• The Critical Review of Religion and Culture
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• no.31
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• pp.255-287
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• 2017

This paper analyzes the religious circuit of suicidal concept based on verbal expression and ritual acts, which are found in the suicide discourse of Korean Catholic Church and Protestant Church. In the relationship of suicide and religion, it is easily overlooked the religious circuit and its construction that forms the concept of suicide among the religious laymen. It is assumed that the belief system of traditional religions prohibits suicide and the laymen accordingly construct a perception or concept of suicide along with this belief system. Various studies on this subject have proved it. However, in order to understand the religious way of constructing the concept of suicide on a personal level, it is necessary to pay attention to the religious environment in which the concepts and emotions of suicide circulate. The laymen do not passively and perfectly accept the finely established suicide concept provided by the doctrine or the theology. Rather, the laymen tend to collect the pieces of concept over the suicide that are drifting in the religious environment of his/her daily routine life and to make an concept of suicide in an incomplete form. We can find the unstable and imperfect traits of such a suicide concept through the experience of suicide survivors who have a religious background. For the suicide survivors with religious beliefs, they resist the formal doctrinal and theological provisions to suicide, or try to understand the notion of suicide in their own contexts. In terms of linguistic expressions and ritual acts relating to suicide, the attentions are differently directed in the public and the private domain among the religious groups. Considering on the high rates of suicide in Korean society, the Korean Catholic Churches are increasingly tolerant over the suicide and accept it in the public sphere. It is unlikely when comparing to the negative attitudes of the suicide in the past. However, such tolerance does not go beyond the doctrinal and ethical judgment that defines suicide as a serious sin. The once-committed lay believer's speech and gestures usually contain the various emotions, such as sadness, grief, anxiety, regretfulness, eagerness, and pain in the private spheres. The language and gestures with these emotions have been activated in the religious circuits of suicide, being extended to the religious apparatus for the person who died of suicide. In case of Protestantism, the institutional organizations, such as the particular denominations and the individual-churchism of the Korean Protestant Churches, and their own interpretations of the Bible have in the private sphere strongly effected on the linguistic expressions and the rituals related to the suicide. The religious-ethical judgment of the suicide is varied how the suicide is interpreted by the theologians and the pastors. And the ritual acts for healing the complex feelings and the psychological wounds of the suicide survivors are not actively explored and adopted yet. It makes harder to approach and heal the protestant followers since they emphasize the innermost belief and the salvation assurance faith.

• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.3-38
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• 2019

In 1984, Congress enacted a new measure of administrative sanctions which is a civil money penalty program for violations of Aviation Act and its implementing regulations. This civil money penalty system has been in operations in lieu of suspending or revoking certificates issued by Korean government, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport. According to the rules of Aviation Business Act or Aviation Safety Act, where the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport should order an air carrier to suspend operation because of her violation under certain rules, in which case the suspension of operation is likely to cause serious inconvenience to consumers of air transport services or to harm public interest, the Minister of the department may impose an administrative monetary penalty in lieu of the suspension of operation. In this regard, airline related civil money penalties are somewhat different from those of fair trade, which is the origin of the money penalties system in Korea. Civil money penalties in the field of fair trade are imposed on executive duty violations that undermine the value of the market economy order, and focus on reimbursement of profits due to violations and compensation for unfair spending by consumers. However, in the aviation sector, breach of duty by a business operator does not simply cause the property loss of the public, but it has a direct impact on life or property of the public. In this respect, aviation penalties are more likely to be administrative sanctions or punitive measures than refunds of unfair benefits, compared to penalties in the field of fair trade. In general, civil money penalties have been highly preferred as administrative sanctions because they are subject to investigations by administrative experts and thus, efficiency can be ensured and execution is quicker than judicial procedures. Moreover, in Korea, because punitive civil damages cannot awarded by the courts, the imposition of civil money penalties is recognized as a means of realizing social justice by recognizing the legal feelings of the people. However, civil money penalties are administrative sanctions, and in terms of effectiveness, they are similar to criminal fines, which are a form of punishment. Inadequate legislation and operation of penalties imposition may cause damage to the value of Constitution. Under the above recognition, this paper has been described for the purpose of identifying the present status of the civil money penalties imposition system and operating status in the area of air transport under the laws and regulations in Korea. Especially, this paper was focused on exploring the problem and improvement direction of Korean system through the comparative study with foreign laws and regulations.

• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.315-343
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• 2018

In the event of an air accident, the media and members of the general public pay attention to the victim of the accident and are deeply concerned about their actions and rewards. However, through the accident of Air China(CCA) Flight 129, which occurred in 2002, we were able to confirm that it is a real problem that the victims of the air accident as well as the victims suffer much suffering and serious aftermath. Nevertheless, Korea's system for assistance the families of victims of air accident is very poor. On the other hand, when Trans-World Airlines(TWA) Flight 800 exploded and crashed over the Atlantic Ocean in 1996, the United States enacted a law to assistance the families of the victims of the accident. According to this law, systematic assistance and management of not only the victims of the accident but also their families, minimize the additional damage of victims and victims' families and help them to get rid of the accident after the accident. In particular, the measures taken by the US authorities in response to an accident in which an Asiana Airlines flight(AAR) 214 crashed during a landing at San Francisco International Airport in 2013, made a lot of suggestions for us to assistance the victims and their families in an air accident. The purpose of this paper is to suggest the necessity of improving the system for victims and victim's family assistance in air accident. In this paper, we analyze the domestic and foreign legal systems and related cases in past accidents, identify the deficiencies of the Korean system, and derive the necessity to improve the related system. It is also important to make sure that victims' families are relieved from early psychological and economic shocks and that the results of accident investigations are reliable. Relevant ministries, airlines, and related agencies should recognize that prompt and systematic assistance and cooperation is needed to ensure that victims and families are relieved of the impact and confidence in the investigation, as is the case in the United States. In addition, efforts should be made to supplement the related laws for the assistance of aircraft victims and victims' families, to establish manuals for implementation, to plan and to implement them promptly in the event of an accident. To achieve this, it is necessary to establish regulations for the legal institutionalization of the roles and responsibilities of national and state agencies on victims of aviation accidents and family assistance. And the victim and family assistance plan that the airline has to submit to it, as specified in the current law, need to specify that item. In addition, new and supplemented contents should be integrated into a single clause or proposed as a separate special law for the purpose of applying a clear law.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.59 no.2
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• pp.181-189
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• 2021

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the stress response and sleep state of the new patients who visit the hospital for prosthodontic treatment due to tooth loss to make reference to further treatment direction. Materials and methods: Examinations, consultations, and surveys were conducted on 236 patients (94 males, 142 females, and 24-86 years old), who newly registered at the department of prosthodontics at Pusan national university hospital, for 2 years from 2018. The number of remaining teeth, edentulous arch, possibility of mastication, and future prosthetic treatment directions were recorded. The visual analogue scale (VAS), stress response inventory (SRI) and Insomnia severity index (ISI) were used as tools to measure patient's subjective discomfort, stress response, and sleep status. Results: Among the entire prosthodontic patient group, the average value of 'fatigue' was significantly higher among the 7 items of SRI, and the value of 'aggression' was significantly lower (P<.001). There are a significant difference between the edentulous and full dentition in the oral discomfort value measured by VAS (P=.004). In cases where less than 20 teeth remain, mastication is impossible, and patients who are planning treatment with removable prostheses, VAS value and 'depression' and 'fatigue' values in SRI were higher than those in the reverse case (P<.05). The patients showed severe level in VAS value have high value of 'tension', 'somatization', 'depression', 'fatigue'and 'frustration'in SRI than non-serious patients (P<.05). Clinical insomnia occurred in 11.4% of all patients, and women had significantly lower sleep quality than men (P=.044). Patients with insomnia showed significantly higher scores on the VAS value and all 7 SRI items than those of normal sleepers (P<.05). Conclusion: The new prosthetics had high 'fatigue' value among the 7 items of SRI. The oral condition, number of residual teeth and mastication function and clinical insomnia affected oral discomfort and the stress response.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.111-138
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• 2021

