Abstract : Fiscal decentralization in China has an impact on the behaviors of local government and health outcomes. This study analyzes the impacts of fiscal decentralization on the perinatal mortality rate, focusing on the provincial level divisions in China. Our findings suggest that the ratio of local budgetary expenditure to local budgetary revenue negatively affects the perinatal mortality rate. As the central government in China put pressure on local governments experiencing fiscal imbalance, local governments put an effort into improving health outcomes. Land-related revenues positively affects the perinatal mortality rate. Considering that Chinese local governments have considerable discretion in land-related revenues but their financial instability led them to rely on land-related revenues, changes in local government’s fiscal behavior led by fiscal decentralization causes higher perinatal mortality rate. These results suggest that the role of the central government in improving health outcomes is still significant, and various aspects such as political perspectives should be considered when applying the theory of fiscal decentralization developed in Western countries to China.

Abstract : This paper attempt to reduce dimensions of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) before and after including infection and fatality rate of COVID-19. The results of the exploratory factor analysis show the multidimensionality of SDGs consisting of social, economic, environmental dimensions. The infection rate and fatality rate are assigned to different dimensions, but do not affect the clustering of countries according to the achievement level of SDGs. Interestingly, SDG 3(good health and well-being) is not correlated with infection and fatality rate of COVID-19, which implies insufficiency of SDGs assessing preparedness of dealing with new epidemics in the future. Finally, given that countries are categorized into three different clusters and the membership has not changed even with and without COVID-19 variables. Hence, it is recommendable to develop each cluster’s own strategy to handle the similar problems through the international cooperation.

Abstract : This study analyzed the relationship between policy change and evidence-based policy on the use of evidence between Advocacy Coalition based on discussion forums and public hearings in the process of changes in the COVID-19 response policies. As a result of the analysis, there was a difference in the selection of evidence depending on the belief system between the ‘Weak control preferred group’ and the ‘Strong control preference group’ for the COVID-19 response policies. And in the case of the 4-step distance discussion, some policy-based evidence occurred. On the other hand, there was a consensus normative core that the change in the COVID-19 response policies was a ‘balance of quarantine and the economy’ among the Advocacy Coalition. And as a consensus was formed on the cumulative economic damage, the level of control was reduced. However, according to the policy core of ‘Strong control preference group’ still continued, and as the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic started again, the social distancing adjustment plan was implemented. Changes in the COVID-19 response policies are only a provisional result prepared by considering various factors at the time of policy decision. It suggests that it is an adaptive process that can change according to changes in circumstances.

Abstract : The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between the level of corruption in the local government and the composition of functional expenditure. As a result of cross-lagged panel analysis, in the case of municipal-level local governments, the decrease of corruption in 2015 was found to have an effect on the decrease in economic development expenditure in 2016. On the other hand, in the case of county-level local governments, it was found that the increase in the proportion of economic development expenditure in 2016 had a positive effect on the corruption level in 2017. Although there was a difference in the unit of analysis and time, it was possible to confirm the existence of mutual causality between the economic development expenditure and the degree of corruption. However, relationship between the level of corruption and fiscal expenditure differed according to the type and time of the local government means that temporal and contextual factors exist in this relationship. In the future, it is necessary to check the relationship between corruption and local financial expenditure for each local government through more specific policy audit cases in the field of local financial expenditure.

Abstract : This paper reviews methodological issues related to the contingent valuation method(CVM) and performs meta-analysis analyzing the impacts of the assumptions and estimation methods on the willingness to pay(WTP) estimates. Our findings suggest that the size of WTP is lower than others when applied to national households as the target population, and the amount of maximum bid positively affects the size of WTP. Among the variety of ecological values, the conservation value turns out higher than others. The payment vehicles and the types of dichotomous choice model, however, are not statistically significant to the WTP size. Therefore, considering that CVM is sensitive to assumptions used for designing data collection and model specifications, we need to evaluate the validity of WTP by comparing it with the accumulated research employing similar assumptions.

Abstract : This article analyzes the long-term and short-term effects of the tobacco tax implemented on January 1, 2015 on tobacco consumption. Also, the regressiveness of the tobacco tax was examined by dividing the income groups into three. To estimate the effects, we combined one-way fixed effect panel analysis and interrupted time-series design. As a result, both the long-term and short-term effects had negative impacts on tabocco consumption and were found to be statisticallly significant. However, compared with the counterfactual which the tobacco tax was not raised, it was found that the long-term effect of the tobacco tax disappears from 2032. This suggests that in order to maintain the policy effect, it is necessary to consider a gradual increase in tobacco prices using a price indexation. Moreover the price elasticity of low income group is more elastic than that of other income groups, but share of tobacco consumption has rather increased. Although it is difficult to conclude that the tobacco tax is undesirable because of regressiveness of the tax, it suggests that a non-price policy that considers low-income groups should be accompanied.

