Korean Internet Research Articles

The Analytical Study on Articles about People with Disabilities in Korean Internet newspapers

The Analytical Study on Articles about People with Disabilities in Korean Internet newspapers

The Configuration of the Korean Cyberspace: A Tentative Study on Cultural Traits of Korean Internet Users

The Configuration of the Korean Cyberspace: A Tentative Study on Cultural Traits of Korean Internet Users

The Configuration of the Korean Cyberspace: A Tentative Study on Cultural Traits of Korean Internet Users

The Configuration of the Korean Cyberspace: A Tentative Study on Cultural Traits of Korean Internet Users

The effects of Internet addiction on the lifestyle and dietary behavior of Korean adolescents

We performed this study to examine lifestyle patterns and dietary behavior based on the level of Internet addiction of Korean adolescents. Data were collected from 853 Korean junior high school students. The level of Internet addiction was determined based on the Korean Internet addiction self-scale short form for youth, and students were classified as high-risk Internet users, potential-risk Internet users, and no risk Internet users. The associations between the students' levels of Internet addiction and lifestyle patterns and dietary behavior were analyzed using a chi-square test. Irregular bedtimes and the use of alcohol and tobacco were higher in high-risk Internet users than no risk Internet users. Moreover, in high-risk Internet users, irregular dietary behavior due to the loss of appetite, a high frequency of skipping meals, and snacking might cause imbalances in nutritional intake. Diet quality in high-risk Internet users was also worse than in potential-risk Internet users and no risk Internet users. We demonstrated in this study that high-risk Internet users have inappropriate dietary behavior and poor diet quality, which could result in stunted growth and development. Therefore, nutrition education targeting high-risk Internet users should be conducted to ensure proper growth and development.

Pregnancy Outcomes of the Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Korea

Background/Aims: It is unknown what effect inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has on pregnancy in Korean patients. We aimed to determine the effect of IBD and its treatment on pregnancy outcomes using web-based survey. Methods: A web-based survey was conducted in three Korean internet communities for IBD patients between May and September 2008. Pregnancy and birth outcomes were examined, and the influence of IBD activity and drug therapy were analyzed. Results: Of 56 pregnancies in 36 female IBD patients, live births occurred in 60.7%, miscarriages in 10.7%, and artificial abortions in 17.8%. These results were similar to those expected for pregnant women in the general Korean population. All artificial abortions occurred in unplanned pregnancies, and 80% of those cases were due to a misunderstanding of IBD and medications. IBD was aggravated in 11.1% of the patients in remission or with mild activity and in 85.7% of patients with moderate or severe activity at the time of early pregnancy. Of 57 pregnancies in the spouses of 39 male patients, live births occurred in 78.9%, miscarriages in 8.8%, and artificial abortions in 3.5%. There was no significant influence of therapeutic medications on the natural course of pregnancies. Conclusions: Pregnancy outcomes in IBD patients appear to be similar to those of the general Korean population. A properly planned pregnancy and a comprehensive treatment course before and during pregnancy are important considerations for increasing the likelihood of a normal pregnancy in those with IBD. (Intest Res 2010;8:30-39) 󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏

A Comparative Study of the Views on Individuals with Disabilities in Korean and Japanese Internet Newspaper Ohmynews

A Comparative Study of the Views on Individuals with Disabilities in Korean and Japanese Internet Newspaper Ohmynews

Understanding the product information inference process in electronic word-of-mouth: An objectivity–subjectivity dichotomy perspective

We examined the actions of a customer when inferring product information from electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) material at a website. We developed a customer purchase intention model and simulated various eWOM levels within this, adopting an objectivity–subjectivity dichotomy, and considering quality and preference as the major antecedents of customer purchase intention. We inferred the information that the customers had obtained from the eWOM by categorizing the customers’ responses. The eWOM was parameterized using mean and variance; products that were categorized into quality and preference goods. We considered four cases in which customers infer different product information and exhibit different reactions. Items for quality and preference goods were developed by using a card-sorting method. An experimental survey was conducted on 121 Korean Internet shopping mall users. The hypotheses were partially supported using a Partial Least Squares path comparison method. Overall, our study should provide guidance to firms in their managing eWOM systems by identifying how customers react to them at various levels.

