• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.416-431
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• 2016

Along with the mood of 'Beyond GDP', it is necessary to explore how these subjective concepts such as happiness and well-being are quantified to be compared among many countries. The concept of 'Work-life balance (WLB)' is likely to be located on the boundary between the subjective and objective areas. Thus, this article aims to examine the policies related to WLB and how to change or develop those policies considering the concept of WLB and the circumstantial particularity of Korea. There are several suggestions on certain developments in the existing policies interfering WLB at three levels. First the government needs to conduct campaigns to transform traditional gender roles through active advertisement. Second, the company needs to use the long-lasting 'hierarchical organisation culture' for employee's work-life balance for regulating working hours and exhausting paid holidays and maternity or paternity leave. Finally, families should understand and support their wives' current circumstances facing the struggle between a mother and economic worker.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.159-184
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• 1988

Race and ethnicity are important factors which influence the elderIy's residential adjustment behaviors, although it is unclear whether this reflects influences unrelated to race and ethnlcity. Culturally, the norm of family supportoften obseved among various minority ethnic groups is likely to provide flexible family suppof for the elderIy. Economically, the life-long hardship ofminority groups is likely to force them to maintain extended family living arrangements simply to reduce expenses via economies of scale. Thecontroversy about the economic need versus the cultural prescription forextended living arrangements remains unresoIved because it fails to articulatethe meaning of family supports among many disadvantaged groups.This study aims to test previous economic and cultural arguments, byexamining ethnic differences iu the eiderIy's responsiveness to their health andeconomic problems. Two hypotheses about cultural influences on the elderly's resideutiai adjustment are examined. First, do elderly minorities receive famiiysupporis for longer periods when they are poor if economic and health status\ulcorner Second, do elderiy minorities receive family supports more often when their health status declines\ulcorner Using the Longitudinal Suvey on Aging from 1984 to 1990. this study employs Markovian multi-state life tables, and discrete and contonuous competing hazard analyses for the transition in living arrangements. The main results provide substantial evidence against the cultural resource thesis. Elderly minorities experience more frequent transition between living alone and living with relatives than white elderly persons when group differences in the extent of mortality and insititutionalization are controlled. The shorter timf of living alone among elderly monorities stems from their greater likehood of joining relatives as well as greater mortality and attrition rates than elderly whites. Coresidence of elderly whites with their relatives is more likely to occur in response to their needs for health care than of elderly whites. it implies that instability. not flezibility. characterrizes elderly minorities living arrangements.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.51
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• pp.229-256
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• 2002

This study is about the relationship between traditional familism and welfare consciousness in Korea. Traditional familism is known as the value that most Koreans share with, and the impeding value for welfare program development. Strong family solidarity and family-centered perception among Koreans influences other social values and ideology. Especially, care of the family members is understood as a family duty and responsibility. And this inhibits Koreans to develop welfare consciousness and further to develop welfare programs at the governmental level. Thus, this study purposes to explore the relationship between the two. The sample of 1,131 men and women was selected in Seoul area. As a result, traditional familism is found to be quite influential to welfare consciousness among Koreans. First, perception of welfare institution is strongly related with welfare consciousness. The respondents in high familism group showed low welfare consciousness. Second, state-friendly welfare responsibility was shown low in the group of high familism for the aged and youth. In the same context, for the disabled and the unemployed, state-friendly welfare responsibility was shown high in the group of low familism. Lastly, the relationship between familism and the welfare need was not apparent. Such results make possible to conclude that traditional familism among Korean is still influential to welfare consciousness and welfare ideology. However, although this conclusion should not be used for an excuse to avoid state responsibility but used as a tool to develop a welfare model to strengthen family function as one solid family.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.291-319
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• 2005

The purpose of the paper is to discuss the restructuring of the family policy from a gender-integrating perspective. Several meaningful conclusions were reached. First, examining family policy from the laborer's perspective, the issue of work and family becomes not a gender-related issue but rather an issue for universal people. Second, in order to include the difference in interest among men and women in the labor market, and to view the issue from a gender-integrating perspective, the framework for family policy should consider the place of labor. Third, if family policy is divided into family and labor arena based on the above mentioned framework, the core content of the policy should gear toward loosening and/or eliminating barriers to fulfill the right to work for pay and the right to care for family. Lastly, family policy should aim at men and women sharing the responsibility of supporting and caring for the family. By doing so, we may be closer to maintaining work and family together, the ultimate goal of family policy.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.64 no.1
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• pp.249-271
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• 2012

This research examines the degree and the patterns of living arrangement transitions and analyzes the factors affecting transitions in living arrangement among elders in Korea. Data came from four-wave panel study of Hallym Aging Research Institute. The first wave was conducted in 2003, and each successive wave occurred exactly 2 years after. Respondents who were aged 60 and over, and had at least one living child were selected for this research. The baseline consisted of 1,907 respondents(2003), then became 985 for the fourth transition interval (2009). A total of 825 who participated both in 2003 and 2009 were used. Binomial logit regression analyses were used to analyze the effects of demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, physical health, cognitive function, psychological well-being, and cultural attitudes toward elder care on transitions in living arrangements. Results show that 29.82% of the elders made transitions in living arrangements from 2003 to 2009, indicating remarkably unstable living situation over this time period. The ratio of living alone is increased from 17.6% to 19.6%, in contrast with decreased ratio of living with married children from 30.5% to 25.2%, and that of living with unmarried children from 19.9% to 13.7%. Factors affecting transitions in living arrangement were different according to types of living arrangement. Elders living with married children were more likely to be older, widowed and to have higher level of psychological well-being and more traditional attitude toward elder care. Elders living alone were more likely to be women, widowed, and to have more chronic diseases and lower level of psychological well-being.