Abstract : 

Background The impact of persistent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms on quality of life remains unclear. This study aimed to describe such persistent symptoms and their relationships with quality of life, including clinical frailty and subjective health status. 

Methods A prospective longitudinal 3-month follow-up survey monitored symptoms, health quality, support needs, frailty, and employment.

Results A total of 82 patients with a mean age of 52 years (ranging from 23–84 years) were enrolled, including 48 (58.6%) men, and 34 (41.5%) women. The fully active status decreased from 87.8% before admission to 78.1% post discharge. Two patients (2.4%) were ambulatory and capable of all self-care but unable to carry out any work-related activities 12 weeks after discharge. Clinical frailty scale (CFS) levels 1, 2, 3 and 4 changed drastically between admission and 12 weeks later after discharge. Just after admission, the median EuroQol visual analogue scales (EQ-VAS) was 82.23 (± 14.38), and it decreased to 78.10 (± 16.02) 12 weeks after discharge; 62 (75.6%) of patients reported at least one symptom 12 weeks after discharge. The most frequent symptom was fatigue followed by smell disorder, anxiety, sleep disorder, headache, depressive mood, dyspnea, and taste disorder. CFS was definitively associated with fatigue. Decreased EQ-VAS was associated with fatigue and palpitation, cough, taste disorder, and chest pain. EQ-VAS was worse in women (28%) than in men. Compared with regular outpatient clinic visits before admission, 21 patients (25.6%) reported increased outpatient clinic visits, one (1.4%) reported readmission, and one (1.4%) reported emergency room visits. Six of the 54 (77.1%) patients who were employed before admission lost their jobs. And most vulnerable type was self-employed, because three self-employed job workers were not working at 12 weeks after discharge. 

Conclusion COVID-19 sequelae should not be underestimated. We find a decrease in health quality and increase in psychological problems in discharged COVID-19 patients, and some patients experience unemployment. The number of patients suffering from COVID-19 sequelae would not be negligible considering there are more than one million COVID-19 infection cases in Korea. Hence, the government should start a systematic monitoring system for discharged patients and prepare timely medical and social interventions accordingly.

Abstract : Despite the growing popularity of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning techniques, we do not critically analyze how those techniques can be understood from the viewpoint of the philosophy of science. This paper argues that new prediction and forecasting techniques such as CNN/RNN, neural network, automated timeseries model, and other algorithmic prediction models are not consistent with the explanatory and causal modeling of post-postivism, mainstream philosophy of science. In particular, the value-orientation of policy sciences may not be easy to embrace those prediction models. Hence, we should not be too optimistic and dependent on automated prediction results. On the contrary, we have to make an effort of sense-making of the prediction results produced by the models and find a pragmatic way of utilizing new prediction techniques. 

Abstract : This paper attempts to analyze how the traditional definition of corruption has changed over the years and how this change makes us rethink contemporary anti-corruption research and policies. While corruption is intrinsically abstract and difficult to define clearly, reliable studies and policies or laws implemented based on it mainly focus on illegally using job-related powers and resources for personal gain by a person or organization in public office. This traditional concept of corruption has limitations in explaining various real corruption phenomena and people's perceptions of corruption. For instance, the meaning of private gains, public office, job-relatedness, illegality, and the public sphere have become loosely defined over the year. Our analysis of anti-corruption laws, rules, surveys, and statistics suggests that the traditional form of corruption is not critical in Korea. Instead, the variety of misbehavior of public officials aggravates the perceived corruption of citizens. Hence, the conceptual expansion of corruption will call for bureaucracy to meet the expectation of citizens, which eventually solidifies its legitimacy.

Abstract : The purpose of this paper is to explore a new data-driven research method for a comparative area study. The paper examines the data and analysis methods utilized by previous area studies with a quantitative method and proposes innovative research methods to explore the discourse of Mega Asia and comparative area studies. The authors searched research articles that compared countries and regions from KCI indexed journals and collected bibliographic data such as titles, keywords, abstracts, areas of interest, and main topics. Since 2000, the publication of regional study journals has significantly increased, and most newly published journals focus on Asia. Mainly, newly published Asia study journals specialized on East Asia and Southeast Asia regions, reflecting the growing interest in South Korea due to geographical proximity. More studies investigated countries than regions, and the most popular regions of interest among study subjects are Asia and Europe. Most of the studies relied on macro data from international organizations or country-level statistics produced by the governments. Few studies utilized spatial data with no scale dependency. Spatial data allow them to extract the information regardless of interstate boundaries. The findings reaffirm the need for an alternative blended database with geographical coordinates and a data-driven approach with a data science perspective to analyze regional dynamics. 

