• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.48 no.7
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• pp.1-13
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• 2010

This study investigated how the characteristics of female international marriage immigrants, their husbands, their children, and their families affected their parenting self-efficacy, using a sample of 187 female international marriage immigrants, from China, the Philippines, or Vietnam, now living in Pusan and Gyungnam, Korea. We used questionnaires were based on the studies by Choe & Chung (2001), Shin (1997), Lee (1996), and Lee & Song (1991), and with the addition of demographic characteristics. Analysis results showed that the mother's parenting self-efficacy subscales correlated positively with mother's educational level, social support, and Korean language level; husband's educational level; and family income, and negatively with mother's depression, husband's age, and mother's acculturative stress. Multiple regressions indicated that husband's support was the strongest predictor of female international marriage immigrants' parenting self-efficacy.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.345-356
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• 2016

This study analysed the relationship between the discrimination that international marriage migrant women experience and various self-reported health indicators. The participants included 545 international marriage migrant women who responded to a self-questionnaire that was handed out to them at multicultural family support centers they attended in the C area. We designed this causal model to examine the relationship between the discrimination that international marriage migrant women feel they experience and their mental and physical health. Results of the study are as follows. First, the fit indices were found to be $x^2$(df)=236.403(76), CFI=.945, RMSEA=.077. These were statistically acceptable levels. In addition, perceived discrimination produces significantly heightened stress and negative effects on mental and physical health among immigrant women. Therefore, discrimination may constitute a risk factor for the health of immigrant women and could be the fact that explains health inequalities among immigrant populations in Korean society. These results suggest the need to find ways to reduce discrimination within Korean society as it becomes a multicultural society rapidly.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.67 no.2
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• pp.203-236
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• 2015

Given the interdependence of a marital couple, this study examined the effects of both cultural challenge and economic hardship on intention to divorce among the multicultural couple using the actor-partner interdependence model(APIM), and explored dyadic patterns of actor and partner effects. 415 couples(n=830) participated in this self-administered questionnaire study. Results of path analyses based on APIMs revealed that for Korean husbands perceived cultural challenge contributed positively to divorce intention of the couple showing both actor and partner effects, whereas for immigrant wives such perception showed only an actor effect. In contrast, perceived economic hardship among the husbands had little effect on divorce intention of both husbands and wives, whereas such perception by wives had both actor and partner effects on divorce intention. Results of dyadic pattern analyses performed by Bootstrap indicated the actor-only pattern and the couple pattern of perceived cultural challenge on divorce intention of husbands and wives respectively. In case of perceived economic hardship comparison of the effect size suggested the partner-only pattern and the actor-only pattern for divorce intention of husbands and wives respectively. These findings implied that in order to promote conjugal harmony and to prevent the multicultural family from being dissolved, Korean husbands need to develop greater cultural competence so as to tolerate cultural differences between the couple, whereas immigrant wives and their families need to develop greater economic competence so as to foster a hope for economic reliance.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.295-318
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• 2009

This paper explores micro-contexts of transnational migration and decision-making process of foreign migrants in Korea with four types, that is, married immigrants, immigrant workers, professional immigrants, and foreign students, analyzing dates of questionaries and interviews. Some findings can be summarized as follows. First, married immigrants and immigrant workers show relative lower level of micro-environments than professional immigrants and foreign students. Secondly, immigrants workers fill closest in geographical contiguity among immigrants' types, while married immigrants recognize more different in cultural comparison than the former. Both immigrants workers and foreign students think living environments of Korea better than other types, but immigrants workers consider relatively higher the level of technology, while foreign students evaluate lower that of education in Korea than other types. Thirdly, married immigrants give a relatively low score to the easiness of immigration, while both immigrant workers and professional immigrants give a high score to the job environment of Korea. Finally, all types of immigrants show a high portion in a self-decision making for international migration, while professional immigrants have much more experiences on visiting other countries than other types, and both married immigrants and foreign students seem to have utilized their networks with family members who live abroad.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.365-388
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• 2012

