• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.47-76
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• 1989

The objectives of this study was to analyze the major causes of decreasing utilization rate of health care institutios in pilot-project area of regional medical insurance, Kwang-hwa and Kun-wi country. After the implementation of medical insurance, utilization rate of health institutions turned out' to be lower than it was estimated, when the pilot-project of regional medical insurance was planned. It might be due to changes in inhabitant's behavioral attitude toward medical insurance. So this study was made to find measures for financial stability by increasing utilization rate of health care institutions and to be available for basic demand-supply program of medical care. The hypothesis of this study was as follows; First. there is difference in understanding health care institutions between Kun-wi and Kwang-hwa. Second. respondesnts of inquiry survey have exact knowledge of their past experience of treatment taken prior to enforcement of medical insurance, Questionaire survey was made as to each 700 household among total 11, 884 households in Kun-wi and 20,919 households in Kwang-hwa. In case of Kun-wi, 70% of inquired households (491) gave their answers. In Kwang-hwa, the number was 560 households (80% of inquireds). Dollected data was processed and analyzed by way of using SPSS batch system. To evaluate facto rs distribution aspects of data and to make comparison between two area, percentage and $X^2$ distribution were applied. The results were as follows; L The utilization rate of health care institutions in Kun-wi and Kwang-hwa was lower than it was estimated. when pilot-project of medical insurance was planned. 2. Prior to the implementation of medical insurance. inhabitants in two area chose the medical institutions considering such factors. First was medical care fee cheap. second in habitant's residence, Third was the institutions conveniently easy of access. 3. After the implementation of medical insurance. 26.1% of inqurieds in Kun-wi and 41.6% in Kwang-hwa, changed medical institutions. In case of Kwn-wi, from health care institution (p 0.05), and in case of Kwang-hwa, vice versa, from general medical institutions to health care institutions. 4. Evaluation by factors were made such as follows. Inquired gave high marks to following facts: In case of Kun-wi, general medical institutions were difficult of access and relation between patients: was not friendly, but burden of medical expenditure was light. Effects of treatment and facilities was good. In case of Kwang-hwa, inquired gave high evaluation marks to the follow ing facts; facilities of medical institutions was not good, but the burden of medical expenditure was light. 5. After the implementation of medical insurance, the services was evaluated as good, but inquired hopec for lessening the burden of medical expenditure. 6. In case of exact understanding of cost-sharing, the evaluation rate in Kwang-hwa was higher than that of Kun-wi (p < 0.005). And positive attitude toward necessity of medical insurance was also good in Kwang-hwa (p < 0.05). 7. In case of inquired's attitude toward medical institutions, Kwang-hwa showed positive response (p < 0.05) 8. In the case of comparison between general medical institution and health care institution, two area showed similar positive response; medical manpower, facilities of medical institutions and effest: of treatement was good. 9. In comprehensive evaluation of benefit-service; the general medical institution's positiveness was higher than that of health care institutions in Kun-wi. But in Kwang-hwa vice-versa. 10. If the medical expenditure of general medical institution and health care institutions was equal 77% of inquireds in Kun-wi and 59.1% in Kwang-hwa answered that they chose general medical insurance. Considering results above mentioned, the conclusion of this study was made as follows. 1. In Kwang-hwa county, where the understanding of health care institutions's was good, the utilization's of health care institutions was shown high. Therefore, in case of Kwang-hwa, betterment: should be made to induce increasing utilization rate for negative factors of health care institutions. 2. In case of Kun-wi, where the understanding of health care institutions was on the decrease, measures for changing such negative factors should be taken by way of strengthening public relations. And cases of Kwang-hwa should also be studied. 3. On the side of financial stabilization and establishing health care delivery system, primary health care should be available. Therefore, the major cause of inhabitant's avoiding health care institutions should be known. And measures for activating that institutions have to be taken. So, the facilities of health care institution have to be improved up to the level of clinic. And supportive measures for securing equipment and improving health care services should also be taken. It is necessary that strategy for public relations should be employed with policy considerations and supports.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.1-31
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• 2008