인터넷 쇼핑몰에서 고객의 상품평점에 대한 소고

인터넷 쇼핑몰에서 상품에 대한 고객의 인지도는 기존 상품사용고객의 상품평과 평점에 의하여 크게 좌우될 수가 있다. 본 논문에서는 이러한 평점을 매기는 인터넷 쇼핑몰의 현황을 조사하여 문제점을 지적하고 간단한 해결책을 제시하고자 한다. The degree of the impression about a special commodity in the internet shopping malls depends on the evaluation and the corresponding rating of customers who purchased and used this commodity. We can find the problems in online ratings system of Korean internet shopping malls and suggest the simple solutions.

Assessment of the Quality of Postherpetic Neuralgia Related Korean Internet Sites

Background: There is no assessment of internet sites that carry information on chronic pain disease. So we assessed the quality of information about postherpetic neuralgia available on Korean internet sites. Methods: The keywords 'postherpetic neuralgia', 'herpes zoster, neuropathic pain', 'herpes zoster, pain', 'herpes zoster' were searched in Korean on four search engines in Korea between the 1st to the 15th of May, 2009. We evaluated the outcome on two factors; the aspect of the contents which is subdivided into two categories, the content and authorship, and the technical aspect including web design, and efficiency. Results: A total of 26 internet sites were found. Among these sites, 6 (23%) informed by anesthesiologist. The average score of the 26 internet sites was only 37.4 20.1 out of a total of 100. A mean score of the contents was 13.3 8.3 out of 40 points, the authorship was 10.0 6.7 out of 20 points, the design was 9.2 5.3 out of 20 points, the efficiency was 6.8 4.3 out of 20 points. When comparing the score between anesthesiologist and non-anesthesiologist, the contents was 18.7 7.4 vs. 11.7 7.9, the authorship was 13.4 4.7 vs. 9.0 6.8, the design was 12.5 4.2 vs. 8.3 5.2 and the efficiency was 6.8 4.5 vs. 4.3 4.0 (P ＜ 0.05). Conclusions: There is a need for more accurate information about postherpetic neuralgia on the Korean internet by anesthesiologists.

Is Internet Censorship Compatible with Democracy? Legal Restrictions of Online Speech in South Korea

This paper examines the history and causes of Internet censorship in South Korea, with special focus on the tension between South Korea's democratic political identity and its willingness to tolerate significant censorship of online political speech.Part I presents the problem of Internet censorship in new democracies, addressing particularly whether the Internet is more free from state interference than the hierarchical 20th century model of mass media. This question takes on particular importance as the Internet is becoming the dominant model of mass communication in many democracies, and as television and print journalism increasingly fuse with the Internet and lose their independent identities. Part II, the bulk of the paper, explores the background and political dynamics of censorship in South Korea. First it provides a brief overview of South Korean censorship during the country’s three cold war dictatorships. Second, it shows how South Korea’s post-1987 liberalization opened up its media sphere and political debate in crucial yet incomplete ways. In doing so it focuses on four key transformations: the emergence of a politically independent Constitutional Court with the power of judicial review, the establishment of a democratic system of elections that heavily restricts political expression, the incomplete rollback of government controls over print and broadcast media, and the gradual loosening of laws that restrict seditious and subversive speech. Third, it demonstrates how this incomplete liberalization has given the government cover to implement a shockingly restrictive Internet censorship bureaucracy, and how that censorship has continued even under presidents that were opposed to it. It chronicles how the strategies of the censorship bureaucracy have developed, and shows that recent developments under the administration of Lee Myung-bak have left free speech on the Internet particularly vulnerable.Finally, Part III uses the story in Part II to identify the underlying dynamics that have caused the paradox of South Korean Internet censorship. It then identifies several of the problems that face South Korea’s Internet censorship regime, which give some indication that it may not be effective or sustainable into the future. These defects in the long-term viability of South Korea’s Internet censorship regime provide some hope to those concerned with the project of e-democracy worldwide, especially in emerging and illiberal democracies. This paper then concludes with two strategies that Internet freedom activists can pursue to help undermine Internet censorship in South Korea.