'Unlicensed medical practice by a non-medical practitioner' often represented by surrogate surgery or so-called 'ghost surgery,' causes irreparable damage to life or body, and therefore calls for very strict and effective controls. The 'bill on installment of CCTVs in an operating room' to prevent unlicensed surrogate surgery has been discussed for a long time, but due to numerous issues and heated confrontations, it has been pending in the National Assembly. Nevertheless, it is expected that the bill will be discussed again in earnest in the National Assembly because surrogate surgery and factory-type cosmetic surgery, which has been performed mainly in the field of cosmetic surgery, has also been occurring in the field of therapeutic surgery. In general, an operating room is considered as being locked or closed, as well as disallowing implicit complicity among insiders. Hence, if the insiders conspire to commit or cover up an illegal act, or if a surgeon performs rapid cosmetic surgery and then leaves the recipient (or medical institution) so as to perform more operations for profit - even if it is legitimate practice - it may result in serious consequences in terms of the recovery of a patient. In this case, installation of CCTVs can be of great help in identifying an illegal act and assessing any occurrence of negligence. On the other hand, while the fundamental purpose of therapeutic surgery is to restore a patient's life or body - that is, lifesaving - installation of CCTVs may base the relationship between a surgeon and a patient on distrust and surveillance, so it may increase the number of requests for CCTV footage or lead to more disputes, as well as placing a burden on the surgeon when best results are not achieved for a patient. As a result, the surgeon may choose non-invasive treatment contrary to conscience instead of risky but necessary surgery, or he/she may have significant difficulty in determining the timing of surgery, which may limit the provision of effective surgical medical care. Then, in terms of the relationship between a surgeon and patient, and in the long run, there could be significant disadvantages for the public and patients if CCTV footage is allowed. In this paper, we review domestic and overseas cases and issues regarding installation of CCTVs in an operating room, and present various viewpoints and suggestions to promote legislation with minimized legal problems and side effects, thereby contributing to protection of the lives and health of the public, patients, and recipients of surgery.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.363-371
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• 2023

To construct a ship, blocks of various sizes must be moved and erected . In this process, lugs are used such that they match the block fastening method and various functions suitable for the characteristics of each shipyard facility. The sizes and shapes of the lugs vary depending on the weight and shape of the block structures. The structure is reinforced by welding the doubling pads to compensate for insufficient rigidity around the holes where the shackle is fastened. As for the method of designing lugs according to lifting loading conditions, a simple calculation based on the beam theory and structural analysis using numerical modeling are performed. In the case of the analytical method, a standardized evaluation method must be established because results may differ depending on the type of element and modeling method. The application of this ambiguous methodology may cause serious safety problems during the process of moving and turning-over blocks. In this study , the effects of various parameters are compared and analyzed through numerical structural analysis to determine the modeling conditions and evaluation method that can evaluate the actual structural response of the lug. The modeling technique that represents the plate part and weld bead around the lug hole provides the most realistic behavior results. The modeling results with the same conditions as those of the actual lug where only the weld bead is connected to the main body of the lug, showed a lower ulimated strength compared with the results obtained by applying the MPC load. The two-dimensional shell element is applied to reduce the modeling and analysis time, and a safety working load was verified to be predicted by reducing the thickness of the doubling pad by 85%. The results of the effects of various parameters reviewed in the study are expected to be used as good reference data for the lug design and safe working load prediction.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.239-262
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• 2011

The Korean government's recent large-scale termination and modification of welfare benefits revealed a procedural problem under the National Basic Living Security Act. Under the Act, welfare recipients have a legal right to make complaints only after the termination or modification is enforced; the Act fails to provide the recipients with an opportunity for a hearing before termination or modification, and this creates serious threats to the recipients, whose livelihoods are dependent on welfare benefits. Korean jurisprudence has adopted the due process of law principle. The principle originated from the due process in US jurisprudence, and Korea has applied it broadly to any government actions that restrict individuals' constitutional or legal rights. This paper reviews the termination or modification procedure under the Act with the lens of the due process principle and criticizes that the current law is not in compliance with the principle. In supporting that such termination and modification procedure infringes on welfare recipients' protected rights, this paper discusses two theories as to what rights are protected. First, termination or modification of welfare benefits can be considered as deprivation of property. The 'property' theory may be weak under Korean jurisprudence, because the concept of property under the Korean Constitution is narrowly construed. Second, this paper relies on the constitutional provision that recognizes "the right to a life worthy of human beings," which requires the State to guarantee minimum standard of living for all. As welfare recipients are deemed to receive benefits as a right under the Constitution, any deviation from the minimum requirement would constitute a violation of constitutional rights. In any case, termination or modification of welfare benefits that are concretized under the Act should be protected under the due process principle, because the principle would cover any government actions that restrict established legal rights. This paper argues that the procedural due process requires the recipients be guaranteed an opportunity to have a hearing before the termination or modification is enforced. An independent decision-maker should hear the proceedings, and the recipients should have an option to orally present their opinions in front of the decision-maker. The hearing process under the Administrative Procedures Act of Korea offers elements that would satisfy these procedural requirements. Thus, this paper concludes that the National Basic Living Security Act should be amended to adopt the hearing process under the Administrative Procedures Act in its termination and modification procedure.