Various opinions have been suggested to explain the slump in equipment investment, such as increased government regulations, shareholder-oriented management by expanded foreign equity investment, response against M&A threats, conservative investment trends seen after a series of bankruptcy of large conglomerates (amidst crumbling myth of "Too Big to Fail"), and financial restructuring. Some also argued that the increased uncertainty in business environment is mainly responsible for conservative management, though there are few domestic studies made regarding the situation. But, in other countries, including the U.S., studies have shown that more volatility is seen now surrounding stock prices, profitability, and sales growth rate reflecting business performance. Also, there are other studies showing such expanded volatility have led to conservative management by businesses. In this regard, this study reviews the volatility conditions of business performance of Korean companies based on profitability, and then attempts to analyze the impact on investment brought on by increased volatility. Each company's profitability volatility used here is from the standard deviation of companies for the past five years. As a profitability indicator, the ROA (= operating profit/total asset) is used. According to the analysis, profitability volatility has remarkably increased from the mid 3% in 1994 to low 5% in 2005. Profitability volatility of the Korean companies has expanded to a great extent since the financial crisis. The crisis might have served to raise the volatility in the macroeconomic conditions. If increased volatility observed during the economic crisis had gradually declined after the crisis, the situation could be interpreted as a temporary phenomenon, not to be too concerned over. But, this was not the case for Korea. The volatility level, after the crisis, has not dropped back to its pre-crisis level. Hence, in the Korea's case, high volatility cannot be explained by the impact of financial crisis. Not only that, the fact that such expansion is seen in every industrial sector indicates that this phenomenon cannot be explained by the composition change of industries alone. An undergoing study shows that with a rapid spread of globalization, industries fiercely competing with China experience more volatility. Such increased volatility tends to contract investment, and since the crisis the impact of volatility on investment has slightly increased. It is noteworthy that this study only includes a part of 'uncertainty' that could be measured statistically. For instance, the profitability volatility indicator used in this study is unable to reflect all the effects that the tacit reduction of protection by the government or regulations might have made. So, the result here also indicates that other 'uncertain' factors not mentioned in this study may have served to contract investment sentiment. It would be impossible for policies to completely remove uncertainties measured by profitability volatility, but at least it is necessary to put effort to reduce the macroeconomic volatility in the future economic management. Stabilized macroeconomic management may not be enough to diminish all volatility that occurs within each company, but it would make a meaningful contribution in encouraging investment.

• Archives of design research
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• v.20 no.3 s.71
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• pp.29-38
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• 2007

The competition to capture a larger slice of the market in Mobile Communication business is increasing among companies. In order to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage in the Asian market, it is critical to continue to develop new technology. Understanding the underlying distinctive characteristics and needs of each market and the cultural backgrounds that drive those needs is a necessary focus. Companies with marketing strategies based on a correct understanding of market needs will capture dominant positions in the market. The purpose of this study is to identify those differences in user behavior and cultural tendencies among different people in different countries in the mobile telecommunication market. This research is based on an on-line survey in three countries (Korea, China, and Japan). Below are the contents of the survey on the mobile phone based on: 1) User behavior 2) Design preference 3) Purchasing behavior 4) User awareness on manufacturer brand. Through the analysis of this questionnaire it is possible to identify the differences and similarities among countries dearly. 1) Cultural trends and perceptions related to mobile phone usage were largely caused by differences in the state of technology, policies and business strategies of mobile sonics carriers and manufacturers, and national tendencies, of each country. 2) Korean and Japanese users produced similar responses to the questions related to advanced technology, whereas Korean and Chinese users responded similarly to national tendency-related questions. 3) To the questions related to business strategies of mobile service carriers and manufacturers, users in all three countries displayed markedly different responses. Once again, accurate analysis of the differences and similarities related to mobile phone usage in each country will help the companies in this industry to gain a competitive edge in the market. This study should not stop at simple comparison but be a framework for giving companies a dear future direction for technological development.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.29-39
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• 2015

