• Knowledge Management Research
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.251-273
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• 2022

Metaverse is one of the most frequently used words recently, with digitalization accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2019 and the development of information and communication technology. It is expected to bring a new revolution in our life as a whole in user experience. In particular, as telecommuting was adopted in the business area, interest in virtual office services such as digital video conferencing and remote offices, which are similar to the metaverse, has also increased. In this study, a study on the intention to use the metaverse service used in the work environment was applied to the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2(UTAUT2). External variables for metaverse characteristics, such as self-presentation, telepresence, and technostress, were analyzed and discussed. In this study, PC-based Gather.town and VR-based Facebook Horizon, currently the most well-known and considered usable in work environments, were introduced to potential users and conducted a survey. This study has academic implications in that the research has examined the factors that affect the technology acceptance intention of users who want to apply the metaverse as a work environment based on the UTAUT2 model, unlike previous studies that have been mainly researched on the general metaverse. In practice, it may be helpful to suggest factors that should be considered when firms adopt the metaverse for business purposes.

• Journal of the Society of Disaster Information
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.806-814
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• 2023

Purpose: According to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, in order to prevent industrial accidents, the right to stop work must be exercised in the event of an imminent danger. This study conducted a fact-finding survey on whether employers fulfilled the right to suspend work in the workplace when an imminent danger, such as a typhoon, was encountered. Method: For two days from August 9 to October, when the impact of Typhoon Khanun No. 6 was significant, it was confirmed by wire whether or not the work suspension was carried out at the workplace, and the subjects of the survey were 1,649 construction sites, 830 manufacturing sites, and 278 other industries, for a total of 2,757 sites. Result: As a result of the fact-finding survey, 56% (1,555 locations) on August 9th and 77% (2,142 locations) on August 10th carried out full or partial work suspension. In particular, on August 10, when the typhoon landed, 40% of all workplaces completely stopped work. Conclusion: Through this study, it was confirmed that the right to suspend work by employers is being used in actual workplaces. In the future, when there is an imminent danger, in addition to the right to suspend work, flexible and telecommuting, working hour adjustments, etc. must be actively used to ensure the safety of workers and protect their lives.

• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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• v.35
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• pp.50.1-50.11
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• 2023

Background: The rise in telecommuting or non-face-to-face work owing to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has fueled conversations regarding the "right to disconnect." Although evidence suggests that receiving work-related communications through telecommunication devices outside of work hours may lead to various symptoms and illnesses, limited research has been undertaken on these symptoms. This study therefore aims to investigate the correlation between receiving work communications through telecommunication devices after work hours and the occurrence of work-related headaches and eyestrain in full-time, non-shift white-collar workers. Methods: This study used data from the 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey. The frequency of using telecommunication devices for work purposes outside of working hours was divided into five categories: "Every day," "Several times a week," "Several times a month," "Rarely," and "Never." Work-related headaches and eyestrain were categorized based on a "yes" or "no" response to the survey questions. Descriptive statistics, χ² tests, and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed using SPSS 27.0. Results: After adjusting for sex, age, income level, education, occupation, workplace size, work hours, and sleep disorders, the odds ratio (OR) of work-related headaches and eyestrain based on frequency of telecommunication device usage were as follows: "rarely" (OR: 1.292; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.111-1.503), "several times a month" (OR: 1.551; 95% CI: 1.249-1.926), "several times a week" (OR: 1.474; 95% CI: 1.217-1.784), and "every day" (OR: 1.548; 95% CI: 1.321-1.813). Conclusions: Employees who use telecommunication devices for work after regular hours are more susceptible to experiencing work-related headaches and eyestrain compared to those who do not. However, there is a dearth of research examining the physical and mental health impacts of using telecommunication devices for after-hours work. Furthermore, the existing preventative measures in Korea are insufficient. Consequently, it is imperative to develop effective measures and conduct additional research to address this issue.

• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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• v.34
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• pp.11.1-11.9
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• 2022

Background: Although coronavirus disease 2019 is causing a variety of psychological problems for workers, there are few longitudinal studies on changes in workers' mental health by workplace intervention. This study aimed to evaluate the change in the prevalence of depression and anxiety according to the active involvement of the workplace. Methods: This study was conducted on 1,978 workers at a workplace who underwent a health screening from January 2019 to August 2020, and classified depression and anxiety disorders using a self-report questionnaire. After the first pandemic, the company stopped health screening, took paid leave and telecommuting, and conducted interventions such as operating its own screening clinic. To see if this workplace intervention affects workers' mental health, we conducted generalized estimating equations to compare odds ratio (OR). Results: In the pre-intervention group, 384 people (16.86%) had depression, and 507 people (22.26%) had anxiety disorder. Based on the OR before intervention, the OR of depression decreased to 0.76 (0.66-0.87) and the OR of anxiety disorder decreased to 0.73 (0.65-0.82). Conclusions: As a result of this study, it was confirmed that workplace intervention was related to a decrease in depression and anxiety. This study provides basic data to improve workers' mental health according to workplace intervention, and further research is needed according to workplace intervention in the future.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.229-256
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• 2023

The increase in telecommuting and household electricity demand due to the pandemic has led to significant changes in electricity demand patterns. This has led to difficulties in identifying KEPCO's PPA (power purchase agreements) and residential solar power generation and has added to the challenges of electricity demand forecasting and grid operation for power exchanges. Unlike other energy resources, electricity is difficult to store, so it is essential to maintain a balance between energy production and consumption. A shortage or overproduction of electricity can cause significant instability in the energy system, so it is necessary to manage the supply and demand of electricity effectively. Especially in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the importance of data has increased, and problems such as large-scale fires and power outages can have a severe impact. Therefore, in the field of electricity, it is crucial to accurately predict the amount of power generation, such as renewable energy, along with the exact demand for electricity, for proper power generation management, which helps to reduce unnecessary power production and efficiently utilize energy resources. In this study, we reviewed the renewable energy generation forecasting system, its objectives, and practical applications to construct optimal aggregated power resources using data from 169 power plants provided by the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, developed an aggregation algorithm considering the settlement of the forecasting system, and applied it to the analytical logic to synthesize and interpret the results. This study developed an optimal aggregation algorithm and derived an aggregation configuration (Result_Number 546) that reached 80.66% of the maximum settlement amount and identified plants that increase the settlement amount (B1783, B1729, N6002, S5044, B1782, N6006) and plants that decrease the settlement amount (S5034, S5023, S5031) when aggregating plants. This study is significant as the first study to develop an optimal aggregation algorithm using aggregated power resources as a research unit, and we expect that the results of this study can be used to improve the stability of the power system and efficiently utilize energy resources.