The Effect of Community Characteristics on Establishment of Local Healthy Family Support Centers

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine a potential association between community factors and the establishment of Local Healthy Family Support Centers (LHFSCs). Community factors were population size, community size, local finance independency, number of workplaces per 1,000 people, number of colleges, political party affiliation of mayor, and political party affiliation of congressman. Data of this study were collected from the census indicators of 222 communities from 2004 to 2014 and analyzed by frequency, mean, geographical information system mapping, and the binary logit analysis. The results of this study are as follows. First, LHFSCs are less likely to be established in communities in the provinces of Gangwon, Chungbuk, and Gyeongbuk. Second, the population size was positively related to the establishment of LHFSCs. Third, finance independency was positively associated with the establishment of LHFSCs. Forth, a mayor was more likely to establish LHFSCs if they were affiliated with the ruling conservative political party. However, the establishment of LHFSCs was not affected by other factors such as community scale, number of workplaces per 1,000 people, the number of colleges, and party affiliation of congressman. Thus, the conclusion suggests family policy implications to improve the geographical imbalance of LHFSCs based on the analysis results.