ver. program. The results were as following. It was found that sub-factors of perceived health status such as a health care factor, current health factor and future health factor significantly affected resilience of life.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.399-409
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• 2002

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to provide basic data to develop a future health promotion program through the comparison of health promoting behavior and perceived health status between Koreans and Korean-Americans. Methods: The subjects of this study were 411 adults recruited from religious organizations located in the Yongnam area, Korea, and Chicago, U.S.A. The instruments used in the study were Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP) developed by Walker, Sechrist & Pender (1995), and the Health Self Rating Scale designed by North Illinois University. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient, ANCOVA, ANOVA and Duncan test with the SPSS program. Results: 1) The mean HPLP score was 2.26 in Koreans and 2.43 in Korean-Americans, showing a significant difference between the two groups. 2) In subscales of HPLP, both groups showed the highest practices in 'interpersonal relationship' and the lowest practices in 'physical activity'. 3) The mean score of perceived health status was 2.26 in Koreans and 2.43 in Korean-Americans, showing a significant difference between the two groups. 4) Health promoting behavior was significantly different by family income in Koreans, but significantly different by age and family income in Korean-Americans. 5) Perceived health status was significantly different by family income and marital status, but significantly different by age, education, and family income. 6) The HPLP was not correlated with perceived health status in Koreans, but positively correlated with perceived health status in Korean-Americans. Conclusion: The study findings suggest a need to develop a health promotion program, in which physical activity and stress management for Koreans and Korean-Americans are emphasized, and cultural and environmental elements are considered, for better understanding of their health related issues.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.55-65
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• 2008

This study examined the personal and relational factors influencing the formation of body image among older persons. Aging-rel￡lted physical changes, health, marital relationship, cognitive age, and moods were personal and relationship factors explained for influence on the body image of older persons. Data were collected via a mail survey of older married couples residing in three US. metropolitan areas of Florida. A total of 94 married couples who were 60 years older participated in this study. Results indicated that aging-related physical changes, effect of physical changes on the self, self-assessed health, and evaluation of spouse's attractiveness, and perceived attractiveness (one's perception of the other spouse's appraisals of his or her attractiveness) were found to be significantly related to the body image of older men and women. For men, self-assessed health, evaluation of spouse's attractiveness, and perceived attractiveness were significantly related to body image while physical changes, effect of physical changes, and perceived attractiveness were found significant for women. The feelings of older persons about and satisfaction with their bodies and appearance were estimated by aging-related and relationship-related variables.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.312-320
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• 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare health habit, physical health status, and perceived health status between young Korean and Korean-Chinese women. Methods: This study was conducted as a cross-sectional comparative survey. For this study, 114 Korean women were recruited in Seoul, South Korea and 64 Korean-Chinese women in Jilin Province, China through convenience sampling. Results: A positive correlation was found between health habit and perceived health status. Perceived health status, WHR, body density, flexibility, and muscle endurance were significantly lower in Korean women than in Korean-Chinese ones. Knee flexion and ankle dorsal flexion was significantly higher in Korean women than in Korean-Chinese ones. Conclusion: Further investigation is required to compare the two different groups that share the same ethnicity and similar culture but were born into different countries. A study such as this may provide answers regarding the influence of migrated transition on health.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.200-208
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• 2008

Purpose: The purposes of the study were to understand the levels of older adults' perceived stresses in terms of family relationship, physical health, financial difficulty, death of family members, and household environment, and to identify the influences of the stresses on their suicidal ideation. Methods: The subjects were 302 older adults residing in Daegu, Korea. The data were collected by questionnaires between March and April 2007. Results: Older adults perceived the highest level of stress from the death of family members and had high levels of stresses from physical health, family relationships, financial difficulty, and household environment in order. The variables influencing suicidal ideation were stresses from family relationships, physical health, and financial difficulty. Conclusion: Based on the findings, it is recommended that nurses provide in-depth screening of suicide risk for older adults who visit general health care settings through the identification of the levels of stresses in terms of family relationships, physical health, and financial difficulty. It is further suggested to provide collaborative interventions between primary health care providers and psychiatric professionals for suicide prevention and treatment in older adults.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.123-130
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• 2023

