Journal List > Korean J Women Health Nurs > v.21(3) > 1089513

Lee: Korean Immigrant Women's Taekyo Practices in the United States as a Traditional Prenatal Self-care

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to explore preserved belief system supporting Korean immigrant women's Taekyo practices and influencing factors while they observe the tradition within US sociocultural context.

Methods

Leininger's exploratory focused ethnographic approach was used. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with purposive sample of sixteen Korean immigrant women who gave birth in the US within last 6 months. Researcher's observation and reflective field notes were also integrated into the interview data. Leininger and McFarland's four phases of ethnographic analysis guided data analysis process.

Results

The perceived belief system supporting Taekyo practices included Taekyo as an enculturated Korean tradition, connecting parents with fetus, and positive impacts on fetal development. And Korean immigrant women's Taekyo practices were influenced by resources of information, woman's orientation toward Taekyo, pressure from local Korean community, and child order.

Conclusion

The findings from this research would serve as an important knowledge base to expand US health care providers’ understanding of Korean traditional Taekyo practices observed by Korean immigrant women's as important prenatal self-care practices. The findings could also aid in providing more patient-centered and culturally-tailored prenatal care plan to Korean immigrant by including Korean traditional belief system supporting Taekyo practices.

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Table 1.
Sample Interview Questions
Categories Questions
General questionnaire Taekyo as an enculturated Korean tradition
  “Have you heard about Taekyo?”
  “What do you think of Taekyo?”
  “Did you practice Taekyo during pregnancy?”
Probing questions “What motivate you to observe Taekyo?”
  “Can you tell me about more detail about what Taekyo practice did you observe and why?”
  “How did you get information about Taekyo?”
  “Would you tell me about the particular aspect of Taekyo experience you just described?”
Table 2.
Demographics of Participants (N=16)
Characteristics Categories n (%)
Age (yr) 20~29 4 (25.00)
  30~39 9 (56.25)
  40~49 3 (18.75)
Education level High school 1 (6.25)
  College: Bachelor's 10 (62.50)
  Graduate degree 4 (25.00)
Years in the US 1~5 6 (37.50)
  6~10 5 (31.25)
  11~15 4 (25.00)
  16~20 1 (6.25)
Employment status Full-time 2 (12.50)
  Part-time 1 (6.25)
  Housewife 13 (81.25)
Annual family income $ 0~20,000  
  $ 20,001~40,000 5 (31.25)
  $ 40,001~60,000 4 (25.00)
  >$ 60,000 7 (43.75)
Years in marriage 1~5 7 (43.75)
  6~10 7 (43.75)
  11~15 2 (12.50)
Language at home Mostly Korean 14 (87.50)
  Korean and English 2 (12.50)
  Mostly English 0 (0.00)
Religious practice Christianity 14 (87.50)
  None 2 (12.50)
Table 3.
Main Themes of the Study Result
Categories Themes
Cultural belief system supporting Taekyo Taekyo as an enculturated Korean tradition ․ Perceived positive impacts on fetal development ․ Connecting parents with fetus
Factors influencing Taekyo practices ․ Resources of information Woman's orientation toward Taekyo ․ Pressure from local Korean community ․ Child order
Table 4.
The Most Followed Taekyo Practices by Participants (N=16)
Taekyo Practice n (%)
Touching belly and talking to fetus 16 (100.00)
Listening to music a lot 15 (93.75)
Having peaceful mind 15 (93.75)
Avoiding certain behaviors such as watching violent scenes or sitting at a corner 14 (87.50)
Avoiding certain foods like strawberries, sashimi [raw fish], chicken, octopus 14 (87.50)
Singing to fetus 12 (75.00)
Reading books to fetus 9 (56.25)
Seeing beautiful things (e.g. paintings, natural scenery) 9 (56.25)
Keeping body warm all the time 7 (43.75)
Keeping a Taekyo diary 6 (38.50)
Binding belly at 3rd trimester 2 (7.25)
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