• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.359-364
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• 2021

Aim: We aimed to examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between sleep and work-related impaired cognitive and emotional functioning in police employees. Methods: This study included 410 participants (52% men) employed in a police district in Norway at baseline, of which 50% also participated in the study at 6 months later follow-up. The questionnaires included items measuring work schedule, sleep length, insomnia, as well as impaired cognitive and emotional functioning at work. Results: The results showed that insomnia was related to impaired work-related emotional functioning measured at baseline, and to impaired cognitive functioning measured at both baseline and follow-up. Sleep length and rotating shift work were not associated with future decline in cognitive or emotional functioning. Conclusion: Our study indicates that the relationship between insomnia and emotional functioning at work may be transient, whereas insomnia can be related to both immediate and future impaired cognitive functioning. Replication of the findings in larger samples is advised. The findings call for an emphasis on the prevention and treatment of sleep problems among police employees as a mean of maintaining and improving cognitive and emotional functioning at work, and thereby reducing the risk for impaired performance and negative health and safety outcomes.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.105-118
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• 2015

This study examined whether structural (coresidence, proximity) and associational (frequency of face-to-face contact, frequency of contact via phone, email or letter) solidarity between adult children and older parents may influence older parents' cognitive functioning. Adult children may help delay older parents' cognitive decline by promoting healthier lifestyle, engaging parents in complex everyday problem solving, and providing emotional support. The data consisted of men and women 65+ at Wave 1 who had at least one child 20+ and participated in at least two waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA, N=3,961). Cognitive functioning was measured with the Korean version of the Mini Mental State Examination. Fixed effects models were estimated using the xtreg procedure in STATA. Findings suggest that increases in proximity with at least one adult child may lead to enhanced cognitive functioning among older parents. Neither transitioning to coresidence with at least one adult child nor increases in frequency of contact with at least one non-resident adult child was associated with changes in older parents' cognitive functioning. With older parents' increasing preference for living close by, but not necessarily living with adult children, greater proximity may provide more opportunities for reciprocal support exchanges between the two generations, leading to better cognitive functioning of older parents.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.179-203
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• 2011

The purpose of the study is 1) to investigate the reciprocal relationship between cognitive functioning and depressive symptoms and 2) to examine whether there is gender difference in this mutual relationship. The uniqueness of the current study is in its investigation on the simultaneous reciprocal relationship between cognitive functioning and depressive symptoms, which is different from previous studies examining unidirectional relationship. Subjects were 3,511 individuals aged 65 and over who participated in the first and second wave of Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Non-recursive structural equation modeling identified the reciprocal relationship between cognitive functioning and depressive symptoms, with poorer cognitive functioning leading to higher depressive symptoms and higher depressive symptoms resulting in poorer cognitive functioning. Multi-group analysis showed the gender difference in the relationship between cognitive functioning and depressive symptoms. Specifically, cognitive functioning was the significant predictor of depressive symptoms for females, whereas the depressive symptoms was the significant predictor of cognitive functioning for males. These findings indicate that the reciprocal relationship and gender difference should be considered when we development practice implications for prevention and treatment related to depression and cognitive functioning. Based on these findings, implications for theory and practice were discussed.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2019

Firefighters wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for protection from environmental hazards. However, due to the layers of protective functions, the PPE inevitably adds excessive weight, bulkiness, and thermal stress to firefighters. This study investigated the adverse impact of wearing PPE as an occupational stressor on the firefighter's cognitive functioning. Twenty-three firefighters who had been involved in firefighting at least for 1 year were recruited. The overall changing trend in the firefighter's cognitive functioning (short-term memory, long-term memory, and inductive reasoning) was measured by the scores of three standardized cognitive tests at the baseline and the follow-up, after participating in a moderate-intensity physical activity, wearing a full ensemble of the PPE. The study findings evinced the negative impact of the PPE on the firefighter's cognitive functioning, especially in short-term memory and inductive reasoning. No significant influence was found on the firefighter's long-term memory. The results were consistent when the participant's age and BMI were controlled. The outcomes of the present study will not only fill the gap in the literature, but also provide critical justification to stakeholders, including governments, policymakers, academic communities, and industry, for such efforts to improve human factors of the firefighter's PPE by realizing the negative consequences of the added layers and protective functions on their occupational safety. Study limitations and future directions were also discussed.

