• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.117-126
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• 2015

Purpose: Korean women, who have come to the forefront at a risk of cancer, have been notable objects for qualitative nursing research in last a couple of decades. Given the imparity and varieties of those findings, this study was aimed to synthesize the impact of cancer diagnosis and its treatment on Korean women's lives using a qualitative meta-synthesis method. Methods: By searching five English-based databases and four Korean databases, 21 qualitative studies on Korean women's particular experiences of cancer diagnosis and treatment since 2000 were included. Using a meta-synthesis process by Sandelowski & Barroso (2007), the selected studies were synthesized for interpretive integration of the findings. Results: The meta-synthesis elicited three themes: detachment from the usualness, awareness of profound desires, and redefinition of every relation. With destructive experiences of a diagnosis and its treatments, Korean women felt apart from their everyday life, daily roles, and even from their own body. They then grasped a strong desire for life and for beauty, and reconfirmed the sense of mission for being a mother. Those changes made them to reconstruct all relations surrounded them. Conclusion: The findings yield a substantive portrait of the given issue, which could be helpful for health care professionals.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.62 no.2
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• pp.279-294
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• 2024

The purpose of this study was to synthesize and interpret the findings of previous qualitative studies that investigated the lived experiences of Korean emerging adults who aged out of the foster care system. Based on our selection criteria, we extracted and analyzed 14 papers that were published between 2010 to 2023. Our meta-synthesis found that the emerging adults' life world consisted of seven domains: family experience, life tasks, education and work, financial issues, home and family, interpersonal relationships, and psychological and emotional issues. We restructured the emerging adults' lived experiences using van Manen's concepts of lived time, lived space, lived things, lived self-other, and lived body. Our meta-synthesis revealed that these emerging adults experienced multidimensional difficulties due to shortcomings of formal and informal social support after aging out of the foster care system. Their difficulties accumulated in their interaction with lived time. Based on the level of their accumulated difficulties, we categorized the emerging adults into stable, struggling, and isolated groups. However, it is important to note that many of them adapted to their own life world and strived to move forward. This qualitative meta-synthesis provides a comprehensive understanding and new interpretation of emerging adults who transition from foster care to independent living in the context of Korea.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.116-126
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• 2016

Purpose: Lung cancer patients are often stigmatized since lung cancer is closely associated with smoking, which is a self-administered life style. The stigma of lung cancer has been examined in some qualitative studies; however, their findings were diverse and not yet synthesized. Therefore, this meta-synthesis study aimed to explore how lung cancer patients experience stigma. Methods: A meta-synthesis method, as suggested by Sandelowski and Barroso in 2007, was applied by aggregating the findings after an evaluation according to consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ). Results: By synthesizing the findings of the selected seven papers, a synthesized theme was emerged as "experiencing external and internal distances, which mandates authentic and consistent supports." The four sub-themes included 'experiencing some distance from the surrounded world,' 'experiencing self-made distance between the disease and oneself,' 'the disease experience causes social isolation and loneliness,' and 'there is lack of supportive care for myself.' Conclusion: Health care providers should be more attentive to supporting lung cancer patients by providing more effective advocacy programs that improve patients' quality of life.

• The Korean Journal of Food & Health Convergence
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.21-27
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• 2024

This study employs a qualitative meta-synthesis approach to investigate the psychological determinants of food choice in out-of-home dining contexts. Drawing from 25 qualitative studies published between 2000 and 2024, we analyze the complex interplay of personal, sociocultural, situational, and sensory factors influencing consumers' food selection behaviors in restaurants. Our findings reveal that while individual preferences play a role, social norms and expectations exert a more significant influence in dining-out scenarios, often overshadowing personal tastes. The physical environment of restaurants, including ambiance and decor, substantially impacts diners' cognitive and emotional responses, subsequently affecting their food choices. Menu design and presentation emerge as powerful tools in guiding consumer decisions, particularly when emphasizing healthier options. Moreover, service quality is found to significantly influence not only satisfaction but also the diversity and adventurousness of food choices. This meta-synthesis extends existing food choice models by incorporating context-specific factors unique to out-of-home dining experiences. It underscores the need for a more nuanced understanding of the psychological processes underlying food selection in restaurant settings. Our results offer valuable insights for both theoretical advancements in consumer behavior and practical applications in the foodservice industry. Future research directions are proposed, including the development of an integrated model specific to out-of-home dining contexts.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.10-19
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• 2011

Purpose: This article was proposed to describe and summarize the following 1) the structural hierarchy of nursing knowledge and 2) the four different methods of concept analysis and concept development, which are used most frequently in nursing literature, and 3) to demonstrate a qualitative data synthesis of situation-specific theories in Korea in order to provide an venue for developing Korean-contextualized nursing theory. Methods: A literature review and a meta-synthesis were used. An interpretive integration method for the meta-synthesis was used to incorporate incorporating the results of ten qualitative studies in Korea. Results: The normative and extended concept of the self was one of the three foremost concepts. The experiences of being detached from a group and of being unlike others were perceived with distress to Korean participants. Lastly, as a coping method, complying with a higher flow or power was used. Conclusion: Based on the three concepts elicited in this article, a substantive theory which withholds Korean nursing concepts and essences is hoped to be developed in future.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.300-311
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• 2019

