• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.197-212
• /
• 2016

Objectives : This study develops a salutogenic program and examines its effects on the sense of coherence, acculturative stress, and quality of life of married immigrant women. Methods : The salutogenic program was developed based on Antonovsky's Salutogenic Model, and the study design was a nonequivalent control group pre-post test design. The participants were married immigrant Chinese (n=30) and Vietnamese (n=31) women, who were assigned to either an experimental group (n=29) or a control group (n=32). The data were analyzed using the ${\chi}^2$-test, t-test, Fisher's exact test, and repeated measures ANOVA, and the IBM SPSS for Windows (version 20.0) program was used to perform the analysis. Results : Compared to the control group, the sense of coherence (F=52.05, p <.001) and quality of life (F=6.95, p=.002) were significantly improved in the experimental group, and the acculturative stress (F=24.64, p<.001) in this group significantly decreased after implementing salutogenic program. Conclusions : These findings indicate that a salutogenic program is an effective intervention for married immigrant women. The study suggests that such programs can be applied to married immigrant women at public health or multicultural family support centers to improve their sense of coherence and quality of life.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.87-107
• /
• 2006

A study of 117 Korean immigrant women who had husband and(or) children in Hawaii found the relation between social networks and psychological well-being. Social networks composed supporters, support structure, and support contents. Psychological well-being examined family life satisfaction, family life stability, and women's psychological health. Results showed as followed. First, the choice of immigration place among Korean immigrant women and her family based on other family members and friends lived in there. Second, her supporters were family and relatives, Korean friends, foreign friends, religions, belonged organizations and groups, public agencies in Hawaii, and mass-media. The best supporters of them was family and relatives and they mostly provided mental health to Korean immigrant women. Family, Korean friends, foreign friends, and religions tended to support emotional assistance. Third, the level of psychological well-being was higher. Her level of psychological health was higher than the others. Fourth, the best predictors of psychological well-being were child existence, occupation, and immigration duration. Fifth, psychological well-being significantly distinguished different relations of supporters from support structure of social network. The number and support duration with foreign friends supporter and the support duration and the level of perceived useful support content highly related with psychological well-being.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.323-335
• /
• 2010

Purpose: This study identified sociodemographic characteristics, health status, health care utilization and related factors of Asian immigrant women in Korea. Methods: Data were collected from 465 immigrant women from China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and other Asian countries using standardized questionnaires. Descriptive statistics and $X^2$-test were performed utilizing SPSS version 17. A p-value <.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Subjects had relatively good subjective health. The most prevalent conditions were, in order, anemia, gastrointestinal diseases, gynecological diseases, and depression. Subjects utilized mostly hospitals or clinics when sick. There were significant relationships between health care utilization and factors including residence, time since immigration and economic status. The rate of non-treatment in hospitals or clinics was 30.1% during the previous year, with significant relationships between non-treatment and factors including time since immigration and economic status. The major reasons for non-treatment were the burden of hospital expenses followed by communication difficulty. Conclusion: Public health efforts should be targeted to Asian immigrant women to improve their health status and support health care utilization.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.394-405
• /
• 2018

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify and describe cultural meanings for married Japanese immigrant women in rural Korean communities. Methods: The informants were 10 women in rural areas. Data were collected from August 2017 to June 2018 through in-depth interviews and participant observations and analyzed using text analysis and taxonomic methods developed by Spradley. Results: The meanings of adaptation were classified into five cultural domains: Practicing the doctrine, accepting the difference, redemption, true home, and confronting reality. The subthemes according to meanings of adaptation were comprised of international marriage with a sense of calling, bearing with sense of duty, and making a living substantively. The subthemes in this study reflect the process of adaptation. The cultural themes in the process of adaptation were overcoming differences and conflicts between Korea and Japan to achieve true family. Conclusion: The adaptation processes of married Japanese immigrant women included making their living reality known and recognizing the times when exchanges between Koreans and Japanese cannot exist within a hostile composition.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.325-333
• /
• 2019

This study was a qualitative investigation of the process of adaptation of nutrition education programs by marriage immigrant women who completed education programs for training of food citizen leaders. Focus group interviews of seven marriage immigrant women from Vietnam, China, Mongolia and Russia were conducted and analyzed based on the Normalization Process Theory (NPT). Participants were aware of the purpose of the education program (coherence) and their confidence in organizing and reconstructing the knowledge of nutrition was increased after education (reflexive monitoring). However, they had difficulties attending long-term education programs (cognitive participation) and overcoming language barriers (collective action). Although the program was beneficial for the participants in that they could apply acquired nutrition knowledge to their everyday life as food citizen leaders, the continuous monitoring and feed-back system (management), customized application, and consideration of personal and social factors need to be developed and facilitated. In addition, various programs targeting marriage immigrant women may increase economic independence of these women. The NPT proved beneficial in conceptualizing the barriers and facilitators to implementing nutrition education. The successful implementation of nutrition intervention needs special support to overcome barriers to cognitive participation and collective action.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
• /
• v.28 no.1
• /
• pp.15-26
• /
• 2022