This study has attempted to determine the micro-discourse from blogs as personal media that reflect citizens' actual opinions of the Seoul Forest without intervention of experts. Furthermore, a qualitative research method discourse analysis was selected to analyze the micro-discourse regarding the Seoul Forest in a time series. The extracted samples of blogs by year were intended to identify the comment section of the process of change and the discursive structure. The results are as follows; first, from the beginning of the development of the Seoul Forest to the present, it is divided into four chronological periods along with individuals' micro-discourse with social changes. During the beginning of the development of the Seoul Forest, the social discourse was formed, and in the next period, the micro-discourse was developed with a more emotional and complex discourse. In the formative period, four or five years later, the discourse reflected the civic consciousness of development more than ever, showing the diversity of participation in the program at the Seoul Forest. In the growth period, as the users' experiences had been accumulated, the users started writing about the role of the Seoul Forest in their own words. This can also be called place discourse. From the individuals' micro-discourse, this study shows the discourse structure of how individuals think about the Seoul Forest in each period. Unlike the experts, the micro-discourse contains specific daily interactions, experiences, and the stories of individuals who actually use the parks. It also shows how users reproduce and understand the space. In this respect, this is the most significant finding of this study. Based on this research, this study has demonstrated that the emotional description of a place that actually functions as a discourse about city parks, and confirms that blogs could be used as a space to form discourse and as a research tool to read the trends. In accordance with these results, this study has described not only the discourse of experts, but also how the discourse of individuals' comments can be an important part of the discourse of modern urban parks.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.47 no.6
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• pp.589-599
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• 2014

This study selected optimal sites in Myeongsasimni located in west coast of Korea for stratigraphic research containing extreme climate event during quaternary period by spatio-temporal analyses of changes in sedimentary environment and land use employing 1918 topographic map, 2000 digital terrain map, 1976 and 2012 air photographies. The study area shows no significant changes in topographic characteristics that hilly areas with relatively large variations in elevation are distributed over north and south part of the study area, and sand dues are developed along the coast line. Moreover, flat low lying areas are located at the back side of the sand dues. The movement of surface run off and sediment loads shows two major trends of inland direction flow from back sides of sand dunes and outland direction flow from high terrains inland, and the two flows merge into the stream located in the center of the study area. Two sink with individual area of $0.2km^2$ are observed in Yongjeong-ri and Jaryong-ri which are located in south central part and south part of the study area, respectively. In addition, sea level change simulation reveals that $3.4km^2$ and $3.64km^2$ are inundated with 3 m of sea level rise in 1918 and 2000, respectively, and it would contribute to chase sea level change records preserved in stratigraphy. The inundated areas overlaps well with sink areas where it indicates the low lying areas located in south cental and south part of the study area are identical for sediment accumulation. The areas with minimal human impact on sediment records over last 100 years are $3.51km^2$ distributed over central and south part of the study area with the land use changes of mud and rice field in 1918 to rice field in 2012. The candidate sites of $0.15km^2$ in central part and $0.09km^2$ in south part are identified for preferable locations of geologic record of extreme climate events during quaternary period based on the overlay analysis of optimal sedimentary environment and land use changes.

• Korean small business review
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.101-121
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• 2020

