• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.11 no.12
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• pp.329-341
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• 2020

As COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the world, more than 45 million confirmed cases and over 1,000,000 deaths have occurred till now, and this situation is expected to continue for some time. In particular, more than half of the infections in European countries such as Italy and Spain occurred in nursing homes, and it is reported that over 4,000 people died in nursing homes for older adults in the United States. Therefore, the issues that need to be addressed after the COVID-19 crisis include finding a fundamental solution to group care and shifting to family-centered care. More specifically, it is expected that there will be ever more lively discussion on establishing and expanding hyper-technology based community care, that is, family-centered care integrated with ICT and other Industry 4.0 technologies. This poses a challenge of how to combine social security and social welfare with Industry 4.0 in concrete ways that go beyond the abstract suggestions made in the past. A case in point is the proposal involving smart welfare cities. Given this background, the present paper examined the concept, scope, and content of non-face-to-face care in the context of previous literature on the function and scope of the social security platform, and the concept and expandability of the smart welfare city. Implementing a smart city to realize the kind of social security and welfare that our society seeks to provide has significant bearing on the implementation of community care or aging in place. One limitation of this paper, however, is that it does not address concrete measures for implementing non-face-to-face care from the policy and legal/institutional perspectives, and further studies are needed to explore such measures in the future. It is expected that the findings of this paper will provide the future course and vision not only for the smart welfare city but also for the social security and welfare system in administrative, practical, and legislative aspects, and ultimately contribute to improving the quality of human life.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.147-158
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• 2016

Objectives : The aim of this study was to investigate predictors of cognitive function decline among community dwelling elderly. Methods : Data were analyzed from the Survey of Living Condition of Elderly panel study. Cognitive function was measured with the MMSE-KC at baseline and year 3. The study subjects were 5,464 community dwelling people aged 65 years or older who had no disability at baseline. Logistic regression analysis was used to predict cognitive function decline. Results : From 2008-2011, 4,417(80.8%) elderly people had no cognitive decline, and 1,074(19.2%) showed cognitive function decline measured by the MMSE-KC. After adjusting for demographics and baseline MMSE-KC score, the best predictors for cognitive function decline at 36 months were diabetes mellitus, smoking, low intensity physical activity, relationship with relatives and friends. Conclusions : Health promotion programs that are focused on the elderly are essential in preventing cognitive function decline. Promoting regular physical activity, and social relationships should be included in health promotion for elderly. When treating patients with diabetes, preventing cognitive impairment should be considered through education and counseling.

• 한국노년학
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.241-259
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to study the performance of volunteer work for the elderly from the perspective of self-efficacy and self-extension of the elderly, not from successful aging or productive aging. Through this, the research aims to confirm the expansion of internal growth and self-sufficiency that can occur in old age, and to provide an opportunity to re-examine one's life in old age. In order to verify the purpose of this research, questionnaires were distributed to 300 senior citizens who participated in volunteer activities at the City Hall and the District Office of Busan Metropolitan City over a period of three months from September to November 2018 and used the data from 266 questionnaires for the study, excluding the 34questionnaire answered unfaithfully. The results of the study are as follows. First, the motivation for volunteering activities (value function, social function, understanding function) of the elderly has a positive effect on self-efficacy. Second, the motivation for volunteering activities (value functions, social functions, understanding functions) have a positive effect on self-extension. Third, it has been shown that the elderly's sense of self-efficacy (self-regulation efficacy, confidence) has a positive effect on their self-extension. Fourth, it was found that self-efficacy has a mediated effect on the motivation of the elderly to participate in volunteer activities and the relationship of self-extension. This study identified the relevance of the motivation for volunteering activities of the elderly to influence their effectiveness and self-extension. In particular, the research suggests practical and policy measures for the revitalization of volunteer activities of the elderly by providing a new perspective on the welfare of the elderly by utilizing parameters of self-efficacy, a psychological and social concept for the elderly.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.4798-4804
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• 2015

The aim of this study is evaluate the effect of a cognitive occupational therapy program on cognitive function, depression and hands function for patients with dementia living in a local community. A cognitive rehabilitation program of 10 weeks focusing on the occupational therapy is conducted from September to December 2012 on 21 patents (experimental group: 12, control group: 9) with dementia who are admitted to nursing homes in a metropolitan region. In the experimental group, the cognitive function, depression level, hand strength, and hand coordination ability is significantly improved after the application of the cognitive program (p<.05). In conclusion, the cognitive occupational therapy program may be a useful intervention for dementia. Because the therapeutic goal for dementia treatment is mainly concentrated on the amelioration of dementia symptoms, thus it is necessary to develop a various cognition training program that can be maintained the patient's residual functional capacity and returned to the social community through the early detection and the early intervention.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.915-961
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• 2010

This study is concerned with health damages from $SO_2$ under different assumptions on the relationship between air concentrations and their marginal health impacts. $SO_2$ concentration profiles resulting under emission caps, and a system of tradable emission allowances are compared. Using slopes and curvatures of the health response function consistent with evidence in medical literature, emission caps are shown to lead to lower aggregate damages under all considered parameters, an advantage of $26~452 million. The benefit of emission caps over tradable allowances increases with the curvature of the response function, but falls with its slope. The advantage of emission caps in terms of environmental damages is never overturned completely for the considered functional forms. The marginal damage function would have to be steeper than what the current medical evidence suggests for price instruments to outperform emission caps in terms of aggregate damages. With other welfare consequences included-emission abatement costs, consumer and producer surpluses, and government revenue-emission caps always lead to a $3.7~4.1 billion greater measure of social welfare.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.686-698
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• 2021

