• Journal of Digital Convergence
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.313-321
• /
• 2019

This study investigated the themes of self-esteem memories in female adults. Self-esteem memories mean memories that are focused on evaluations of the self and the themes of them are classified as achievement or social relationship. Eighteen young adults(M=21.56), fifteen middle aged adults(M=54.13), and twenty older adults(M=74.35), totally fifty three female adults participated. They recalled 4 positive and 4 negative self-esteem memories respectively. The results showed that memories of positive and negative self-worth frequently focused on relationship themes, and this tendency was significant in positive memory of young adults and negative memory of middle aged adults. This suggests that social relationship is a dominant cultural value in Korea. Links between interpersonal relationship and positive/negative self-esteem memories are explained by culture, gender and developmental tasks. Further researches about the differences by sex and life scripts in the content of self-esteem memories are needed.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
• /
• v.19 no.2
• /
• pp.202-211
• /
• 2019

Purpose: Poor physiological reserve for withstanding major cancer surgery in older adults is an important concern in the selection of patients for oncologic gastrectomy. The present study aimed to analyze mortality patterns among patients who underwent gastrectomy for cancer according to age groups. The primary outcomes of this study were early- and middleterm results: 30-day and 3-, 6-, 12-, and 36-month mortality rates. Materials and Methods: A retrospective review of 288 patients who underwent surgical resection for gastric cancer in two centers was carried out. Patients were stratified into four groups according to age: 29-50 years (group I, n=27), 51-65 years (group II, n=117), 66-75 years (group III, n=81), and 76-92 years (group IV, n=58). Statistical calculations focused on the differences in the survival rates between groups I and II as well as between groups II and IV. Results: The middle-aged patients (group II) had significantly better 3-year survival than either the youngest (group I) or the oldest patients (group IV). The 6-month mortality rates were 16.9% in group III and 29.3% in group IV. Two-thirds of the patients from groups III and IV who died between 2 and 6 months after surgery had an uneventful postoperative course. Conclusions: Age is an important prognostic factor of middle-term survival after gastrectomy for cancer. Geriatric assessment and better patient selection for major surgery for cancer are required to improve the outcome of gastrectomy for cancer in patients aged over 75 years.

• 한국노년학
• /
• v.40 no.4
• /
• pp.691-706
• /
• 2020

This study aims to explore health behavior profiles and the association between the derived profiles and living arrangement among middle-aged and older adults. Using data from wave 6 (2016) of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, latent profile analyses were applied to identify patterns of health behaviors and multinomial logistic regression models were conducted to predict profile membership using living arrangement (i.e., living alone, living with spouse only, living with family members) and sociodemographic characteristics. A sample of 7,048 respondents aged 55 and older were included in the study. Results revealed that Korean middle-aged and older adults can be grouped into four health behavior profiles: "High health-compromising" (4%), "Moderate health-compromising" (28%), "Low health-compromising" (65%), and "High physical activity" (3%). Also, living arrangement showed significant profile differences. Compared to the respondents living alone, those living with spouse only were more likely to belong to low and moderate levels of health-compromising behavior profiles than the "High physicial activity profile". Respondents living with family members were more likely to belong to the "High health-compromising profile" than the "High physical activity profile" compared to those living with spouse only. These findings indicate that living arrangement needs to be taken into consideration when developing health promoting programs and supports. Moreover, policy interventions suiting the needs of various sociodemographic subgroups are recommended.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
• /
• v.23 no.5
• /
• pp.205-210
• /
• 2022

Background: Nasal bone fractures are the most common type of facial bone fracture, but are under-studied in adults above 65 years of age. Therefore, we investigated the epidemiology and patterns of nasal bone fractures among older adults in comparison to different age groups. Methods: This retrospective study included 2,321 nasal bone fracture patients who underwent surgery at our hospital from January 2010 to December 2017. The patients were classified by age as preschoolers, school-age children, young and middle-aged adults, and the elderly. We performed pairwise comparisons between elderly patients and each other age group in terms of sex, cause of injury, and fracture type. Results: The 2,321 nasal bone fracture patients included 76 elderly patients (50 men [65.8%] and 26 women [34.2%]). In these patients, the two most common injury causes were falling or slipping down (n= 39; 51.3%) and road traffic accidents (n= 19; 25.0%). According to the Stranc and Robertson classification, the most common force vector was lateral, and plane 2 fractures with lateral forces predominated. Conclusion: The elderly showed similar patterns of nasal bone fractures to those observed in young and middle-aged adults, but significant differences from preschoolers (in the injury vector and plane of fracture) and from school-age children (in the sex ratio and plane of fracture). However, elderly patients presented significantly different epidemiological characteristics compared to the other three groups. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the quality of life of the elderly and prepare for the upcoming super-aged society by taking steps to reduce the incidence and severity of fractures. Possible options for doing so include strengthening individual-level safety factors and expanding the social safety net for the elderly.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.450-459
• /
• 2010