This study examined the effect of bilingual bicultural home environment and mother's command of Korean language on their participation in child rearing as well as on children's developmental outcomes. We carried out Analysis of Covariance Structure using the 1st year(2011) data of Gyeonggi Education Welfare Panel, which consists of 459 matched pairs of immigrant women and their 5th~6th grade children living in Gyeonggi-do. The results indicated that when the immigrant mother has good command of Korean language and the children are exposed to their maternal culture and language, mothers tend to actively participate in child rearing and this in turn has positive effects on developmental outcomes of their children. These results demonstrate that Korean language programs targeting immigrant women by marriage are important not only for assisting their employment and adaptation but also for enhancing parenting behaviors in multicultural families. Moreover these findings suggest that we need to understand the bilingual bicultural home environment in these families as a significant resource that contribute to their children's developmental outcomes and not as a risk factor to their adaptation, as it has frequently been viewed.

• Asian Oncology Nursing
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.175-185
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• 2012

Purpose: This micro-ethnographic study aimed to understand coping experiences of Korean-American (K-A) women after diagnosis with breast cancer due to a hereditary gene mutation. Methods: Participatory observation and in-depth interviews were performed at one breast cancer screening center in Southern California, in 2005 with eleven first generation K-A immigrant women. All transcribed interviews and field notes were analyzed using ethnographic methodology. Results: K-A women's experience varied based on acculturation risk factors including: limited English speaking ability; disrupted family relationships, individualistic family values, or intergenerational communication barriers; lack of Korean speaking nurses; and Korean physicians' who lacked knowledge about hereditary breast cancer risk. These risk factors led to isolation, loneliness, lack of emotional and social support. In comparison to Korean homeland women in a similar medical situation, these K-A immigrants felt disconnected from the healthcare system, family support and social resources which increased their struggling and impeded coping during their survivorship journey. These women were not able to access self-support groups, nor the valuable resources of nurse navigator programs. Conclusion: Professional oncology associations for nurses and physicians have a moral obligation to support and promote knowledge of hereditary cancer risk and self-help groups for non-native speaking immigrants.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.141-154
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• 2016

This study examined the nature of multi-cultural families' housing problems living in South Korea. A qualitative research was conducted through in-depth interviews with immigrant women from three Southeast Asian countries. The subjects of this study were 15 married immigrants from the Philippine, Cambodia, and Vietnam living in Seoul. The major findings were as follows: firstly, reciprocity for the in-between person and environment: the preferred to blend into Korean society instead of making a community based on national origin. Secondly, intention to housing: all participants were passive about moving and the Vietnamese and Cambodians placed more importance on the family community than the Filipinas. Thirdly, meaning of housing and interaction: for the most important area in the house, the Vietnamese and Cambodians stated that rooms were for a couple and treated family space more importantly than Filipinas who pursuit personal comfort. Fourthly, housing adaptation process: adapting to climate difference between home countries and Korea was the biggest difficulty. Fifthly, residential satisfaction/dissatisfaction: mostly satisfied with housing facilities; however, they were dissatisfied with the number of rooms and house size due to a necessity for personal space. In conclusion, ideas implied from native country of married immigrants in multicultural families did not change significantly in preference of the current environment. The needs for an ethnic community was not great, because they seemed able to assimilate positively by living with a Korean husband and relatives. Gradual assimilation through a cultural acculturation process can be considered desirable.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.53-64
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• 2016