This study was conducted to analyze the mediating effect of health status and the moderating effect of economic activity in the relationship between depression and cognitive function of the elderly. For this, the data of 2017 National survey of Older Koreans that was collected all over country by Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs were analyzed using Structural Equation Model for statistical analysis method. The results are as follows. First, the elderly's depression was found to have a negative effect on cognitive function and health status. Second, the health status of the elderly was found to have a positive effect on cognitive function. Third, a significant mediating effect of health status was founded in the relationship between depression and cognitive function. Fourth, the moderating effect of the elderly's economic activity was found in the path through which depression affects health status and health status affects cognitive function. Based on these research results, implications of social welfare were suggested.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.327-358
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• 2013

This study aimed to analyze the trajectories of cognitive function and functional disability, and to identify the impacts of socio-demographic factors on the two variables. Based on the assumption that there are differences according to the progress of cognitive impairment, it focused on examining the differences in trajectories of cognitive function and functional disability between two groups: dementia conversion group and dementia non-conversion group among cognitively normal older adults. This study was conducted based on the data from a 3-wave panel study of a sample of 966 Yeoncheon elderly cohort aged 65 and over between 1997 and 2003. Latent growth curve model and multi-group structural equation modeling were used to examine the hypothesis. Results revealed that dementia conversion group exhibited faster rate of cognitive decline as well as lower initial cognitive level. Difference between two groups was not significant in the initial level of functional disability, yet dementia conversion group showed greater degree of deterioration in the functional disability over time than dementia non-conversion group did. In terms of the influence of socio-demographic factors on cognitive function and functional disability, the cognitive decline was more drastic in the female group, whereas functional decline was more apparent for the male group. The level of education in early life had a strong impact on the cognitive function in later life. Based on these findings, practical implication for high risk groups in cognitive function and functional disability were discussed.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.50
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• pp.157-172
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• 2002

Most of existing studies about employment of people with disabilities have regarded the disabled groups as only one group which has different characteristics respectively. In fact, each of the disabled groups have several peculiarities of their own. So government or policy makers must regard the disabled group as different groups which have their own characteristics(example : education level, house income, wage, working hours, satisfaction level for their job, disability type and degree, service year in a firm, etc) for promoting employment of the disabled effectively and keeping their job continuously. In this study, we examine and verify the existence of segmentations in Korea labor market of the disabled according to their different education level & sex by using MDFA(Multiple Discriminant Function Analysis technique) and seek solutions for easing those segmentations.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.199-209
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• 2011

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the structural relationships between functional deficiency of Family and self-esteem, depression, suicidal inclination of adolescents. Methods: The data in this study came from the Korea Youth Panel Survey Data (N=3,449) for 2005~2007. To investigate the causal relationship between each variable presented in the research model, structural equation modeling (SEM) was carried out by using AMOS 7.0. And all data were analyzed by using SPSS/WIN 12.0. Results: The main analytical results of this study were as follows; First, the family function made a positive impact on the self-esteem of adolescents. Second, the severe functional deficiency in family appeared to have a negative effect on the suicidal inclination and depression of adolescents. Third, the higher the adolescents' self-esteem, the lower depression and suicidal ideation. Fourth, the more severe the depression, the higher occurrence of suicidal inclination. Conclusion: In conclusion, functional deficiency in adolescents' family impacted negatively on self-esteem, and this contributed to increased depression and anxiety, and to suicidal inclination finally. These findings confirmed that the strength of family function, the closeness with parents, forming a stable relationship and strength of the emotional bond are very important factors to form self-esteem and reduce depression and suicidal inclination.

• International Journal of Railway
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.12-19
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• 2008

Starting her business operation on January 5 2007, Taiwan High Speed Rail(THSR) shapes a new time-space frame for Taiwan western corridor, where more than 90% of national population lives around and more than 95% gross domestic product created from. Comparing with the four-hour traveling time by highway before 2007, THSR reduces the time required to one and half hours from Taipei to Kaohsiung. It will not only benefit the communication along the island from north to south, but also change the location advantages/disadvantages for all cities in these regions. Therefore, this paper establishes a spatial computable general equilibrium model(SCGE Model) to simulate the economic effect of High Speed Rail(HSR). This SCGE model divides Taiwan economy into fifteen geographic regions and thirteen industries. Each region has three sectors: household sector, transportation sector, and industries sector. Following the behavior function of economic theories, the general equilibrium can be achieved simultaneously. Thus, gross regional product (GRP), capital formation, employment income and welfare/utility level can be all observed by calculating the different economic result between cases with-/ without-HSR. Besides, this model presents the social welfare benefit from HSR operation, the polarization phenomenon among regions and within certain region, unbalance distribution of welfare along the HSR line, and industries development divergence among regions etc. These major findings should be useful for regional development policy making.