• Korean small business review
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.73-88
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• 2009

This study examines the characteristics of 24 Korean hidden champions such as key success factors, core competences, strategic problems, and desirable future directions. The study categorized them into 8 types with Danny Miller's four trajectories and top manager's decision making style(rationality and passion). Danny Miller argued in his book, Icarus paradox, that outstanding firms will extend their orientations until they reach dangerous extremes and their momentum will result in common trajectories of decline. He suggested four very common success types: Craftsmen, Builders, Pioneers, Salesmen. He also suggested common trajectories of decline:Focusing(from Craftsmen to Tinkers), Venturing(from Builders to Imperialists), Inventing(from Pioneers to Escapists), Decoupling(from Salesmen to Drifts). In Korea, successful startups appear to possess three kinds of drive: Technology-drive, Vision-drive, Market-drive. Successful technology-driven firms tend to grow as craftsmen or pioneers. Successful vision-driven and market-driven ones tend to grow as builders and salesmen respectively. Korean top managers or founders seem to have two kinds of decision making style: Passion-based and Rationality-bases. Passion-based(passionate) entrepreneurs are biased towards action or proactiveness in competing and getting things done. Rationality- based ones tend to emphasis the effort devoted to scanning and analysing information to better understand a company's threats, opportunities and options. Consequently this study suggested 4*2 types of Korean hidden champions: (1) passionate craftsmen, (2) rational craftsmen, (3) passionate builders, (4) rational builders, (5) passionate pioneers, (6) rational pioneers, (7) passionate salesmen, (8) rational salesmen. These 8 type firms showed different success stories and appeared to possess different trajectories of decline. These hidden champions have acquired competitive advantage within domestic or globally niche markets in spite of the weak market power and lack of internal resources. They have maintained their sustainable competitiveness by utilizing three types of growth strategy; (1) penetrating into the global market, (2) exploring new service market, (3) occupying the domestic market. According to the types of growth strategy, these firms showed different financial outcomes and possessed different issues for maintaining their competitiveness. This study found that Korean hidden champions were facing serious challenges from the transforming economic structure these days and possessed the decline potential from their success momentum or self-complacence. It argues that they need to take a new growth engine not to decline in the turbulent environment. It also discusses how firms overcome the economic crisis and find a new business area in promising industries for the future. It summarized the recent policy of Korean government called as "Green Growth" and discussed how small firms utilize such benefits and supports from the government. Other implications for firm strategies and governmental policies were discussed.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.247-269
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• 2007