Marking the 40th anniversary of the founding of The Korean Association of Small Business Studies, this paper was carried out to shed light on the historical trend of 40 years of small and medium business research through the papers published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Small Business and to consider the direction of future small and medium business research. In particular, we will focus on small and medium venture business policies and strategic management aspects of small and medium venture businesses to analyze the contents of published papers related to the subject and contribute to finding implications and future research directions. In order to analyze the research trends of small and medium venture business policies and strategic management sectors of small and medium venture companies covered in the Asia Pacific Journal of Small Business from 1979 to 2019, the analysis was divided by time and item based on research subjects, research methods, researchers, etc., and the primary analysis results are as follows: First, out of a total of 1,056 research papers, research papers on small and medium venture enterprise policy and strategic management showed a ratio of about 14% and 11% of the total research. Second, in terms of research subjects, the proportion of policy research on funds and start-ups and ventures was high in the field of small and medium venture enterprise policy, and the research on internationalization strategy was carried out the most in the area of strategic management. Third, qualitative research was more prominent until the 1980s, but the proportion of quantitative research began to increase after the 1990s, and since then, quantitative research has been carried out more than qualitative research. Fourth, over the past 40 years, Hanyang University, Kyungpook National University, Konkuk University, etc. were the institutions that presented research papers most actively in the areas of small and medium venture business policy and strategic management, and the research institute's participation was somewhat insufficient. The main implications of this study for the continuous development of the Asia Pacific Journal of Small Business are as follows. First, it is necessary to enhance the link between research on policy research and strategic management of small and medium venture companies in terms of research subject matter. Second, more diversity should be pursued in terms of research methods. Third, it is necessary to increase the participation rate of public and private research institutes related to small and medium venture enterprises in academic societies.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.41-54
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to propose a "user experience (UX)-centered product development process" so that the product design development process using the service design process can be systematized and used in practice. In a situation in which usability research on office phones is lacking compared to general home phones, this study expands to a product-based service design point of view rather than simple product development, intending to research ways to provide user experience value through office phone design in smart office. This study focused on extracting UX-centered user needs using the service design process and developing product design that realizes user experience value. In particular, the service design process was applied to systematically extract user needs and experience value elements in the product development process and to discover ideas that were converged with product-based services. For this purpose, the "Double Diamond Design Process Model," which is widely used in the service design field, was adopted. In addition, a product design development process was established so that usability improvement plans, user experience value elements, and product-service connected ideas could be extracted through a work-flow in which real users and people from various fields participate. Based on the double diamond design process, in the "Discover" information collection stage, design trends were identified mainly in the office phone markets. In the "Define" analysis and extraction stage, user needs were analyzed through user observation, interview, and usability survey, and design requirements and user experience issues were extracted. Persona was set through user type analysis, and user scenarios were presented. In the "Develop" development stage, ideation workshops and concept renderings were conducted to embody the design, and people from various fields within the company participated to set the design direction reflecting design preference and usability improvement plans. In the "Deliver" improvement/prototype development/evaluation stage, a working mock-up of a design prototype was produced and design and usability evaluation were conducted through consultation with external design experts. It is meaningful that it established a "UX-centered product development process" model that converged with the existing product design development process and service design process. Ultimately, service design-based product design development process was presented so that I Corp.'s products could realize user experience value through service convergence.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.377-385
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• 2020

Recently, wheat consumption has been increasing in Korea, requiring increased production. Nitrogen fertilization is a critical determinant in crop yield; therefore, it is necessary to optimize the nitrogen fertilization regime with current trends that emphasize the minimum impact of nitrogen fertilizer on the environment. In this study, both nondestructive spectral analysis using a hyperspectral camera and growth analysis were performed to determine the optimal N top-dressing rates after heading. The nitrogen application regimes consisted of three conditions according to the secondary top-dressing rate: N_4:3:0 (0 kg 10 a^-1), N_4:3:3 (2.73 kg 10 a^-1), and N_4:3:6 (5.46 kg 10 a^-1). Subsequently, growth and physiological investigations were performed at the jointing, heading, and ripening stages of wheat, and spectral investigations were conducted. On April 29, as the nitrogen fertilization rate was increased to N_4:3:3 and N_4:3:6, plant height and grain yield increased by 4% and 8%, and 8% and 52%, respectively, compared to those under N_4:3:0. Leaf area index and SPAD value also increased by 13% and 24%, and 32% and 43%, respectively. The R (red), G (green), and B (blue) of leaf color were lowered by 15, 11, and 4 in N_4:3:3 and 44, 34, and 18 in N_4:3:6, respectively, as compared to the control. Grain yield was the highest at high top-dressing (N_4:3:6), however, there was no difference between no top-dressing (N_4:3:0) and intermediat top-dressing (N_4:3:3). The reflectance analyzed using a hyperspectral camera showed a difference in the near-infrared (NIR) region on March 19, and on April 29, there was a difference both in the visible light region greater than 550 nm and the NIR region. Vegetation indices differed according to fertilization regime, except for the greenness index (GI). The results of this study showed that not only growth and physiological analysis but also spectral indices can be used to optimize the nitrogen top-dressing rate.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.389-406
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• 2011