Purpose: The purposes of this study were to identify awareness and attitudes toward advance directives (ADs) among Korean adults and to examine various opinions in the utilization of ADs among young, middle-aged, and older adults. Methods: Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 384 adults selected by a quota sampling method on the basis of age. Results: The majority of participants preferred that they themselves would be the primary decision maker. Most of them were unaware of the option of ADs but supported the utilization of ADs. Most of the participants preferred detailed descriptions on end-of-life decisions in ADs but wanted to allow some leeway in following it. Significant differences were found among age groups in terms of the preferences regarding the utilization of ADs. Conclusion: It is suggested that nurses make efforts to educate the general public about ADs and facilitate advance care planning, which focuses on the process of communication on end-of-life preferences within the social network of relationships.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
• /
• v.43 no.4
• /
• pp.221-228
• /
• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to establish normative data for healthy Korean adults by measuring the maximal strength and endurance scores of the tongue, lip, and cheek, and to examine correlations between these measurements. Materials and Methods: This study included 120 subjects that were divided into three groups according to age: young (20-39 years), middle-aged (40-59 years), and older (over 60 years); and by gender. Measurements were taken using the Iowa Oral Performance Instrument (IOPI). Results: The mean maximal tongue strengths were as follows: young men ($46.7{\pm}10.2kPa$) and women ($32.1{\pm}7.9kPa$), middle-aged men ($40.9{\pm}9.3kPa$) and women ($36.9{\pm}8.6kPa$), and older men ($35.2{\pm}9.0kPa$) and women ($34.5{\pm}6.9kPa$). The mean tongue endurance scores were: young men ($28.8{\pm}12.6$ seconds) and women ($20.8{\pm}13.5$ seconds), middle-aged men ($17.0{\pm}8.5$ seconds) and women ($15.3{\pm}5.2$ seconds), and older men ($15.8{\pm}6.7$ seconds) and women ($17.9{\pm}8.1$ seconds). The mean maximal lip strengths were: young men ($11.6{\pm}3.0kPa$) and women ($11.4{\pm}3.8kPa$), middle-aged men ($11.4{\pm}4.2kPa$) and women ($11.1{\pm}5.1kPa$), and older men ($14.5{\pm}3.9kPa$) and women ($11.7{\pm}2.6kPa$). The mean lip endurance scores were: young men ($41.1{\pm}23.9$ seconds) and women ($22.4{\pm}21.7$ seconds), middle-aged men ($24.3{\pm}10.3$ seconds) and women ($30.5{\pm}13.4$ seconds), and older men ($24.9{\pm}11.0$ seconds) and women ($12.8{\pm}7.6$ seconds). The mean maximal cheek strengths were: young men ($24.5{\pm}4.6kPa$) and women ($20.5{\pm}4.3kPa$), middle-aged men ($25.2{\pm}6.4kPa$) and women ($21.2{\pm}5.5kPa$), and older men ($22.4{\pm}5.3kPa$) and women ($18.0{\pm}4.8kPa$). The mean cheek endurance scores were: young men ($47.8{\pm}24.4$ seconds) and women ($43.9{\pm}25.0$ seconds), middle-aged men ($27.3{\pm}11.3$ seconds) and women ($20.0{\pm}14.6$ seconds), and older men ($21.7{\pm}14.5$ seconds) and women ($17.2{\pm}11.4$ seconds). Conclusion: The data collected in this study will provide an important database of standardized measurements for maximal strength and endurance scores of the tongue, lip and cheek in healthy, normal Koreans.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.255-260
• /
• 2021

This study tried to investigate the effects of the adaptation of middle-aged and elderly adult learners to college life on happiness. For this purpose, a questionnaire survey and analysis were conducted on 321 middle-aged and older adults studying at two-year and four-year colleges in Daegu and Gyeongbuk Province, and the results are as follows. First, college life adaptation according to the general characteristics of middle-aged and elderly learners are higher for those in their 50s and 2nd grade in good health condition. Happiness was the highest women, 60s and those in the form of households where only couples live. Second, there is a static correlation between the adaptation of middle-aged and elderly adult learners to college life and happiness, and the correlation between satisfaction with internal growth and satisfaction with meaning was the highest. Third, it was found that middle-aged and elderly adults' adaptation to college life influenced happiness, and the adaptation to adult student relationships, which is the lower part of the adaptation to college life, had the greatest impact on happiness. The above research results suggest that the various positive experiences experienced in university life can affect happiness by easing student relationships, psychological stability, and physical tension, and improving one's own satisfaction with internal growth.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.476-482
• /
• 2023

