ABSTRACT


The Influence of the Meaning of Work on the Meaning of Life in the Elderly Work Project Participants

- Focusing on Mediation Effects of Support Expectation Attitude -


Lee, Jae Young
Adviser : Prof. Kim, Jin Suk, Ph. D.
Department of Social Welfare,
Graduate School of Chosun University


This study was to explore contributing factors which affect the meaning of life in old people who are participating in the elderly work project and to verify mediated effects of support expectation attitude from those factors.
For the purpose of this study, the analytic model was established and structured questionnaires were used to verify mediated effects of support expectation attitude about the influence on the meaning of life according to the meaning of work, characteristics of participants.
The contents of the questionnaires are composed of characteristics of participants, independent variables, dependent variables, and parameters. Characteristics of participants are categorized into two variables which are general characteristics and those in the elderly work project. The general characteristics are gender, age, religion, educational attainment, styles of a family, marital condition, subjective health condition, monthly living expenses, the standards of living, a work record, and family relationship. The characteristics in the elderly work project are the types of job, the working period, and participant satisfaction with the job
Independent variables are categorized by motivation systems which are achievement motivation as self-regard, physiological motivation as financial benefits, intrinsic motivation as fascinating tasks, and social motivation as social recognition.
Dependent variables selected the meaning of life which were divided into high-level meaning of life and low-level meaning of life. The low-level meaning of life consists of existential emptiness, pursuing the meaning of life, and completing the meaning of life
Last, the parameters selected support expectation attitude which is composed of support expectation and support evasion.
This study was conducted on 344 elderly people who were participating in the elderly work project in Welfare center of the old or Senior Club , Gwangju, from May 30 to Jul. 20 in 2012.
To analyze the questionnaires, Factory Analysis, Frequency, Standard Deviation, Reliability, ANOVA Analysis, Simple Regression, Multiple Regression and Stepwise Regression Analysis were used using SPSS 18.0 for Windows.
The findings of this study are as follows. First, this study showed that characteristics in the participants of the elderly work project are statistically inter-related to key variables. It showd that female old ladies, full-time home makers, the elderly living with their children, those with a low-level education, those feeling healthy, those with higher monthly cost of living, those who had been engaged in the agriculture or livestock industry, and those with a harmonious household have more satisfaction with the work in the relationship between general characteristics and the meaning of work.
Also, it showed that female old ladies, the uneducated, the elderly living with their children in marriage, those with subjective health, those with high-level standards of living, those with a harmonious household, and those who had been engaged in the agriculture or livestock industry hold themselves in high regard in the relationship between general characteristics and the meaning of life.
And, it showed that overall, support evasion is higher than support expectation and that female old ladies, the elderly living with their children in marriage, those with a low-level education, those with subjective health, and those who had been engaged in the agriculture or livestock industry have the same level of support expectation and of support evasion.
Taken together, these results described above showed that female old ladies with a low-level education, and the elderly who had been engaged in the agriculture or livestock industry have more value in participating in the elderly work project and they give more meaning to their lives and have more support expectation attitude. Therefore, this study showed that the effect of the elderly work project was meaningful among the neglected class of people from jobs in past years. In addition, the result that the elderly living with their children in marriage and with a harmonious household give more meaning to their lives and have more support expectation attitude secured the importance of relationship in the family during the old period. And the result that those with more subjective health have the higher level in key variables also secured the importance of health during the old age.
Second, this study showed that there appeared significant differences in the relationships between the characteristics of the elderly work project and the key variables. Difference in the analysis of the characteristics of the elderly work project and the meaning of life and that of work showed that the participants found more meaning of life and of work in the types of job such as Green Village Management, Elderly Instructor Dispatch, and in the working period for 3 months to 6 months, and in the jobs with which the participants have more satisfaction. Also, support expectation attitude brought the same results as above.
These results suggest that elderly suitable job types of business development and persistence is required.
Third, that support expectation attitude have the impact on the meaning of work have the results as follows. Self-regard and social recognition have more value in support evasion and financial benefits have more value in support expectation. These results suggest that preferably the elderly should try to avoid receiving support, if independent living is possible.
Forth, this study showed that the meaning of work have the positive impact on the meaning of life. The chances to participate in the elderly work project prevent the elderly from losing the meaning of life, and still more, make them find the meaning of life. In addition, this study showed that self-regard, fascinating tasks, and social recognition have more causes than financial benefits on participating in the elderly work project.
Fifth, this study showed that support expectation attitude have the positive impact on the meaning of life. In detail, support expectation and support evasion reduced Existential Emptiness, and enlarged Completing the Meaning of Life.
These results suggest that support expectation attitude of the elderly have positive impact on the meaning of life regardless of support expectation or support evasion. Therefore, it is necessary that the problem of caregiving burden distinguish from support expectation attitude.
Last, this study to verify mediated effects of support expectation attitude about the influence on the meaning of life according to the meaning of work has the following results. Support expectation and support evasion had mediated effects between the meaning of work and the meaning of life. In detail, support expectation and support evasion reduced Existential emptiness, and enlarged Completing the meaning of life. Therefore, these mediated effect of support expectation attitude suggests that the issue for supporting senior citizens is not the view of burden but alternatives to making the elderly find the meaning of life.
This study aimed to suggest alternatives for elderly problems like suiciding due to losing the meaning of their life. The results of this study implied that there are meaningful correlations between the meaning of work and that of life in the elderly and logotherapy mainly used in the science of nursing or psychology can be applied to the field of social welfare including elderly problems in our society.

key word : Elderly Work Project, Meaning of Work, Meaning of Life,
Support Expectation Attitudes.