Objectives: Nowadays, the multicultural families make up significant portion of Korean population and communities. Successful re-settling in a new country can be difficult, particularly when there are disparities in dietary behavior compared to home country. The objective of the study was to investigate the dietary behavior of marriage migrant women according to their nationality in multicultural families. Methods: The primary research was conducted targeting 94 marriage migrant women who came from China (40.4%), Vietnam (26.6%), and other countries except for Japan (33.0%). We investigated their dietary behavior, such as eating attitude and food choice behavior for Korea acculturation. We also studied dietary behavior among 14 selected subjects who had high level of integration and assimilation acculturation patterns by administering the Focus Group Interview (FGI). Results: The multicultural families had more integration acculturation patterns, which could have been influenced by their nationality. Vietnamese origin has the highest cultural adaptation as marginalization pattern. The common types of Korea acculturation were integration ($3.03{\pm}1.08$), separation ($3.10{\pm}0.59$), marginalization ($3.10{\pm}0.58$), followed by assimilation ($2.84{\pm}0.51$). There were significant differences in the four types of acculturation by marriage immigrant women's country of origin (p<0.05). According to dietary behavior, 'eliminating hunger' was the most important value in a meal. Chinese marriage migrant women, who had higher level of food intake attitude significantly, also considered 'being healthy' an important value. Regarding food choice behavior, Vietnamese had lowest frequency of homeland food intake. Most of marriage immigrant women were satisfied with the Korean food, and need for education was very high with interest for cooking, good nutrition, and managing their children's dietary life. Conclusions: Coping with a change in dietary behavior is one of the biggest transitional difficulties, and family members may need support to find their familiar food items and to continue their cultural food choice behavior in the local areas. Further researches with quantitative and qualitative analysis are needed to understand the effect of dietary behavior for acculturation in multicultural families.

• Industry Promotion Research
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.147-162
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• 2023

This study explored the experience of social support in the education and rearing of children of immigrant women through international marriage and found its essential meaning. First of all, the husband's social support was very important, but the relationship with the husband had a different effect on childrearing and education. Parents-in-law had a positive and negative impact on child rearing and education of them due to cultural conflicts between the two countries. Their own mother was a strong support that gave them great strength just by being there, and as their children grew up, they regarded their mother as the source of bilingual education for their children. Other supporters around them were Korean friends who connected Korean society by sharing information on child care and education. Friends who spoke and communicated in their native language were emotional and psychological supporters that bonded the same experience of parenting and education for their children. In conclusion, the research participants expected a better life for themselves and their children by using a multi-layered social support system as well as a transnational family network in the process of child education and care. Accordingly, it was proposed to systematically improve the laws, systems, and policy support so that the social support system can be further strengthened at the family, community, and transnational levels for the education and care of children of immigrant women through international marriage.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.475-487
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• 2018

Objectives: This study examined the consumption of Han-sik and its association with the years of residence in Korea and the socioeconomic status among Filipino immigrant women of the Filipino Women's Diet and Health Study (FiLWHEL). Methods: A total of 474 Filipino women married to Korean men were included in the analysis. Their dietary intake was assessed using a single-day 24-hour recall. The participants provided information on the demographics, socioeconomic, and health-related factors through face-to-face interviews. The generalized linear model and logistic regression model were used to examine the association between the socioeconomic status and consumption of Han-sik. Results: The mean age of the participants was 34.3 years old, and the average duration of residence in Korea was 8.2 years. Among 474 Filipino women, a total of 467 consumed Han-sik, with an average of 6.8 food items per day. The Han-sik foods that the participants consumed most frequently were rice, cabbage kimchi, mixed-grain rice, and fried eggs. The average ratio of Han-sik was 58.57%. The ratio of Han-sik showed no significant associations with the years of residence, years of living together with their husband, education levels, total annual family income, or linguistic competence of Korean. However, the ratio of Han-sik use was associated with cohabitation with parents-in-law; the odds ratio (95% confidence interval) was 2.41 (1.18-4.92, p-trend = 0.002) comparing the fourth quartile with the first quartile of the Han-sik ratio. Conclusions: Filipino immigrant women in the FiLWHEL study consumed a larger number of Han-sik than Philippine foods. In addition, cohabitation with their parents-in-law was associated with the consumption of Han-sik. Further epidemiologic studies will be needed to determine how the diet affects the health and wellbeing of immigrant women in Korea.