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to review and synthesize the existing literature on the experience of nursing students in simulation. Methods: A systematic review was undertaken using meta-ethnography. Eight databases were searched up to January 2014 for peer-reviewed studies, written in Korean and English, that reported primary data, used identifiable and interpretative qualitative methods, and offered a valuable contribution to the synthesis. Results: Nine studies were identified, with quality appraisal undertaken. Three key concepts were generated: ambivalence of simulation practice, learning by reflection, and building up of the competency as a future nurse. Six sub-concepts emerged: double sidedness of simulation setting; feeling ambivalence of simulation; learning from others; learning from self-reflection; improvement of confidence by role experience; and internalization of nursing knowledge. A line of argument has been developed based on the themes generated. Conclusion: The findings from this qualitative synthesis and other related literature indicated the importance of capability of educator and extension of the simulation system to facilitate effective simulation-based education.

• Journal of Korean Critical Care Nursing
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.13-30
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• 2017

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to integrate the results of qualitative studies to understand critical care survivors' experience of the post-intensive care syndrome (PICS). Methods: This was a meta-synthesis of primary studies that used qualitative methods. We reviewed 26 qualitative studies on PICS selected from 8 international and Korean databases and from a manual search. Thomas and Harden's 3 stages (free coding, development of descriptive themes, generation of analytical themes) for thematic synthesis were utilized to analyze the collected qualitative data. Results: Four descriptive themes emerged from the thematic synthesis: weak physical conditions, psycho-emotional changes, the painful-memory of intensive care units, and social vulnerability. The analytical theme for the current study was "unfamiliarity with the vulnerable self." Critical care survivors had to confront entirely different "selves" after discharge from intensive care units. They had become physically weak, psychologically unstable, and the critical memories continued to create distress. These changes increased their social vulnerability by making them dependent on others, causing family conflicts, and changing interpersonal relationships. Conclusions: Finding from this qualitative synthesis and other related literature highlight the severity of PICS and the importance of rehabilitative intervention for critical care survivors.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.391-405
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• 2018

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to integrate and synthesize findings from qualitative studies exploring male students' experiences of adapting to nursing education programs so as to obtain further understanding of the phenomenon. Methods: The meta-synthesis process was primarily guided by Noblit and Hare's approach, which consists of four stages including searching, appraisal of an individual study's quality, data extraction for analysis, and meta-synthesizing the results. Results: Findings from the literature reviewed were synthesized into six themes: 1) extraordinary choice based on job stability and gender scarcity; 2) unexpected feeling of marginalization as minority far apart from the mainstream; 3) assimilation and negotiation for relational adaptation through perspective shift; 4) fortifying the vision and identity as nursing students by meaning making for adapting to the nursing major; 5) mutual support among colleague male students; and 6) serving in the military as way of hiding out and achieving maturation. Conclusion: The findings illustrate that nursing education programs need practical changes promoting male students' adaptation to the program itself as well as preparation to be a professional nurse in the future.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.601-621
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• 2018

Purpose: This study aimed to synthesize the caring experiences of Korean family members of patients with dementia through a qualitative meta-synthesis method. Methods: By searching through nine Korean and English databases, we compared 37 qualitative studies on caring experiences of family members of patients with dementia. The selected studies were synthesized through meta-synthesis, proposed by Sandelowski and Barroso (2007). Results: The meta-synthesis elicited four themes: tough life due to care for patients, changes in relationships, adaptation to caregiver's roles, and new perspectives of life through personal growth. Caregivers were shocked when a sudden diagnosis of dementia was made prior to any preparation on their part. They were tied to their patients all the time and their mind and body got exhausted. Their relationship with patients began to change and they looked at them differently. They experienced conflicts with the other non-caring family members and were alienated from them. They were also socially isolated. However, by building their own care strategies and utilizing social resources, they gradually adapted to their caregiver roles. Finally, they experienced personal growth and acquired a new perspective toward life by accepting their roles and finding meaning in their lives. Shifting the caregiver's centricity from themselves to the patient was the process of becoming human beings who actively constructed their realities while giving meaning to their painful lives and interacting with the environment. Conclusion: The results of the study can be useful for nurses in understanding the experiences of caregivers of the patients with dementia and in providing them with practical interventions.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.18 no.7
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• pp.331-337
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to meta-synthesize the results of qualitative research that explored the experiences of nursing care in a domestic nurse to understand the phenomenon. The research method was a qualitative meta-synthesis study, which was analyzed using Thomas and Harden's methods. This was analyzed by searching for quality assessments for individual studies, extracting data for analysis, and meta-synthesizing the results. As a result of the study, it appeared as five synthetic themes. 1) Disaster nursing that begins with anxiety and fear, 2) Disaster nursing process: An atmosphere that feels even loneliness and burden in isolation and disconnection, 3) Disaster nursing process: Being in a poor and diverse environment, 4) Disaster nursing process: Although exhausted Endure and overcome. 5) After disaster care: A leap forward for development beyond mission and self-esteem. Conclusion, this study is expected to be a useful basic data for the development and application of nurse's disaster nursing programs and educational programs in the future.