Abstract : This paper examines whether a higher level of universal health coverage (UHC) would enhance the effectiveness of responses to COVID-19. This research analyzed the effect of out-of-pocket health expenditures on the effectiveness of responses to COVID-19 through the mediating effect of diagnostics testing. The findings suggest that the impact of the share of out-of-pocket health expenditures on the fatality rate is not direct, and it is mediated by diagnostic testing, but it does not affect the number of confirmed cases per million. The conclusion drawn from the case studies is that the argument that UHC would result in a more effective response to COVID-19 is not appropriate. Furthermore, the relationship between UHC and the effectiveness of responses can vary depending on national characteristics, such as the medical system and regional distribution; government’s awareness and response to COVID-19; living conditions; the levels of social security; etc. The findings contribute to the debate about the direction of health care reform for responding to infectious disease outbreaks after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Abstract : This study aims at analyzing the trend and policy response of metropolises to COVID-19 to understand their similarity and heterogeneity among different countries and cities. Despite the limitation of data availability, we select 9 cities (Jakarta, Delhi, Manila, London, Paris, New York, Tokyo, and Seoul) and compare the city level to national level responses. The results of the study are as follows. First, the infection trend of COVID-19 was different from that of traditional SIR (susceptable, infection, and recovery) model. The size and wave pattern, and degree of irregularity of the infection differed across the metropolises. Second, we falsified the claim that metropolies are the hub of the spread of COVID-19 in a country. Instead of unidirectional transmission of COVID-19, both cities and countries mutually affect each other in the spread of COVID-19. Third, unsustainable policies such as containment or movement restriction had limitations in preventing the spread of COVID-19. In addition, we present the importance of preemptive responses in the early phase of spread. Fourth, the degree of decline in the fatality in big cities was greater than that of the country. In this respect, we conclude that big cities are in better situation in terms of learning and resilience.

Abstract : This paper empirically explores the understanding and changes in the concept of administrative capacity (AC) in the Korean context. Despite a universal consensus on its importance, AC is defined differently by regimes and stakeholders (i.e., in this study: the public, members of the National Assembly, and academia). To improve our understanding of AC, we collected three types of texts (337 academic papers, 1,470 National Assembly minutes, and 3,316 newspaper articles from 2000–2019) and analyzed the data using topic modeling and text-network analysis methods. The results suggest that although academic articles emphasized leadership, manpower, education, and other policymaking capacities, the National Assembly stressed an innovation capacity in solving different policy problems. Finally, the media assumed to reflect public opinions emphasized capacities related to the national security.

Abstract : This paper criticizes the view of the K-quarantine, which deifies Korea's state-led quarantine. To this end, major issues (border lockdown, intensive social distancing policy, expansion of public health and medical institution, and 3T [tracking, testing, transparency]) that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic were derived through LDA topic modeling. Focusing on the major issues, this paper raised the argument in the perspective of complex adaptive system and network governance that the self-organization process of various participants, including citizens, civil experts, private enterprises, NGOs, local governments, and central government, was able to respond to the COVID-19 effectively. Various data such as Korea epdemiological survey, OECD data on medical institutions, COVID-19 confirmed cases, and mobility data were used to show that the success of K-quarantine was not due to the state's preemptive action but to the social interaction of the government and civil participants. In particular, it was pointed out that the myth of the state's preemptive response in a disaster with high uncertainty may reduce the flexibility and responsiveness of civil participants in a future disaster. 

Abstract : Comprehensive COVID-19 diagnostic testing is regarded as a critical in preventing the spread of the virus, but only a few studies thus far have sought to assess the net benefits that sustained testing might offer, despite the importance accorded by researchers to evidence-based policy making. We performed a cost-benefit analysis using the extended SEIR model to assess whether maintaining the current level of COVID-19 testing is an economically rational choice compared with counterfactual scenarios. Our results suggest that the relationship between the net benefits and the level of testing assumes an inverted-U shape, which means that comprehensive diagnostic testing is effective in flattening the infection curve, but it is a financial burden to society. This study provides evidence that comprehensive diagnostic testing would not be a good strategy for countries with scant financial and medical resources, considering the costs. Furthermore, undertaking comprehensive diagnostic testing without implementing other strategies is a limited approach to preventing the spread of infectious diseases. Therefore, this study suggests that policy makers should find ways to improve the effectiveness of tests, not just increase the level of tests.

Abstract : COVID-19 is an unexpected and unprecedented disaster that is significantly affecting the daily life of South Koreans. Although the memory of SARS, H1N1, and MERS is painful for South Koreas, the high infection rate, the high fatality rate, the shortage of medical facilities to cope with it, border closings on a global scale, a plunging economy, and the need for massive emergency relief make COVID-19 different. Despite these hardships and challenges, South Korea has been praised as an exemplar for its effective responses. As of early December, South Korea has 732 infection cases per million and 11 deaths per million, which is almost 80 times lower than that of the US. And as figure 1 shows, the largest daily increase in new cases in late Februarywas below 1,000, and the second and third waves of infections had lower peaks, which implies effective control of COVID19.

