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HOME > J Korean Acad Community Health Nurs > Volume 24(1); 2013 > Article
Original Article
Stress, Self-esteem, and Powerlessness in Korean Husbands Married to Foreign Wives
Kyeha Kim, Jeong Ju Sun, Suk Hee Oh
Journal of Korean Academy of Community Health Nursing 2013;24(1):29-39.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12799/jkachn.2013.24.1.29
Published online: March 31, 2013

1Department of Nursing, Chosun University, Gwangju, Korea.

2Department of Nursing, Chongam College, Suncheon, Korea.

3Department of Nursing, Jeonbuk Science College, Jeongeup, Korea.

• Received: November 6, 2012   • Accepted: March 6, 2013

© 2013 Korean Academy of Community Health Nursing

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  • Purpose
    The purpose of this study is to investigate levels of stress, self-esteem, and powerlessness in Korean husbands married to foreigner wives.
  • Methods
    The subjects were 183 Korean men who were living with foreigner wives in the Gwangju, Jeonnam and Jeonnbuk areas. Data were collected from January to May 2012 and analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test, one-way ANOVA, Scheffé test, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and backward multiple regression with the SPSS PC WIN version 18.0.
  • Results
    The average level of stress was 4.48, with difficulties in international marriage experienced by the subjects due to differences in language and culture. The average reported self-esteem score was 29.69, and the average powerlessness score 117.76. There were significant differences in perceived powerlessness depending on the employment statuses, income levels, and nationalities of the participants' wives, and their perceived levels of satisfaction with living with a foreigner wife. Powerlessness was positively correlated with stress (r=.41, p<.001), and negatively correlated with self-esteem(r=-.63, p<.001). The factors affecting the perceived powerlessness included self-esteem (β=-.54, p<.001), stress (β=.28, p<.001), lower income (β=.13, p=.016), and working wife (β=.12, p=.036).
  • Conclusion
    Healthcare providers need to explore strategies to improve self-esteem and powerlessness in Korean men married to foreigner wives.
Table 1
General Characteristics (N=183)
jkachn-24-29-i001.jpg

Multiple response.

Table 2
Levels of Variables (N=183)
jkachn-24-29-i002.jpg
Table 3
Stress, Self-esteem, and Powerlessness by General Characteristics (N=183)
jkachn-24-29-i003.jpg
Table 4
Correlation among Study Variables (N=183)
jkachn-24-29-i004.jpg
Table 5
Multiple Regression Analysis for Powerlessness (N=183)
jkachn-24-29-i005.jpg

Backward multiple linear regression; Independent variables: Stress, self-esteem, the presence of job of the wife, less than 1,000,000 (won/month), Philippines, and satisfaction in living with a wife.

This study was supported by research fund from Chosun University, 2011.

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    Citations

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