Acculturation, Social Network, and Health-related Quality of Life in Korean-Chinese Immigrants

Meenhye Lee; Hyeonkyeong Lee; Sue Kim; Yeonsoo Jang

doi:10.12799/jkachn.2013.24.4.438

Journal List > J Korean Acad Community Health Nurs > v.24(4) > 1058328

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Lee, Lee, Kim, and Jang: Acculturation, Social Network, and Health-related Quality of Life in Korean-Chinese Immigrants

Original Article

Journal of Korean Academy of Community Health Nursing 2013; 24(4): 438-450.

Published online: 31 December 2013

DOI: https://doi.org/10.12799/jkachn.2013.24.4.438

Acculturation, Social Network, and Health-related Quality of Life in Korean-Chinese Immigrants

Meenhye Lee¹, Hyeonkyeong Lee², Sue Kim², Yeonsoo Jang²

¹College of Nursing, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, USA.

²College of Nursing, Nursing Policy Research Institute, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.

Corresponding author: Lee, Hyeonkyeong. College of Nursing, Nursing Policy Research Institute, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-749, Korea. Tel: +82-2-2228-3373, Fax: +82-2-392-5440, hlee39@yuhs.ac

Received 29 September 2013 Revised 18 November 2013 Accepted 17 December 2013

(open-access):

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to identify relationships between acculturation, social network, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among Korean-Chinese immigrants.

Methods

A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with 147 Korean-Chinese immigrants who were residing more than 1 year in Korea. Physical and mental dimensions of HRQOL were assessed by Short Form-12 Health Survey that consisted of a physical component summary (PCS) and a mental component summary (MCS). Data were analyzed with Pearson's correlation and multiple regression.

Results

The mean PCS score was 41.14±10.72 and the mean MCS score was 49.09±11.31 (possible range 10-70). Depression (β=-6.43) and Social network frequency (β=2.44) explained 28.4% of the variance in PCS while depression (β=-11.54) and visiting clinic/hospital (β=-4.00) explained 34.3% of the variance in MCS. Acculturation was not significantly associated with HRQOL.

Conclusion

This study confirmed that the social network frequency influences HRQOL among Korean-Chinese Immigrants. The findings suggest that social network analysis should be considered in the process of developing health intervention strategies for Korean-Chinese immigrants.

Keywords: Immigrants, Acculturation, Social network, Quality of life

Figures and Tables

Table 1

Sociodemographic Characteristics of the Participants (N=147)

^†Multiple response.

Table 2

Mean Scores for Acculturation, Social Network, and HRQOL (N=147)

HRQOL=health related quality of life; PCS=physical component summary; MCS=mental component summary.

Table 3

Acculturation, Social Network, and HRQOL by General Characteristics (N=147)

HRQOL=health-related quality of life; PCS=physical component summary; MCS=mental component summary.

^†Scheffé test.

Table 4

Multiple Regression for Variables Predicting HRQOL (N=147)

HRQOLhealth-related quality of life; PCS=physical component summary; MCS=mental component summary.

^*p<05, ^**p<01.

Notes

This article is a revision of the first author's master's thesis from Yonsei University.

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