• 한국사회정책
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.97-129
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• 2013

This study aims to investigate causes of the emergence of so-called 'family-care workers' in the Long-term Care Insurance system in Korea. The LTCI system introduced in 2008 financially support the utilization of formal care services for the eligible elderly with care needs by paying for services of their care workers. Interestingly, 38.4 percent of payments for the in-home services were claimed by family members registered as qualified long-term care workers in 2012. We interviewed ten family care workers in depth and analyzed the needs of the aged and their families to explain the emergence of family care workers. The emergence of family-care workers is an inevitable result of choice by family members who face a dual burden of living and caring; be the additional choice following discharge the duty to support the elderly; be the alternative choice to fulfill unaccepted needs for services. These results suggest the needs for a comprehensive public provision of both income and social service support for the aged and an introduction of financial support for family care complementing the formal care support in the LTCI in Korea.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.88-96
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• 2020

The rate of admission to facilities for people with developmental disabilities in Korea is very high for other types of disabilities. Therefore, 'community care', which supports life in the community for people with developmental disabilities, is very important compared to other types of disabilities. However, in Korea, families with disabilities are the problem of care and are appealing for the burden of support. This study analyzed practical cases through welfare institutional visits and interviews on support for community independence in Japan. As a result of the study, the transition of people with developmental disabilities to communities in Japan was centered on group home. The private sector is providing support for people with severe disabilities in group home to live in communities, and Sapporo City Hall is conducting private connections to solve the problem of caring for the developmentally disabled elderly parents. Accordingly, as Korean policy recommendations, it is proposed to expand group home, switch functions of living facilities for the disabled, cope with the problem of caring for the disabled by elderly parents, and provide preventive services through surveys on the actual condition of adults living alone. As practical suggestions, it is necessary to develop and distribute educational textbooks such as pictures to improve daily life skills for self-reliance, expand sufficient manpower and facilities in vocational training for self-reliance, and operate shelters for adults with developmental disabilities and their guardians.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.525-534
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• 2019

Korea is facing one of the fastest aging population problems in the world due to the extension of life expectancy and low birth rates due to economic development and the development of health care. It has become difficult to take care of elderly people in need of long-term care at home, and social problems such as dementia and the increase in stroke cases are serious problems. The government is enacting and implementing the Long-Term Care Insurance Act for the purpose of improving the quality of life for senior citizens subject to long-term care and alleviating the burden of family support in order to solve such social structure and problems for senior citizens. However, as a result of the implementation of the long-term care insurance system for the elderly, the privatization of the facilities and the disorder are causing widespread requests for public accountability of the services and the enhancement of the quality of the facilities. In addition, various arrangements are needed for the production of low-wage medical care workers, tasks for quality improvement, problems regarding financing methods, and so on. In order to maintain and develop the long-term care insurance system for the elderly, the government will consider seeking ways to improve the legal and institutional aspects according to changes in the social environment of the age, as well as seeking mental and psychological measures for the stabilization of old life as well as physical health.

• Convergence Security Journal
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.185-193
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• 2013

Military personnel work in high stress situations and carry great responsibilites, leaving them little time to plan effectively for their retirement; typically, they tend to assume that their employer (the government) will do that planning for them. Focussing intensely on their jobs, retirement often finds them ill-prepared, and this in spite of the recent increase in discussion in society at large about retirement and how to deal with it. Government therefore needs to be more proactive in assisting these occupational groups in their exit from the workforce, especially because, as the baby-boomers age, the rate of retirements will increase dramatically. As well, whereas in the past, an average retirement extended for roughly a decade, today, a retirement could last as long as twenty-five to thirty years, with attendant cost pressures on retirement funds. This in turn will increase the burden on the rising generation, who will have to pay for those pensions. But while government has a role to play, retirees also have to be more active in planning for their retirement, and in particular, planning for second careers, rather than simple retirement. Government can assist here by developing programs to help military personel find a second career, thus reducing their reliance on pension funds, and reducing financial pressures too. As well, such planning would emphasize and enhance self-reliance, which can only be to the good of the larger society.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.127-153
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• 2004

In the absence of a male provider the state must decide how far and under what conditions it will provide for the mother and her children. In the case of lone mothers, there are three main possible sources of income: the labour market, the absent father, and the state. However, the relative proportions of these three sources vary significantly from country to country as well as from individual to individual within the group of lone parents. Until very recently the UK has been alone among countries of the EU in allowing lone parents to draw benefits without making themselves available for work so long as they have dependent children. However, in the 1990s, the UK government introduced major changes to his policies regarding lone parents. The UK government attempted to restrict the role of the state as a source of income for lone parent families. At the beginning of the 1990s, the emphasis in the UK was put on securing more money from 'absent fathers' to maintain. However, the policy was unsuccessful and by the mid-1990s attention to the only other possible source of income for lone parent families, the labour market, was stepped up, notwithstanding the ambivalence of politicians about the desirability of women with young children entering employment. From 1998 the Labour government introduced a series of reforms aimed at reducing both worklessness and poverty by raising welfare payments to families both in and out of work, improving financial incentives to work and introducing a more proactive welfare system. The results presented here suggest that these policies have raised the employment rates of lone parents by around 5 percentage points, or 80,000. These employment gains have come from a welfare reform package that does not require lone parents to search for jobs, or uses time limits in welfare programmes. In addition these gains have been achieved despite generous increases in welfare payments for lone parents who do not work. These earnings gains combined with the more generous welfare are making rapid progress in reducing lone parents' poverty.