Abstract : Current evidence-based policy (EBP) was overly dependent on available data, resulting in the problem of empiricist bias in which evidence defines policy issues. It also tended to emphasize only the evidence itself without discussing how to systematically make questions. To compensate for these limitations, this paper presents a question-driven EBP model with a key procedure for identifying and organizing questions.

This paper presents a method for systematically eliciting questions using textual materials from various sources, such as media articles and minutes from the National Assembly. Using various analytical methods to consider the context of the text, we derive important words, important topics, and important sentences and systematically identify questions. Next, we restructure the identified questions to build a question map, combine the appropriate data for the questions, and perform an analysis on it. By utilizing the statistical evidence generated through the above procedures to understand policy issues and explore policy alternatives, we explore how useful question-driven EBP models are in the policy process.

Until now, policy studies or public administration studies have emphasized the importance of questions, but have failed to provide clear methods and procedures on how to find good questions and connect them to analysis. This paper is meaningful in that it presents a question-driven EBP model and confirms its usefulness through fine dust cases.

Abstract : This essay examines basic functions of crisis decision‐making—cognition, communication, coordination, and control—in response to COVID‐19. This crisis decision‐making framework is applied to cases from South Korea, Italy, and the United States as public officials grapple with how to recognize, respond, and recover from this deadly, invisible threat. The authors acknowledge the harsh trade‐off between the compelling need to limit transmission of the virus to protect public health and the consequent economic losses of halting social interaction. They draw implications from this crisis for better decision‐making and investment in a global information infrastructure system to manage large‐scale, multidisciplinary threats to the health, economy, and sustainability of the world's community of nations. The essay concludes that collective cognition, amplified by timely, valid communication and supported by sound planning, trained personnel, appropriate technology, and bold leadership, enables coordinated action needed to bring a large‐scale global crisis under control. 

Abstract This study explores the shared experience of Vietnamese female marriage migrants and their invited families during their stay in Korea. This study analyzed various issues around their experience and intention of inviting their original families in Vietnam using 2018 National Survey of Multicultural Families. Also the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 17 Vietnamese marriage migrants and their invited families. The study found that emotional support from invited families was crucial to Vietnamese marriage migrants and the instrumental support from invited families have made them enable to spend time in developing strong bonding with their husbands and engaging actively with their Vietnamese and Korean communities. Family reunification through Long-term family VISA made the positive effect on family dynamics of Vietnamese marriage migrants’ families and created unique opportunity for promoting the empowerment of Vietnamese marriage migrants.

Abstract : This study investigated the effects of neighborhood characteristics and accessibility to quality child care and social service on the exit of low-income mothers from Work First in North Carolina. The neighborhood has long been considered as critical to the well-being of marginalized populations in the social work field, but not fully investigated due to methodological limitations. Given the expanded funding for Child Care Subsidy under the Post-Welfare Reform era, the effect of the physical accessibility to subsidized child care is more critical to the usage of high-quality child care of low-income mothers than ever. This study employed the Geographic Information System to calculate the physical accessibility to quality child care and social resources in the neighborhood. It analyzed the effects of resource availability and neighborhood characteristics on welfare exit using survival analysis and multi-level analysis. The findings are as follows. First, the lengths of Work First stay were different by participants’ age, the number of children she had, and the driving time to quality child care and other social services. Second, the effects of physical access to quality child care and neighborhood affluence on the length of Work First stay varied by participants’ race/ethnic groups. Then, discussion and implication follow. Keywords: neighborhood effect, resource availability, welfare use, GIS, ethnic disparity

Abstract : The study attempted to examine the mobility after the COVID-19 crisis in ethnic enclaves and the areas with a high foreign resident population in the Seoul Metropolitan area. De facto population data of Seoul using LTE signals were utilized to investigate the mobility changes between Korean natives and foreign residents in six target areas. Data from November 2019 to June 2020 were selected for analyses--the analysis of de facto population changes at four-time points per day across the target period and the total daily de facto population compared to that of early November 2019 as the reference. For Korean natives, the de facto population in all target areas had declined, especially after spikes of confirmed cases or the Korean government issuing public health orders. On the other hand, foreign residents’ patterns of de facto population change differed across the target areas with varying compositions of foreign residents. Target areas with a high proportion of international students had similar mobility patterns between Korean natives and foreign residents. Target areas with ethnic enclaves, on the other hand, revealed distinctive mobility patterns of foreign residents form Korean natives. Implications of these findings for future research are suggested.