In recent years, one of the major reasons for the fierce competition amongst firms is that they strive to increase their own market shares and customer acquisition rate in the same market with similar and apparently undifferentiated products in terms of quality and perceived benefit. Because of this change in recent marketing environment, the differentiated after-sales service and diversified promotion strategies have become more important to gain competitive advantage. Price promotion is the favorite strategy that most retailers use to achieve short-term sales increase, induce consumer's brand switch, in troduce new product into market, and so forth. However, if marketers apply or copy an identical price promotion strategy without considering the characteristic differences in product and consumer preference, it will cause serious problems because discounted price itself could make people skeptical about product quality, and the changes of perceived value might appear differently depending on other factors such as consumer involvement or brand attitude. Previous studies showed that price promotion would certainly increase sales, and the discounted price compared to regular price would enhance the consumer's perceived values. On the other hand, discounted price itself could make people depreciate or skeptical about product quality, and reduce the consumers' positivity bias because consumers might be unsure whether the current price promotion is the retailer's best price offer. Moreover, we cannot say that discounted price absolutely enhances the consumer's perceived values regardless of product category and purchase situations. That is, the factors that affect consumers' value perceptions and buying behavior are so diverse in reality that the results of studies on the same dependent variable come out differently depending on what variable was used or how experiment conditions were designed. Majority of previous researches on the effect of price-comparison advertising have used consumers' buying behavior as dependent variable. In order to figure out consumers' buying behavior theoretically, analysis of value perceptions which influence buying intentions is needed. In addition, they did not combined the independent variables such as brand loyalty and price discount rate together. For this reason, this paper tried to examine the moderating effect of brand loyalty on relationship between the different levels of discounting rate and buyers' value perception. And we provided with theoretical and managerial implications that marketers need to consider such variables as product attributes, brand loyalty, and consumer involvement at the same time, and then establish a differentiated pricing strategy case by case in order to enhance consumer's perceived values properl. Three research concepts were used in our study and each concept based on past researches was defined. The perceived acquisition value in this study was defined as the perceived net gains associated with the products or services acquired. That is, the perceived acquisition value of the product will be positively influenced by the benefits buyers believe they are getting by acquiring and using the product, and negatively influenced by the money given up to acquire the product. And the perceived transaction value was defined as the perception of psychological satisfaction or pleasure obtained from taking advantage of the financial terms of the price deal. Lastly, the brand loyalty was defined as favorable attitude towards a purchased product. Thus, a consumer loyal to a brand has an emotional attachment to the brand or firm. Repeat purchasers continue to buy the same brand even though they do not have an emotional attachment to it. We assumed that if the degree of brand loyalty is high, the perceived acquisition value and the perceived transaction value will increase when higher discount rate is provided. But we found that there are no significant differences in values between two different discount rates as a result of empirical analysis. It means that price reduction did not affect consumer's brand choice significantly because the perceived sacrifice decreased only a little, and customers are satisfied with product's benefits when brand loyalty is high. From the result, we confirmed that consumers with high degree of brand loyalty to a specific product are less sensitive to price change. Thus, using price promotion strategy to merely expect sale increase is not recommendable. Instead of discounting price, marketers need to strengthen consumers' brand loyalty and maintain the skimming strategy. On the contrary, when the degree of brand loyalty is low, the perceived acquisition value and the perceived transaction value decreased significantly when higher discount rate is provided. Generally brands that are considered inferior might be able to draw attention away from the quality of the product by making consumers focus more on the sacrifice component of price. But considering the fact that consumers with low degree of brand loyalty are known to be unsatisfied with product's benefits and have relatively negative brand attitude, bigger price reduction offered in experiment condition of this paper made consumers depreciate product's quality and benefit more and more, and consumer's psychological perceived sacrifice increased while perceived values decreased accordingly. We infer that, in the case of inferior brand, a drastic price-cut or frequent price promotion may increase consumers' uncertainty about overall components of product. Therefore, it appears that reinforcing the augmented product such as after-sale service, delivery and giving credit which is one of the levels consisting of product would be more effective in reality. This will be better rather than competing with product that holds high brand loyalty by reducing sale price. Although this study tried to examine the moderating effect of brand loyalty on relationship between the different levels of discounting rate and buyers' value perception, there are several limitations. This study was conducted in controlled conditions where the high involvement product and two different levels of discount rate were applied. Given the presence of low involvement product, when both pieces of information are available, it is likely that the results we have reported here may have been different. Thus, this research results explain only the specific situation. Second, the sample selected in this study was university students in their twenties, so we cannot say that the results are firmly effective to all generations. Future research that manipulates the level of discount along with the consumer involvement might lead to a more robust understanding of the effects various discount rate. And, we used a cellular phone as a product stimulus, so it would be very interesting to analyze the result when the product stimulus is an intangible product such as service. It could be also valuable to analyze whether the change of perceived value affects consumers' final buying behavior positively or negatively.

• Journal of National Security and Military Science
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• s.8
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• pp.49-168
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• 2010

