Unemployment and its impact on well-being: a field study of the South Korean economic crisis, 1997-2001

textBased on the in-depth interviews conducted in South Korea, this dissertation examined the reactions to unemployment, experiences of unemployment, and coping strategies and social support of thirty unemployed men who lost their jobs during the economic crisis between 1997 and 2001. While, in general, unemployment is detrimental to individuals’ well-being, this study found that the outcome varied by socioeconomic status of the unemployed, which affected levels of social support and coping strategies among the unemployed. A main finding of this study requires us to re-examine consequences of poverty and material hardship. The poverty, in relation to the degree of available resources and social support, affected detrimental outcomes on well- viii being among the unemployed. The poor tended to be more often unemployed, less often married, and received less support from their family members and friends. Since individuals living in poverty have a great amount of vulnerability to any type of life event in general, job losses among them tend to destroy alreadyweakened resources and social networks as well as familial ties. The negative consequences of unemployment, such as family disruption and emotional and physical health problems, caused by material hardship were great among lowerclass individuals and families. It was also apparent that middle-class job losers having higher levels of adaptabilities and resources to deal with the negative impacts of job losses, had relatively fewer cases of family disruption and social avoidance, compared to their lower-class counterparts. Not only the social class, but also reasons for unemployment were highly related to outcomes of unemployment on well-being. Those who experienced business failure were more likely to have family disruption, extreme material hardships, homelessness, broken relationships, and lower levels of social support. At the same time layoffs experienced by lower-class individuals were associated with very detrimental health outcomes and behavioral changes. These individuals engaged in high consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, which affects negative health outcomes.Sociolog

The Impact of Nursing Characteristics and the Work Environment on Perceptions of Communication

Failure to communicate openly and accurately to members of the healthcare team can result in medical error. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of nursing characteristics and environmental values on communication in the acute care setting. Nurses (n = 135) on four medical-surgical units in two hospitals completed a survey asking nurses' perceptions of communication, work environment, and nursing demographics. LPNs perceived significantly higher levels of open communication with nurses than did RNs (P = .042). RNs noted higher levels of accuracy of communication among nurses than did LPNs (P < .001). Higher experience levels resulted in greater perceptions of open communication. Only environmental values (e.g., trust, respect) were a significant predictor of both openness and accuracy of communication. These findings suggest understanding the environment (e.g., presence or absence of trust, respect, status equity, and time availability) is a foundational step that must occur before implementing any strategies aimed at improving communication

Assessment of Textile and Apparel Curriculum in Mongolia from the Academia and Industry Perspectives

Despite the significant presence of the Textile and Apparel (T & A) industry in Mongolia, the current T & A curriculum in Mongolian higher education is not up to the standard of meeting the needs for the T&A industry. Present researchers found that previous research assessed the T & A curriculum in developed countries like the U.S. (Hines & Swinker, 1998); however, little academic research has assessed the T & A curriculum in third world countries (e.g., Mongolia). Thus, the purpose of this research is to assess the T & A curriculum in Mongolian higher education to provide some fundamental suggestions for improvement meeting the four-year baccalaureate program, Meta-Goals, developed by the International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA, 2008)

Gating of memory encoding of time-delayed cross-frequency MEG networks revealed by graph filtration based on persistent homology

To explain gating of memory encoding, magnetoencephalography (MEG) was analyzed over multi-regional network of negative correlations between alpha band power during cue (cue-alpha) and gamma band power during item presentation (item-gamma) in Remember (R) and No-remember (NR) condition. Persistent homology with graph filtration on alpha-gamma correlation disclosed topological invariants to explain memory gating. Instruction compliance (R-hits minus NR-hits) was significantly related to negative coupling between the left superior occipital (cue-alpha) and the left dorsolateral superior frontal gyri (item-gamma) on permutation test, where the coupling was stronger in R than NR. In good memory performers (R-hits minus false alarm), the coupling was stronger in R than NR between the right posterior cingulate (cue-alpha) and the left fusiform gyri (item-gamma). Gating of memory encoding was dictated by inter-regional negative alpha-gamma coupling. Our graph filtration over MEG network revealed these inter-regional time-delayed cross-frequency connectivity serve gating of memory encoding

The effects of a group cognitive behavioral therapy program using video communication for pregnant women with depressed mood in Korea: a pilot study