Purpose: The purposes of this study was to describe the lived experience structures of married immigrant women with chronic diseases in reorganizing their lives in a variety of situations and contexts. Methods: This study applied grounded theory approach, and the participants were 15 married immigrant women with chronic disease. Data were collected through individual in-depth interviews and then analyzed by the method in Strauss and Corbin (1998). Results: The extracted data were organized 41 concepts, 21 subcategories, and 8 categories. The central phenomenon was determined to be "Life turned into a chronic disease." The causal conditions were "Undergoing physical and mental stress from marriage", "Lack of information on chronic diseases." The extracted contexts was "The demand for health resources." action and interaction strategies, "Finding problems and solutions." The intervention conditions influencing the strategies was "Establishing a support system." The result of such action was "To settle down in a way of life that suits your conditions." Conclusion: By providing a comprehensive and integrative understanding of how married immigrant women with chronic disease reorganize their lives, the study is expected to contribute to the development of social systems and national policies.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.40-48
• /
• 2021

Purpose: This study compared maternal age at childbirth, the number of live births, and the weight of live births between Korean women and immigrant women using statistical data from the Republic of Korea for the period of 2008-2018. Methods: The analysis was conducted using data from the Microdata Integrated Service of Statistics Korea (https://mdis.kostat.go.kr/index.do). Results: Korean women and immigrant women showed a higher age at childbirth in 2018 than in 2008. The percentage of newborns of Korean women with a birth weight of less than 2.5 kg increased slightly for 3 consecutive years from 2016 to 2018, whereas for immigrant women, this percentage increased in 2017 compared to 2016 and then decreased again in 2018. Very low birth weight (less than 1.5 kg) became more common among immigrant women from 2016 to 2018. Birth at a gestational age of fewer than 37 weeks increased both among Korean and immigrant women from 2016 to 2018. In both groups, the percentage of women who had their first child within their first 2 years of marriage decreased from 2008 to 2018. Conclusion: Immigrant women had higher birth rates than Korean women, while both groups showed an increasing trend in preterm birth. Greater attention should be paid to the pregnancy and birth needs of immigrant women, and steps are needed to ensure health equity and access in order to prevent preterm births. It is also necessary to identify factors that affect preterm birth and birth of very low birth weight infants among immigrant women in the future.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.69-90
• /
• 2014

This study focused on the adjustment of family living culture in relation to women who have immigrated for marriage. Specifically, it sought to determine how Vietnamese immigrant women understand and adapt to the culture of family life in Seoul, Korea. The investigation was conducted from 2 May to 30 May 2014, with 28 Vietnamese immigrant women as participants. Personal, family, social, and cultural factors affecting family life and culture were considered. It was determined that Vietnamese women can easily adapt to life in Korea to provide; the results of the material analysis are described below. First, Vietnamese immigrant women are satisfied with their economic life in Korea. In Vietnam, women have the right to marry Korean men if they want to. Vietnamese women are encouraged to marry want to marry a Korean man. Because they are satisfied with the present marriage. Second, migrant women learn to adapt to South Korean culture and food. However, cultural differences between a woman's husband and mother-in-law can become a source of conflict. Third, children of multicultural families easily accept Vietnamese people, since they are educated to do so through their Vietnamese mothers Vietnamese woman wants to teach their children the Vietnamese food and culture. Fourth, the Vietnamese immigrant women also participate in multicultural family support centers and communities. They want to become productive members of society through employment opportunities in South Korea. Fifth, the cultural and welfare policies of the government should be carried on so that migrant women are able to study cultural adaptation. This case study examined difficulties that Vietnamese immigrant women have in adjusting to life and culture in Korea. The findings could be used as a resource to help Vietnamese women living in Korea.

• Human Ecology Research
• /
• v.54 no.2
• /
• pp.141-154
• /
• 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
• /
• v.22 no.4
• /
• pp.323-335
• /
• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to analyze the current status of nutrition education programs for multicultural families and to provide policy suggestions for improvement. Methods: In-depth interviews of a total of 21 multicultural experts were conducted; 15 people were interviewed individually, while 6 people were interviewed in groups of three. Results: In-depth interviews revealed various problems related to the operation of nutrition education programs. The causes of problems were analyzed and categorized as four factors: systemic, practical, environmental and cultural. As for the systematic factors, insufficient linkage between related organizations and duplicate performance of several projects were identified as concerns Establishment of a control tower and strengthening the linkage among the related organizations may be needed to address this concern. With regard to practical factors, the study identified that language barriers, and lack of nutritional education media and tools translated into multicultural languages were limiting factors. These limitations the development of nutrition education materials that aretranslated into multiple languages, implementation of education programs that are different from the Korean education, and by providing interpreters. As for the environmental factors, low educational level and poor nutritional knowledge of multicultural women made it difficult for them to understand the contents of the education. Demonstration, practical training and urgent education on pregnancy and childbirth nutrition were identified as needs to address these concerns. Withregard to cultural factors, food culture conflict with Korean families, and difficulties in home practices were detected as concerns. Participants in the study suggested that getting education with family and facilitation of weekend and nighttime programs health of this community. Conclusions: Further studies are needed to adopt more effective and efficient nutrition intervention to promote the healthy eating of the married immigrant women based on the study results.