Just before the Korean War, the total number of the North Korean troops was 198,380, while that of the ROK(Republic of Korea) army troops 105,752. That is, the total number of the ROK army troops at that time was 53.3% of the total number of the North Korean army. As of December 2008, the total number of the North Korean troops is estimated to be 1,190,000, while that of the ROK troops is 655,000, so the ROK army maintains 55.04% of the total number of the North Korean troops. If the ROK army continues to reduce its troops according to [Military Reform Plan 2020], the total number of its troops will be 517,000 m 2020. If North Korea maintains the current status(l,190,000 troops), the number of the ROK troops will be 43.4% of the North Korean army. In terms of units, just before the Korean War, the number of the ROK army divisions and regiments was 80% and 44.8% of North Korean army. As of December 2008, North Korea maintains 86 divisions and 69 regiments. Compared to the North Korean army, the ROK army maintains 46 Divisions (53.4% of North Korean army) and 15 regiments (21.3% of North Korean army). If the ROK army continue to reduce the military units according to [Military Reform Plan 2020], the number of ROK army divisions will be 28(13 Active Division, 4 Mobilization Divisions and 11 Local Reserve Divisions), while that of the North Korean army will be 86 in 2020. In that case, the number of divisions of the ROK army will be 32.5% of North Korean army. During the Korean war, North Korea suddenly invaded the Republic of Korea and occupied its capital 3 days after the war began. At that time, the ROK army maintained 80% of army divisions, compared to the North Korean army. The lesson to be learned from this is that, if the ROK army is forced to disperse its divisions because of the simultaneous invasion of North Korea and attack of guerrillas in home front areas, the Republic of Korea can be in a serious military danger, even though it maintains 80% of military divisions of North Korea. If the ROK army promotes the plans in [Military Reform Plan 2020], the number of military units of the ROK army will be 32.5% of that of the North Korean army. This ratio is 2.4 times lower than that of the time when the Korean war began, and in this case, 90% of total military power should be placed in the DMZ area. If 90% of military power is placed in the DMZ area, few troops will be left for the defense of home front. In addition, if the ROK army continues to reduce the troops, it can allow North Korea to have asymmetrical superiority in military force and it will eventually exert negative influence on the stability and peace of the Korean peninsular. On the other hand, it should be reminded that, during the Korean War, the Republic of Korea was attacked by North Korea, though it kept 53.3% of troops, compared to North Korea. It should also be reminded that, as of 2008, the ROK army is defending its territory with the troops 55.04% of North Korea. Moreover, the national defense is assisted by 25,120 troops of the US Forces in Korea. In case the total number of the ROK troops falls below 43.4% of the North Korean army, it may cause social unrest about the national security and may lead North Korea's misjudgement. Besides, according to Lanchester strategy, the party with weaker military power (60% compared to the party with stronger military power) has the 4.1% of winning possibility. Therefore, if we consider the fact that the total number of the ROK army troops is 55.04% of that of the North Korean army, the winning possibility of the ROK army is not higher than 4.1%. If the total number of ROK troops is reduced to 43.4% of that of North Korea, the winning possibility will be lower and the military operations will be in critically difficult situation. [Military Reform Plan 2020] rums at the reduction of troops and units of the ground forces under the policy of 'select few'. However, the problem is that the financial support to achieve this goal is not secured. Therefore, the promotion of [Military Reform Plan 2020] may cause the weakening of military defence power in 2020. Some advanced countries such as Japan, UK, Germany, and France have promoted the policy of 'select few'. However, what is to be noted is that the national security situation of those countries is much different from that of Korea. With the collapse of the Soviet Unions and European communist countries, the military threat of those European advanced countries has almost disappeared. In addition, the threats those advanced countries are facing are not wars in national level, but terrorism in international level. To cope with the threats like terrorism, large scaled army trops would not be necessary. So those advanced European countries can promote the policy of 'select few'. In line with this, those European countries put their focuses on the development of military sections that deal with non-military operations and protection from unspecified enemies. That is, those countries are promoting the policy of 'select few', because they found that the policy is suitable for their national security environment. Moreover, since they are pursuing common interest under the European Union(EU) and they can form an allied force under NATO, it is natural that they are pursing the 'select few' policy. At present, NATO maintains the larger number of troops(2,446,000) than Russia(l,027,000) to prepare for the potential threat of Russia. The situation of japan is also much different from that of Korea. As a country composed of islands, its prime military focus is put on the maritime defense. Accordingly, the development of ground force is given secondary focus. The japanese government promotes the policy to develop technology-concentrated small size navy and air-forces, instead of maintaining large-scaled ground force. In addition, because of the 'Peace Constitution' that was enacted just after the end of World War II, japan cannot maintain troops more than 240,000. With the limited number of troops (240,000), japan has no choice but to promote the policy of 'select few'. However, the situation of Korea is much different from the situations of those countries. The Republic of Korea is facing the threat of the North Korean Army that aims at keeping a large-scale military force. In addition, the countries surrounding Korea are also super powers containing