Assessment of the Quality of Information Concerned with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia and Prostate Cancer on the Related Korean Internet Web Sites

Purpose: We assessed the quality of information available to patients on benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer on the Korean internet web sites. Materials and Methods: This research was undertaken by surfing the internet on the world wide web sites, including naver, nate, daum, yahoo and empas. The key words for the search were 'BPH' and 'prostate cancer'. We evaluated two main themes, and these were aspect of the contents and the technical contents. The aspects of the contents were the content and authorship, and the technical aspects were related to design and efficiency. Results: We evaluated 45 web sites that focused on BPH and 24 web sites that focused on prostate cancer. From among the web sites, 27 (60%) of the 45 BPH sites and 16 (67%) of the 24 sites gave medical information. Only 14 (31%) of the 27 BPH sites and 12 (50%) of the 24 prostate cancer sites dealt with full information. The average score of these 43 web sites was only 34.5±13.6 of a perfect score of 100. The mean score of the content was 10±5.1 of 40 points, authorship was 4.3±3.3 of 20 points, design was 10.4±3.3 of 20 points and efficiency was 9.8±4.6 of 20 points. A total of 28 (65%) out of the 43 providers of information were urologists and 23 (82%) out of the 28 were general practitioners. The rate of research on prostatic disease was lower than that for 'hypertension', 'diabetes', 'stroke' and 'hepatitis'. Conclusions: There is need for more accurate information on prostatic diseases on the Korean internet. It is essential to set up an institution for qualifying the medical information on web sites & evaluating the web sites on the Korean internet. (Korean J Urol 2008;49:404-410) 󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏

Do You Feel Free Now? Korean Women in an Online Adult Community

This study explores the dynamic tensions of power in the emergence of new sexual discourses by examining a Korean online adult community. The Korean Internet culture illustrates considerable change concerning the discursive formation of sexuality. Many women participate in the discourse of sexuality through active participation in adult on-line communities. Given that women's social status in Korea has been prescribed by its patriarchal standards, and because of these circumstances, sexual discourse has been the exclusive social privilege of men, the emergence of a new sexual discourse deserves attention.

An Empirical Study on the Relationship between Customer Value and Repurchase Intention in Korean Internet Shopping Malls

It is important to analyze the relationship between customer values and business value in order to provide a guideline of successful e-business. The purpose of this paper is to answer the following questions. First, what are key components of customer value in e-business? Second, what difference exists in the expectation level and current level of customer value in e-business? Finally, what influences the relationship between customer value and business value? Data collected from 615 respondents who made purchases through Internet shopping malls were used to test a research model. Three managerial implications were derived from the analysis and further studies were suggested.

Creativity-Innovation Cycle for Organisational Exploration and Exploitation: Lessons from Neowiz - a Korean Internet Company

This article is about a Korean Internet company that has successfully changed its major service items three times during its 10-year history. The company has been well known for innovativeness since it became the first in the world to develop and sell completely virtual products. By introducing breakthrough innovations, as well as a stream of successive minor innovations, the company has become a leader in highly contested market segments. To explain the company's success, we develop a creativity-innovation cycle with four elements: generating creative ideas from employees, communicating these ideas, implementing them, and learning from the market response. We argue that tight, successive connections of the four elements allowed the company to take advantage of its existing core competencies and execute breakthrough innovations. We explain how the company made the cycle as complete as possible and discuss lessons other companies can learn from the case.

Looking for Salvation beyond a Risk-laden Reality: The Religious Nature of Korean Internet Culture

Looking for Salvation beyond a Risk-laden Reality: The Religious Nature of Korean Internet Culture

Characteristics of Internet Use in Relation to Game Genre in Korean Adolescents

As the number of internet users increases, a new game genre using the internet as a networking tool is emerging. Some game genres are regarded as having greater addiction potentials than others. Games and the internet are closely related. We investigated games frequently used by adolescents and classified each of them with the help of game professionals. We also examined internet use patterns to identify relationships between game genre and internet use patterns. 627 middle school and high school students (male 488, female 139) completed questionnaires concerning computer and game use patterns and Korean internet addiction scales. Game genres were divided into eight criteria (simulation, role playing game, web board, community, action, adventure, shooting, and sports). Using Korean internet addiction scales, 627 participants were divided into a normal group (474), a potential risk group (128), and a high-risk group (25). Each group showed significant differences in total internet addiction scores. We classified players into specific game users based upon the game types they most prefer. Role playing game users showed significantly higher internet addiction scores than web board and sports game users. Game and internet addictions are also connected with interpersonal relationship patterns. We suggest that users of some game genre have unique psychological addiction potentials that are different from others and that this influences both game selection and internet use.