• 재활복지
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.209-226
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between memory belief, depression and cognitive functioning for stroke patients. A total of 88 subjects were participated in this study and the questionnaire was composed with general characteristics and K-MoCA, Beck Depression Inventory(BDI), Memory Self Efficacy Qestionnaire(MSEQ), Memory Controllability Inventory(MCI). The results showed that, for the memory self efficacy by general characteristics, there were significant differences in terms of level of education, living and economic status, the number of onset of stroke (p<.05), the memory controllability showed significant differences in economic status (p<.05), and the depression showed significant differences in onset duration of stroke (p<.05), and the cognitive functioning showed significant differences in gender, age, education, living condition, and the number of onset of stroke (p<.05). In addition, there was a significant correlation between memory self efficacy and memory controllability, depression, and cognitive functioning (p<.05). Memory controllability was correlated with depression (p<.01), depression was correlated with cognitive functioning (p<.01). Memory self efficacy, memory controllability and depression were found to be factors, affecting the cognitive functioning (p<.05). Based on this results, it is recommended to develop a multifaceted rehabilitation program in order to induce the positive mood, to reduce the negative emotions such as depression and to promote the memory belief about recovery of cognitive functioning.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.515-525
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• 2019

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a customized health promotion program (CHPP) on depression, cognitive functioning, and physical health of elderly women living alone in the community. Methods: A randomized comparison of pre-and post-test design was used with 62 participants assigned to either an intervention (n=32 in seven clusters) or a control group (n=30 in seven clusters) in 14 areas of a town. The final sample included 30 intervention participants who completed the CHPP for 10 weeks, and 26 control participants. The intervention group participated in the CHPP weekly; they were provided with instructions about coping with their chronic illnesses, lifestyle modification, risk management, providing emotional support to each other, and floor-seated exercise, which they were encouraged to do three times a week in their homes. Results: Significant group differences were found in depression (U=48.50, p<.001), cognitive functioning (U=2.50, p<.001), left arm flexibility (U=251.50, p=.023), right arm flexibility (U=225.00, p=.007), static balance (U=237.00, p=.012), and gait ability (U=190.50, p=.004). However, there were no significant differences in bothgrip strength and muscle mass between the two groups. Conclusion: The findings indicate that CHPP was overall effective at improving depression, cognitive functioning, and physical functioning of elderly women living alone, and could therefore be considered a positive program for community-dwelling elderly women living alone.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.197-210
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• 1997

This study was conducted to test the effect of cognitive stimulation training on elderly persons with dementia. The design of the research was one group in pre-test-post-test design. The subjects were nine demented persons over sixty years, with mild to moderate cognitive impairment. Training was administered by research assistants on a one to one basis for thirty to forty minutes, three times a week for eight weeks. In order to evaluate the effect of cognitive stimulation training, we measured cognitive function before and after three training sessions each. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a paired t-test analysis using a spss pc package, The results are as follows: 1) The recipients of the training program showed improvement in overall cognitive functioning. The MMSK - K score, recall levels of concepts, daily tasks, personal past history and performance of word fluency were significantly increased after training. 2) There was a significant improvement in cognitive functioning over the training period: recall levels of concepts, daily tasks, past personal history and performance of word fluency significantly increased over the training period progessively, The results suggest that cognitive stimulation training is effective in improving and maintaining overall cognitive function of elderly persons with dementia.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.76-92
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• 2023