Purpose: Sitting time, smoking, and perceived stress strongly influence physical health independent of physical activity. However, the associations among perceived stress, sedentary behavior, and smoking are poorly understood. Therefore, we examined the relationships between sitting time, smoking, and perceived stress in Korean adults aged < 65 years. Methods: We analyzed data from the seventh National Health and Nutrition Survey. In this cross-sectional study, data from 6,890 Korean adults aged < 65 years were analyzed. Complex-sample logistic regression was used to examine the relationships between sitting time, smoking, and perceived stress. Results: The group with a high sitting time (≥ 8 h/day) and those who smoked had significantly higher odds of experiencing stress than the low sitting time (< 8 h/ day) and non-smoking groups (odds ratio: 1.88, 95% confidence interval: 1.42-2.50). Conclusion: Perceived stress was positively correlated with current smoking status and increased sitting time. High sitting time (≥ 8 h/day) and current smoking were associated with a higher risk of perceived stress in Korean adults aged < 65 years.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.195-211
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• 2004

Stress is a primary health promotion issue in worksite research because psychological distress is closely related not only to workers' health status but also to their job performance. This study identified the significant health behaviors affecting workers' job-related stress in Korean manufacturing industry with the national survey data conducted by the Korean Occupational Safety and Health Agency in 2003. A total of 7,818 factory workers in 1,562 manufacturing companies participated in the Korean nation-wide occupational health survey and 3,390 workers answered that they had any stressors in their workplace among the 7,818 workers finally participated in the analysis. Participants were selected by the stratified proportional sampling process by manufacturing industry classification, company size, and company locations (8 metropolitan and 8 non-metropolitan regions) in Korea. Trained interviewers visited the target companies and interviewed the factory workers randomly selected in each company. Smoking, drinking, weight control, exercise, sleeping, break time at work, and perceived fatigue were included in the health behavior construct. Stress symptoms was consisted of physical and psychological stress with 8 items. All survey responses were anonymously coded into the SPSS statistical program and testified using stepwise multiple regression analysis. Male workers were 73.5% and the 30s were 40.0% among the age groups. The married and the high school graduate were majority with 52.1% and 61.8% each. Current smokers were 44.7% and More than 50% of the participants drank alcohol sometimes. No exercise group was 59.3% and the participants who dissatisfied with their daily sleeping hours were 43.5%. In t-test and analysis of variance, the significant general characteristics associated with physical and psychological job stress were young age (p<0.001), single marital status (p<0.001), and short working period at the present company (p<0.001). The health behaviors related to physical job stress were current smoking, weight change during the past one year (p<0.001), weight control effort (p<0.001), exercise (p<0.001), daily sleeping dissatisfaction (p<0.001), break time, and perceived fatigue (p<0.001). All 10 health behavior factors were significantly associated with psychological job stress (p<0.05). Weight change, weight control effort, exercise, daily sleeping dissatisfaction, little break at work, and high perceived fatigue were significant factors affecting job stress. Daily sleeping dissatisfaction, little break at work, little exercise, weight change for the past one year and young age were selected as the significant health behavior and general factors affecting physical job stress symptoms in stepwise multiple regression analysis. The five factors explained 18.9% of the physical stress score variance. Six factors were selected as the significant health behaviors affecting psychological job stress: daily sleeping dissatisfaction, little exercise, frequent drinking alcohol, high perceived fatigue, little break at work, and little weight control effort. The six factors explained 10.6% of the psychological stress score variance.

• Journal of East-West Nursing Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.66-73
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• 2004

This study examined the relation among perceived family support, depression and physical health status in Korean elderly. Participants were three hundred elders attending the house for elderly (NoInGyong) located in kwanak-gu and other 14 gu in Seoul Korea. Data were collected using structured questionnaire via clustered random sampling. The instruments used for this study were the simplified depression scale for elderly designed by Sheikh & Yesavage, the family support scale developed by Choi Young Hee, and the physical health status developed by Choi Young Hee & Jung Seng En. Data analysis included: percentage, average, SD, t-test, ANOVA, & Pearson correlation coefficiency. Participants in this study represented low level of family support but high level of physical health status and depression. There was a significant negative relation between family support and depression(r=-.755, P=.001). There was a significant relation between family support and physical health(r=.329, P=.001). There was a significant negative relation between depression and physical health status(r=-.515, P=.001). Nursing implications were suggested.