KJC Korea
Journal Central

This study reviews comparatively the national qualification frameworks(NQFs) of Germany, France, England and Australia and suggests policy implications for Korea as follows. First, NQF of Korea should be introduced as a part of integrative skills strategies. Second, the public support to establish the participative governance of qualification frameworks should be strengthened. Third, it is a realistic measure to introduce a bridging framework of NQF where NQF takes the coordination and integrating roles. Fourth, unit-based approach as of organizing framework may increase the bureaucratic burdens, it is desirable to be based on full-qualification principle and enhance flexibility through adjusting qualification requisites, using modules and partial qualification of industrial sectors like France, Fifth, it is normal international practice for the management of the NQF to be assigned to an apex body. Sixth, we need to consider institutional complementarity to design the NQF of Korea. Finally, in the state-led system of Korea the strategic choice of government will be the cornerstone to break through the institutional difficulties.

Contrary to the Liberal Welfare Regime model that has emphasized the market-oriented system, this paper explores the Swedish model that has simultaneously grown and pursued welfare by forming a well-balanced triangular structure amongst economy, finance and social security. The Swedish model, with its generous welfare state benefits and high taxation, has succeeded in attaining sustainable economic growth compared with other OECD countries. Impressively, high taxation has not impeded its economic performance. In order to analyse the characteristics of the model in more depth, this paper divides them into two perspectives: economic and social security. Whilst the economic perspective focuses on active labour market policy and fiscal policy, the social security perspective focuses on the principle of beneficiaries and tax payers, with higher participation of women in labour markets and pension systems. This paper emphasizes the fact that the model has stressed the importance on complementing the balance between generous social state benefits and high economic efficiency.

This study classified the factors of family disorganization of elderly people live alone in diverse aspects except the economic aspect. 29 statements selected through 8 times of recategorization process were distributed to 29 elderly people live alone and Q-sort was performed. Four types were deducted through the analysis by Q methodologies. Type 1 is independent type which is resulting from loss of identity and sense of helplessness. Type 2 is disorganization type because of weakening of individualism and social cohesion. Type 3 is disorganization type because of lack of family resources. Type 4 is called as independent disorganization type according to the health conditions. Implications of this study shows, First, development of policies and services for independent elderly people live alone who want to live alone is required. Second, existing old people care services should be much more intensified and intensive related services should be developed. Third, introduction of the concept of elderly people live alone multiple communities and consequent establishment of professional protection institution like elderly people live alone exclusive center are required.Fourth, for elderly people live alone who suffer from family isorganization, it is necessary to find the solutions through social relationship networks because they have problems of psychosocial problems that they are isolated from their families.

The Korean Assembly delegates authority to the governmental administration to regulate the most important components of social security programs. The excessive delegation is a rational choice on the side of Korean presentatives whose ultimate goal is to be nominated again and elected at the next general election. As Korean political parties adopt top-down methods to nominate a candidate and loyalty to the party leader is the pre-eminent criterion of candidate selection, representatives are not concerned about regulating the Social Security Acts in detail. In addition, the members of the standing committees of the Assembly must be reorganized every two years and their members often change committee. As a result, representatives delegate authority to the administration to regulate the aforementioned important components of social security programs. It leads to fail to develop social security programs.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between organizational network and performance of Local Self-sufficiency Center. Under the increasing attention on network of organization in the context of developing countries, this study conducted an empirical analysis about organizational network for self-sufficiency program in Korea. Using survey and secondary data, the results show that the size of organizational network impacts on the performance of Self-sufficiency program. Based on this finding, I suggest that organizational network is a necessary condition for improving the ratio of being self-sufficiency. This study has contribution in that it examined the current status of the workfare program in Korea and suggested its policy implications for the future. Specifically, it suggested that to improve its performance, community-based network should be considered in a view of network. This study contributes to academic achievements as well. It conducted the large N study considering the network characteristics as independent variables.