strong military forces. Therefore, to cope with the actual threat of present and unspecified threat of future, the importance of maintaining a carefully calculated large-scale military force cannot be denied. Furthermore, when considering the fact that Korea is in a peninsular, the Republic of Korea must take it into consideration the tradition of continental countries' to maintain large-scale military powers. Since the Korean War, the ROK army has developed the technology-force combined military system, maintaining proper number of troops and units and pursuing 'select few' policy at the same time. This has been promoted with the consideration of military situation in the Koran peninsular and the cooperation of ROK-US combined forces. This kind of unique military system that cannot be found in other countries can be said to be an insightful one for the preparation for the actual threat of North Korea and the conflicts between continental countries and maritime countries. In addition, this kind of technology-force combined military system has enabled us to keep peace in Korea. Therefore, it would be desirable to maintain this technology-force combined military system until the reunification of the Korean peninsular. Furthermore, it is to be pointed out that blindly following the 'select few' policy of advanced countries is not a good option, because it is ignoring the military strategic situation of the Korean peninsular. If the Republic of Korea pursues the reduction of troops and units radically without consideration of the threat of North Korea and surrounding countries, it could be a significant strategic mistake. In addition, the ROK army should keep an eye on the fact the European advanced countries and Japan that are not facing direct military threats are spending more defense expenditures than Korea. If the ROK army reduces military power without proper alternatives, it would exert a negative effect on the stable economic development of Korea and peaceful reunification of the Korean peninsular. Therefore, the desirable option would be to focus on the development of quality of forces, maintaining proper size and number of troops and units under the technology-force combined military system. The tableau above shows that the advanced countries like the UK, Germany, Italy, and Austria spend more defense expenditure per person than the Republic of Korea, although they do not face actual military threats, and that they keep achieving better economic progress than the countries that spend less defense expenditure. Therefore, it would be necessary to adopt the merits of the defense systems of those advanced countries. As we have examined, it would be desirable to maintain the current size and number of troops and units, to promote 'select few' policy with increased defense expenditure, and to strengthen the technology-force combined military system. On the basis of firm national security, the Republic of Korea can develop efficient policies for reunification and prosperity, and jump into the status of advanced countries. Therefore, the plans to reduce troops and units in [Military Reform Plan 2020] should be reexamined. If it is difficult for the ROK army to maintain its size of 655,000 troops because of low birth rate, the plans to establish the prompt mobilization force or to adopt drafting system should be considered for the maintenance of proper number of troops and units. From now on, the Republic of Korean government should develop plans to keep peace as well as to prepare unexpected changes in the Korean peninsular. For the achievement of these missions, some options can be considered. The first one is to maintain the same size of military troops and units as North Korea. The second one is to maintain the same level of military power as North Korea in terms of military force index. The third one is to maintain the same level of military power as North Korea, with the combination of the prompt mobilization force and the troops in active service under the system of technology-force combined military system. At present, it would be not possible for the ROK army to maintain such a large-size military force as North Korea (1,190,000 troops and 86 units). So it would be rational to maintain almost the same level of military force as North Korea with the combination of the troops on the active list and the prompt mobilization forces. In other words, with the combination of the troops in active service (60%) and the prompt mobilization force (40%), the ROK army should develop the strategies to harmonize technology and forces. The Korean government should also be prepared for the strategic flexibility of USFK, the possibility of American policy change about the location of foreign army, radical unexpected changes in North Korea, the emergence of potential threat, surrounding countries' demand for Korean force for the maintenance of regional stability, and demand for international cooperation against terrorism. For this, it is necessary to develop new approaches toward the proper number and size of troops and units. For instance, to prepare for radical unexpected political or military changes in North Korea, the Republic of Korea should have plans to protect a large number of refugees, to control arms and people, to maintain social security, and to keep orders in North Korea. From the experiences of other countries, it is estimated that 115,000 to 230,000 troops, plus ten thousands of police are required to stabilize the North Korean society, in the case radical unexpected military or political change happens in North Korea. In addition, if the Republic of Korea should perform the release of hostages, control of mass destruction weapons, and suppress the internal wars in North Korea, it should send 460,000 troops to North Korea. Moreover, if the Republic of Korea wants to stop the attack of North Korea and flow of refugees in DMZ area, at least 600,000 troops would be required. In sum, even if the ROK army maintains 600,000 troops, it may need additional 460,000 troops to prepare for unexpected radical changes in North Korea. For this, it is necessary to establish the prompt mobilization force whose size and number are almost the same as the troops in active service. In case the ROK army keeps 650,000 troops, the proper number of the prompt mobilization force would be 460,000 to 500,000.