Cross-Cultural Differences in Motivations and Perceived Interactivity: A Comparative Study of American and Korean Internet Users

The purpose of this study was to examine cultural differences in motivations for using the Internet and consumers' interactivity on a website. Cultural context was used to explain cultural differences in motivations and interactivity between South Korea and the United States. The results showed that subjects from the low context culture had a higher degree of information and convenience motivation and perceived a higher degree of human-message interaction, while subjects from the high context culture had a higher degree of social interaction motivation and human-human interaction.

The Adoption and Use of the Internet in South Korea

Recent surveys indicate that the rapid rate of Internet use in South Korea is one of the highest in the world. Indeed, as the one of leading nations for high-speed broadband access, South Korean Internet users virtually dominate the entire gamut of Internet activities-everything from web searches to games to Instant Messenger (IM) chatting-and are one of the leading consumers of on-line shopping for services and goods (“e-commerce”). Even popular social movements have gone “on-line” in South Korea with civil organizations effectively mobilizing their resources through Internet networking. However, a widespread disparity in Internet use has recently come to light in South Korea. In particular, Internet use has been clearly divided by generations, which threatens to create a “new” generation gap and the possibility of further generational conflict in a society already marked by deep generational cleavages. In this paper, we touch upon the adoption of the Internet on the basis of research data that examines the digital divide on a national scale. We examine socio-demographic factors, attitudes toward the Internet, social supports (family support, in particular), and the influence that Internet access has had on the South Korean populace, paying particular attention to diffusion theory which has been considered the most feasible explanation for South Korea's rapid Internet adoption. This research indicates that Internet adoption in South Korea is influenced more by family support than by other characteristics. On the basis of this analysis, this study suggests that comparative studies need to be conducted on a macro level as well as within the socio-cultural context of the particular country.

Global online marketplace: a cross‐cultural comparison of website quality

AbstractThis study used Loiacono’s WebQualTM scale to compare 278 US and 347 Korean Internet users in terms of their perceptions of retail website quality. The results of the study suggested that the dimensionality of website quality was not consistent across the two samples. This study also examined which dimensions of website quality influenced shoppers’ satisfaction with the site and purchase intention. The findings indicated that the relationship between website quality dimensions and the two dependent variables varied between the two groups.

인터넷 상점에서의 내용기반 추천을 위한 상품 및 고객의 자질 추출 성능 비교

인터넷 쇼핑몰에서의 상품 추천을 위해 널리 사용되는 방식 중 한 가지는 상품의 특성과 고객의 특성을 비교하여 고객에 맞는 상품을 추천하는 방식이다. 이 방식은 상품이나 고객의 특성을 표현하는 자질(Feature)의 개수가 많을수록 그 중에 어떤 자질을 선택해야 더 좋은 추천 성과를 가져올 수 있는지 파악해 내는 것이 추천의 효과 및 효율성 측면에서 중요하지만 아직까지 충분히 연구되지 않은 실정이다. 본 연구에서는 인터넷 서점에서의 가상 구매실험을 바탕으로 사용자가 구매한 책 들에서 사용자를 잘 나타낼 수 있는 자질을 선택하는 방식에 대해서 벡터 스페이스 모형, TFIDF(Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency), Mutual Information, SVD(Singular Value Decomposition) 방식 등을 활용하여 실험하고 그 결과를 비교해본다. 실험 결과 SVD를 응용한 자질 추출 기법이 가장 좋은 성능을 나타내었다. One of the widely used methods for product recommendation in Internet storefronts is matching product features against target customer profiles. When using this method, it's very important to choose a suitable subset of features for recommendation efficiency and performance, which, however, has not been rigorously researched so far. In this paper, we utilize a dataset collected from a virtual shopping experiment in a Korean Internet book shopping mall to compare several popular methods from other disciplines for selecting features for product recommendation: the vector-space model, TFIDF(Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency), the mutual information method, and the singular value decomposition(SVD). The application of SVD showed the best performance in the analysis results.