This study was done to evaluate the predictive value of aspects of the Transtheoretical model (TTM) of behavior change as applied to smoking cessation in a rural population.

A convenience sample was recruited from a public health center in a community. A total of 484 participants were recruited, including 319 smokers, 116 ex-smokers and 49 non-smokers. A cross-sectional and descriptive design was used in this study. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequency statistics, ANOVA and Logistic regression.

The major findings were 1) The participants were assessed at baseline for their current Stage of Change resulting in a distribution with 42.1% in Precontemplation, 24.1% in Contemplation, 9.7% in Preparation, 6.2% in Active, and 17.9% in the Maintenance stage. 2) There were statistically significant differences of processes of change, decisional balance and situational temptation across the stages of change. 3) The main factors that affect smoking cessation were age, number of years smoking, age when began smoking, self-liberation and negative/affective situations, which combined explained 33.2% of the smoking cessation.

TTM variables measured prior to a smoking cessation program added little predictive value for cessation outcome beyond that explained by demographic and smoking history variables.

The aim of this study was to identify the relationship between awareness of nutrition labeling and menstrual cycle irregularity in women from a nationally representative sample of the Korean population.

A cross-sectional analysis was performed using hierarchical multivariable logistic regression analysis models. A total of 4,324 women aged 19~54 years from the 2010~2012 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey participated in the study. The participants were classified into three groups based on self-report responses to a questionnaire about their awareness of nutrition labels: Reading, Not-Reading, and Not-Knowing Groups.

The Reading, Not-Reading, and Not-Knowing Groups comprised 46.4%, 44.9%, and 8.7% of the participants, respectively, and 53.6% of the participants had never used nutrition labels. In the Not-Knowing Group, irregular menstrual cycles for more than 3 months were significantly more common than women with irregular menstrual cycles for up to 3 months and women with regular menstrual cycles. Women in the Not-Knowing Group were more likely to exhibit menstrual cycle irregularity (adjusted odds ratio: 1.63, 95% confidence interval: 1.10~2.41) compared to women in the Reading Group after adjusting for age, body mass index, smoking status, alcohol intake, exercise regularity, stress, depression, suicidal ideation, metabolic syndrome, age at menarche, parity, and use of oral contraceptives.

No awareness of nutrition labeling appears to be associated with a higher prevalence of menstrual cycle irregularity in a nationally representative group of Korean women.

The purpose of this study was to construct and test a structural equation model of quality of work life for clinical nurses based on Peterson and Wilson's Culture-Work-Health model (CWHM).

A structured questionnaire was completed by 523 clinical nurses to analyze the relationships between concepts of CWHM-organizational culture, social support, employee health, organizational health, and quality of work life. Among these conceptual variables of CWHM, employee health was measured by perceived health status, and organizational health was measured by presenteeism. SPSS21.0 and AMOS 21.0 programs were used to analyze the efficiency of the hypothesized model and calculate the direct and indirect effects of factors affecting quality of work life among clinical nurses.

The goodness-of-fit statistics of the final modified hypothetical model are as follows: χ²=586.03, χ²/df=4.19, GFI=.89, AGFI=.85, CFI=.91, TLI=.90, NFI=.89, and RMSEA=.08. The results revealed that organizational culture, social support, organizational health, and employee health accounted for 69% of clinical nurses' quality of work life.

The major findings of this study indicate that it is essential to create a positive organizational culture and provide adequate organizational support to maintain a balance between the health of clinical nurses and the organization. Further repeated and expanded studies are needed to explore the multidimensional aspects of clinical nurses' quality of work life in Korea, including various factors, such as work environment, work stress, and burnout.

The purpose of this study was to identify whether the couple perceived breast cancer as a traumatic event, to evaluate the association among posttraumatic growth, dyadic adjustment, and quality of life and to explore the predictors affecting quality of life of the couple.

A cross-sectional comparative survey design was utilized. Participants were 57 couples recruited from a national cancer center in Korea. Data were analyzed using paired t-test, McNemar test and independent t-test. On the basis of variables found to be significantly associated with quality of life, multiple regression was used to examine the simultaneous influence of multiple predictors.

Breast cancers survivors and spouses perceived breast cancer as a traumatic event (43.9% and 24.6%, respectively). The global quality of life was explained by perception as trauma (β=-19.79) and posttraumatic growth (β=0.46) in survivors, and perception as trauma (β=-18.81) and dyadic adjustment (β=0.53) in spouses.

Results suggest that future research should use qualitative methods to evaluate why contemplating reasons for cancer contributed to posttraumatic growth, examine other potential predictors of quality of life such as dyadic adjustment and intimacy, and identify links between posttraumatic growth and other psychological outcomes such as distress and well-being, using prospective analyses.

The purpose of this study was to identify cancer-related symptom clusters and to validate the conceptual meanings of the revealed symptom clusters in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

This study was a cross-sectional survey and methodological study. Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (N=194) were recruited from a medical center in Seoul. The 20-item Symptom Checklist was used to assess patients' symptom severity. Selected symptoms were factored using principal-axis factoring with varimax rotation. To validate the revealed symptom clusters, the statistical differences were analyzed by status of patients' performance status, Child-Pugh classification, and mood state among symptom clusters.

Fatigue was the most prevalent symptom (97.4%), followed by lack of energy and stomach discomfort. Patients' symptom severity ratings fit a four-factor solution that explained 61.04% of the variance. These four factors were named pain-appetite cluster, fatigue cluster, itching-constipation cluster, and gastrointestinal cluster. The revealed symptom clusters were significantly different for patient performance status (ECOG-PSR), Child-Pugh class, anxiety, and depression.

Knowing these symptom clusters may help nurses to understand reasonable mechanisms for the aggregation of symptoms. Efficient symptom management of disease-related and treatment-related symptoms is critical in promoting physical and emotional status in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.