Multilevel Effects of Community Capacity on Active Aging in Community-Dwelling Older Adults in South Korea.

Purpose: This study aimed at identifying the level of active aging in older adults and the influence of the individual and community levels of community capacity on active aging.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a stratified sample of 380 older adults living in 35 neighborhoods of five regions in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. The structured questionnaire included the Korean version of instruments that measure active aging and community capacity at the individual level.

Can Geographic Bridging Social Capital Improve the Health of People Who Live in Deprived Urban Neighborhoods?

The growing number of people living in deprived urban neighborhoods, which often have unhealthy environments, is of growing concern to inequality researchers. Social capital could be a resource to help such communities get ahead. In this study, we examined the differential effects of bonding and bridging social capital on self-rated health using two operational definitions, which we call personal and geographic social capital.

Identifying Barriers to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Testing for Men Who Have Sex with Men in South Korea.

Objectives: The principal objective of this study was to identify the barriers to testing for men who have sex with men (MSM) in Korea, something that might prove useful in future studies of this nature.

Methods: This study was conducted at gay bars nationwide in Korea. After considering several offline locations (gay bars) where MSM candidates are commonly located, random recruitment was performed using time-location sampling.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Sexual Behaviors in HIV/AIDS and Predictors Affecting Condom Use among Men Who Have Sex with Men in South Korea.

Objectives: In South Korea, men who have sex with men (MSM) are rather understudied, but are known to be at high risk for human immunodeficiency virus infection (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). This study was to access HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitudes, and risk behaviors, and to identify the factors of condom use in HIV prevention.

Methods: We recruited 1070 MSM in Korea, using the Internet to maximize the confidentiality of the MSM.

[Factors affecting national health insurance mass screening participation in the disabled].

Objectives: As the disabled have higher prevalence rates and earlier onsets of chronic diseases than the non-disabled, their participation in mass screening is important for the early detection and intervention of chronic diseases. Nevertheless, in Korea, the disabled have lower participation rates in mass screening services than the non-disabled. The purpose of the study was to find determinants for the participation in the National Health Insurance (NHI) mass screening program among the disabled.