Introduction: There is a growing global interest in the issue of precarious employment. We aimed to analyze the characteristics and socio-demographic distribution of precarious employment using a summative score approach. Methods: To operationalize precarious employment, we utilized data from the Korean Working Conditions Survey and focused on three distinct dimensions: employment insecurity, income inadequacy, and a lack of rights and protections. By constructing a summative scale ranging from -16 to 2, with lower scores indicating higher precariousness, we measured employment precariousness among Korean wage workers. To compare employment precariousness according to survey participant characteristics, we employed the Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test. Results: We analyzed a weighted number of 38,432 workers. The overall sample showed a median (Q1, Q3) summative scale score of -3 (-6, -1). The median summative score was lower for women compared to men (men: -2; women: -5; p < 0.001), as well as for young or older workers compared to middle-aged workers (young: -4; middle-aged: -2; older: -5; p < 0.001). Similarly, workers with lower educational levels (middle school or below: -8; high school: -5; college or above: -2; p < 0.001) and non-white collar workers (blue collar: -5; service/sales worker: -6; white collar: -2; p < 0.001) experienced higher levels of employment precariousness. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that certain vulnerable groups, such as women, young or older adults, workers with low educational attainment, and caregiving or low-skilled elementary workers, are disproportionately exposed to high employment precariousness. Active policy interventions are needed to improve the employment quality of vulnerable groups.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.11 no.6
• /
• pp.725-739
• /
• 2006

This study was performed to assess socioeconomic status and physical health status of middle-aged men ($40's{\sim}60's$) in Ganghwa country. We interviewed 1,267 middle-aged men (602 male, 665 female) by trained interviewers using structured questionnaires including demographic information, general health status, and anthro-pometric measurements. And all the data were analyzed by chi-square test, Student's t-test and one-way ANOVA using SPSS 12.0 version at p<0.05. These results were that males were higher than females in educational levels (p = 0.000) and most of them decreased according to age in educational levels (p =0.000) and family income (p =0.000), and prevalence of chronic diseases (p =0.000): stomach-duodenum disease, fracture, arthritis, or hypertension. They took to the health information on TV and radio and their health managing methods were exercise and walking and resting and diet regulation. Body Mass Index (BMI) was decreased in oder males (p =0.024) but increased in older females (p=0.001). In females, obesity prevalence of 40's, 50's and 60's was 31.3%. 49.7% and 48.0%, respectively. Waist circumference was the highest in 50's males (p=0.015), but hip circumference was the highest in 50's females (p =0.015). Waist-hip ratio (WHR) increased in older males (p = 0.028) and females (p= 0.000). In spite of the subjects were engaged in agriculture and fishery and had desirable lifestyles obesity rate especially abdominal obesity, was the serious problem. Socioeconomic status, especially education and income were related to SRH (p=0.006, p=0.000), chronic disease (p=0.000) and BMI (p=0.028, p=0.000). Therefore, it is necessary that the public health policy and nutrition education programs to alter lifestyles and to improve health preservation and health promotion in the farming and fishing communities.

• 한국노년학
• /
• v.41 no.3
• /
• pp.397-420
• /
• 2021

The paper tried to determine relationships between volunteering and hypertension risks, symptom betterment, activity difficulty occurrences, and medicine treatment among middle-aged and older adults, with a prospective cohort study. Multilevel mixed-effects generalized linear models were used for the analysis of longitudinal panel data collected over 10 years from 2008 to 2018, using 5,867 cohort samples. The results showed that those who volunteered at least 200 hours per year were 3.4 times more lower than not-volunteering in risks of hypertension, those who volunteered yearly 50~99 hours were a lot more improved than not-volunteering in the symptom betterment, those who volunteered yearly at least 200 hours were 7.7 times lower than not-volunteering in activity difficulty occurrences, and those who volunteered yearly 50~99 hours were 2.5 times lower than not-volunteering in the occurrences of medicine treatment. These indicate that volunteering among middle-aged and older adults may have health benefits against incident hypertension. Finally the thesis discusses the study limitations, future directions of studies, and the practices implications.