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze research trends in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and savant syndrome and their cognitive characteristics through a systematic literature review. The objectives of this study were to establish an overview of research trends in ASD and savant syndrome, analyze the overall characteristics of individuals with ASD and savant syndrome, and examine their cognitive characteristics. Methods: For the systematic literature review, three criteria were used to select review articles: 1) literature from peer-reviewed journals, published in the past 15 years, from 2008 to 2022; 2) subjects with ASD and savant syndrome; 3) study objectives focused on the basic phenomenon and cognitive characteristics of ASD and savant syndrome. Finally, based on the selection criteria, a total of 40 articles were included. Results: Five themes and nine subthemes were derived from the analysis of 40 studies. The five main themes were as follows: 1) What is savant syndrome? 2) Demographic characteristics of savant syndrome; 3) Spectra of savant syndrome; 4) Savant syndrome and ASD; and 5) Cognitive characteristics of ASD with savant syndrome. The subthemes of the cognitive characteristics were weak central coherence, detail-focused cognitive processing, enhanced perceptual functioning, and hyper-systemizing. Conclusion: Several studies have been conducted to understand ASD and savant syndrome; however, no single theory can specify the cognitive characteristics of people with ASD and savant syndrome. Therefore, further systematic and multi-layered research on ASD and savant syndrome are required for more comprehensive results.

• Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.461-468
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• 2018

Objective: Cognitive disturbance is one of the major symptoms of depression and may be improved by treatment with antidepressants. This study aimed to investigate the predictors of cognitive improvement in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who were taking antidepressants. Methods: This study included 86 patients with MDD who completed 12 weeks of antidepressant monotherapy. Cognitive symptoms were assessed using the Perceived Deficits Questionnaire-Korean version (PDQ-K), which addresses four domains of cognitive functioning (attention/concentration, retrospective memory, prospective memory, and organization/planning) and was administered at study entry and at the 12-week end point. A variety of demographic, clinical, and treatment-related variables were evaluated as predictors of changes in total and domain scores. Results: All PDQ-K domains showed significant improvement after 12 weeks of antidepressant treatment. More severe initial depressive symptoms, fewer sick-leave days at study entry, and reduced use of concomitant anxiolytics/hypnotics during treatment were significantly associated with greater cognitive improvement. Conclusion: Cognitive symptoms are more responsive to antidepressant treatment in patients with severe MDD. Reduced use of anxiolytics and hypnotics could improve the cognitive functioning of patients with MDD taking antidepressants.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.216-228
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• 1996

The purposes of this study were to investigate levels of physical, cognitive, and social functioning in institutionalized elderly. The subjects were 78 residents of a nursing home for the elderly in Pusan. The data were collected from June 24th to July 8th, 1996 using interview and observational method. The structured questionnaires developed by Kim, by Kwon & Park, and by researcher were adopted to measure physical, cognitive, and social function, respectively. The data were analyzed using percentages, means, t test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficient, Cronbach's alpha with the SPSS PC programs. The results were summarized as follows: 1. 34.2% of the subjects had a paralysis, strokes 26.3%, hearing impairment 15.9%, vision impairment 11.8%, mental disturbance 11.8%, cognitive disturbance 10.5%. 2. The mean score on the physical function for the subjects was 73.14, and the items with low functioning levels were 'ascending the stairs', 'bathing' in that order. There was no significant difference in physical function according to the following demographic characteristics: sex, age, and education level. 3. 50.0% of subjects was categorized 'definite dementia', 'questionable dementia' 11.5%, 'definite non-dementia' 38.5%. There was a significant difference in cognitive function according to sex, but were no significant differences according to following demographic characteristics: age and education level. 4. The mean score on the social function for the subjects was 17.60. The items with comparatively high score were in simple activities such as 'enjoying talking with his friends', 'watching TV or listening to the radio', and the items with low score were in complex activities such as 'enjoying a hobby',. 'enjoying a game', 'reading the newspaper or book'. There were no significant differences in social function according to sex and age, but was a significant difference according to education level. 5. Social function was positively correlated with both physical function and cognitive function.