This study explored the experiences of the public and patient involvement(PPI) in the NHS under the Labor government(1998-2009). From the outset, the Labor government had applied actively the PPI policy to all NHS organizations. Though there was a little backdrop due to the reinforcement of the marketization of the NHS after the midpoint of the lifetime of the labor government, these policy has maintained continuously without a break. Three PPI programs were analyzed on the points that their process met four criteria for effective participation process and influenced the outcome of a decision-making. Local Involve Networks was built up to reflect patient and public views on a decision making process of Primary Care Trust and Local Authority. It had access to information, official route for delivering public view to decision maker, educational and technical support for participants despite of there being a lack of representation. Citizen and patient governors, who are members of the board of governors for NHS foundation trust, had somewhat representation due to being elected by members, while they had little influence on the board of directors as well as insufficiency of the other three criteria for effective participation process. Two lay people among patients or carers concerned with target disease of clinical guidelines were involved in the guildeline development and also patient organization related to the disease could work as a stakeholder in the condition that the patient organziation had members nationally. These program met sufficiently four criteria for the effective participation process and also showed a visible impact on clinical guideline even though it was concentrated on non medical part such as family education. These experiences in the NHS may be very available for making judgement over introuducing PPI policy, designing a effective participation process, and predicting what that policy will bring to us.

This article is expected to explain the process of regressive tax reform in terms of partisanship and policy preference of ruling party(coalition). The process of regressive tax reform show the importance of purpose of ruling party to introduce it. While regressive tax of Sweden has been a useful instrument as 'universal tax' to secure the public expenditure and linkage ideology of social democratic party with progressive policy, regressive tax of Japan has provoked opposition against it from all level of society and finally caused a collapse of ruling liberal democratic party. The reason that France introduced characteristic regressive tax called CSG(contribution sociale general) was because France wanted maintaining a high welfare level while implementing austerity policy. Left and right parties of France together collaborate proposal and increased tax rate of CSG at least, but exposed a difference between left and right party in a ways of implementing it. The cases of three countries show that the expanded tax revenue itself through regressive tax always don’t contradicts income equality or redistribution, and regressive tax makes various results from different strategy of ruling party. Therefore inherent ‘regressity’ in regressive tax policy could be solved through outside of tax structure, that is, expanding of social welfare system.

This study categorizes the types of social provision through cluster analysis of those major welfare countries including Korea, and examines its relationship between those identified typology and tax structures. According to the result of the analysis, typology of welfare state by types of social provision indicates more or less similar to that of Esping-Andersen’s, it shows that types of social provision are useful in verifying the social consensus in addressing various social risks. Nextly, types of social provision indicates to have close relationship with specific structure of tax system. Countries characterized focusing poverty alleviation and health protection have relative inferior tax structure with low taxation, whereas countries characterized income replacement indicate considerable regressive characteristics even after high level of taxation. Government service oriented system indicates high taxation and vertical equality, but operate relatively favorable tax system to capital shown to have intended strategically overall efficiency enhancement. Such analysis result shows that it is necessary to establish innovative structural change of welfare expenditure and to adjust progressiveness by income level rather than seeking simply lot of revenue and high level of welfare expenditure.

This study discusses the current trend of poverty research in Korea with special emphasis on revealing preferences in quantitative methods for the study of multidimensional nature and dynamics of poverty. Korea's poverty research trend has changed from the analysis of static poverty to dynamics poverty, of which trend was expedited by the establishment of quantitative panel data since the late 1990s. While the quantitative poverty research was successful in providing statistical generalization of determinants factors associated with in-and-out of poverty, it had some limitations in delivering the other side of poverty story, including individual experiences, insights into people's attitude, and the context of life changes. Recently, qualitative research has been recognized by its contribution to the holistic understanding of poverty which may leads to theoretical generalization. Qualitative method can also bridge the gap between quantitative and ualitative studies, and be combined with quantitative method to become a mixed method,which may strengthen both methods in a complementary way. In this perspective, utilizing qualitative longitudinal method based on qualitative panel data linked to Korean Welfare Panel Study(KOWEPS) could be an alternative way to balance methodological orientations under current strong quantitative positions in poverty research trend. Finally, this study explores qualitative-longitudinal inquiries that link to relevant research topics for multidimensional nature and dynamics of poverty.