As part of a feasibility study for introducing carbon labeling of fruit products in Korea, we explore the use of carbon footprints for Korean kiwifruit from Gyeongnam region as a case study. In Korea, the Korean Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (KEITI) is responsible for the carbon footprint labeling certification, and has two types of certification programs: one program focuses on climate change response (carbon footprint labeling analysis) and the other on low-carbon products (reduction of carbon footprints analysis). Currently agricultural products have not yet been included in the program. Carbon labeling could soon be a prerequisite for the international trading of agricultural products. In general the carbon footprints of various agricultural products from New Zealand followed the methodology described in the ISO standards and conformed to the PAS 2050. The carbon footprint assessment focuses on a supply chain, and considers the foreground and the background systems. The basic scheme consists of four phases, which are the 'goal', 'scope', 'inventory analysis', and 'interpretation' phases. In the case of the carbon footprint of New Zealand kiwifruit the study tried to understand each phase's contribution to total GHG emissions. According to the results, shipping, orchard, and coolstore operation are the main life cycle stages that contribute to the carbon footprint of the kiwifruit supply chain stretching from the orchard in New Zealand to the consumer in the UK. The carbon emission of long-distance transportation such as shipping can be a hot-spot of GHG emissions, but can be balanced out by minimizing the carbon footprint of other life cycle phases. For this reason it is important that orchard and coolstore operations reduce the GHG-intensive inputs such as fuel or electricity to minimize GHG emissions and consequently facilitate the industry to compete in international markets. The carbon footprint labeling guided by international standards should be introduced for fruit products in Korea as soon as possible. The already established LCA methodology of NZ kiwifruit can be applied for fruit products as a case study.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.492-507
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• 2010

This article reviews the papers published in the Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering during 2009. It is intended to understand the status of current research in the areas of heating, cooling, ventilation, sanitation, and indoor environments of buildings and plant facilities. Conclusions are as follows. (1) Research trends of thermal and fluid engineering have been surveyed as groups of general thermal and fluid flow, fluid machinery and piping, and new and renewable energy. Various topics were covered in the field of general thermal and fluid flow such as an expander, a capillary tube, the flow of micro-channel water blocks, the friction and anti-wear characteristics of nano oils with mixtures of refrigerant oils, etc. Research issues mainly focused on the design of micro-pumps and fans, the heat resistance reliability of axial smoke exhaust fans, and hood systems in the field of fluid machinery and piping. Studies on ground water sources were executed concerning two well type geothermal heat pumps and multi-heat pumps in the field of new and renewable energy. (2) Research works on heat transfer area have been reviewed in the categories of heat transfer characteristics and industrial heat exchangers. Researches on heat transfer characteristics included the heat transfer in thermoelectric cooling systems, refrigerants, evaporators, dryers, desiccant rotors. In the area of industrial heat exchangers, researches on high temperature ceramic heat exchangers, plate heat exchangers, frosting on fins of heat exchangers were performed. (3) In the field of refrigeration, papers were presented on alternative refrigerants, system improvements, and the utilization of various energy sources. Refrigeration systems with alternative refrigerants such as hydrocarbons, mixed refrigerants, and $CO_2$ were studied. Efforts to improve the performance of refrigeration systems were made applying various ideas of suction line heat exchangers, subcooling bypass lines and gas injection systems. Studies on heat pump systems using unutilized energy sources such as river water, underground water, and waste heat were also reported. (4) Research trend in the field of mechanical building facilities has been found to be mainly focused on field applications rather than performance improvements. In the area of cogeneration systems, papers on energy and economic analysis, LCC analysis and cost estimating were reported. Studies on ventilation and heat recovery systems introduced the effect on fire and smoke control, and energy reduction. Papers on district cooling and heating systems dealt with design capacity evaluation, application plan and field application. Also, the maintenance and management of building service equipments were presented for HVAC systems. (5) In the field of architectural environment, various studies were carried to improve indoor air quality and to analyze the heat load characteristics of buildings by energy simulation. These studies helped to understand the physics related to building load characteristics and to improve the quality of architectural environment where human beings reside in.