Purpose This study presents the development of a group video communication-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program for depressed pregnant women. It also provides the results of a preliminary test of its effects on their depression, automatic thoughts, and dysfunctional attitudes. Methods In this quasi-experimental single-group pre- and posttest design study, 13 pregnant women participated in a 4-week, eight-session group CBT program, based on Beck’s cognitive theory and using video communications from November 2020 to January. Pregnant women between 14 and 32 weeks who were members of an online maternity and parenting community and residing in the cities of Changwon and Gimhae, Korea, were invited to voluntarily participate. Trained nurses led CBT sessions of 3–4 participants per group via video communication. Participants were assessed pre- and postintervention with self-report questionnaires for measurement of depression, automatic thought, and dysfunctional attitude after normality test according to the Shapiro-Wilk test of the variables. The data were analyzed using paired t-test and Pearson correlation coefficients. Results Depression (t=7.90, p<.001), automatic thoughts (t=4.89, p<.001), and dysfunctional attitudes (t=2.42, p=.032) significantly decreased after the 4-week online program. There were statistically significant correlations among the three variables. Conclusion This program was found to be effective in reducing depression, automatic thoughts, and dysfunctional attitudes. Above findings suggest that a group CBT program using video communication can be an effective therapeutic modality that helps pregnant women at risk for depression alleviate their negative emotions related to depression

Factors influencing quality of life in post-menopausal women

Purpose This study aimed to identify factors influencing quality of life in post-menopausal women. Methods The participants were 194 post-menopausal women who visited a women’s clinic in Changwon, Korea from July 1 to August 31, 2018, and completed questionnaires containing items on menopausal symptoms, marital intimacy, current menopausal hormone therapy (MHT), and quality of life. Collected data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, the independent t-test, Pearson correlation coefficients, and multiple regression using SPSS for Windows version 23.0. Results Quality of life had a significant negative correlation with menopausal symptoms (r=–.40, p<.001), and a significant positive correlation with marital intimacy (r=.54, p<.001). The factors influencing the quality of life of post-menopausal women were current MHT (t=6.32, p<.001), marital intimacy (t=4.94, p<.001), monthly family income (t=4.78, p<.001), menopausal symptoms (t=–4.37, p<.001), and education level (t=3.66, p<.001). These variables had an explanatory power of 59.2% for quality of life in post-menopausal women. Conclusion In order to improve the quality of life of post-menopausal women, nursing interventions are needed to help menopausal women choose appropriate MHT, alleviate menopausal symptoms, and increase marital intimacy. Interventions should also be prioritized for women of a low educational level and with a low income in consideration of their health problems

Vibration Testing for Detecting Internal Corrosion

The vibration behavior of structures can be characterized in terms of resonance frequencies and mode shapes which describe properties of the tested object in a global way but do not in general provide information about structural details. We develop a simple method to address the inverse problem of identifying an internal corrosive part of small Hausdorff measure in a pipeline by vibration analysis. The viability of our reconstruction method is documented by a variety of numerical results from synthetic, noiseless and noisy data

The experiences of depressed pregnant women participating in a cognitive behavioral therapy program via video communication: an exploratory qualitative study

Purpose This study explored the experiences of pregnant women with depressed mood participating in a group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program using video communication, based on Beck’s cognitive theory. Methods The participants were six pregnant women out of 13 women who had participated in an 8-session group CBT program using video communication for women with depressed mood (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression score of ≥9). Data were collected from February 20 through March 25, 2021. In-depth individual interviews were conducted through a video conferencing platform at 1 month post-baseline. Thematic analysis was done. Results Three themes, 10 subthemes, and 38 concepts were derived from experiences of participating in the 4-week group CBT program (twice a week). The first theme, entitled “continuing realization” had subthemes of “a negative and instable self,” “a selfish judgment that excludes others,” and “a strong belief in self-control.” The second theme, entitled “attempt to change for restoration” had subthemes of “shift to rational thinking,” “freedom from suppressed beliefs,” “tolerance of other people,” and “courage for self-expression.” The third theme, entitled “departure for a positive life,” had subthemes of “emotional healing,” “faith in oneself,” and “reestablishing the criteria for happiness.” Conclusion Pregnant women with depressed mood expressed that continuing realizations and attempts to change supported their transition toward a positive direction of healing. Thus, they were able to change their distorted thinking into rational thinking through CBT using video communication. These findings support the use of group CBT using video communication with pregnant women who have depressed mood